Beacon Center Wendy’s Misses Opening — “Dozens of excited people lined up outside the restaurant’s doors located at 6634 Richmond Highway in the Beacon Center shopping center for the Wendy’s location’s opening. However, no one from the restaurant showed up to open the doors, leaving everyone quite disappointed.” [ABC7]

Northern Virginia Losing Economic “Mojo,” Researcher Says — “[Terry] Clower, director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University, provided an overview of the region’s economy for the more than 100 attendees at the breakfast, at Belle Haven Country Club. He noted that while the Northern Virginia economy is resilient and the unemployment rate is low, there are headwinds.” [Inside NoVA]


Person Trapped in Car in Annandale — “Approximately 10:45 a.m., [Sunday] units were on the scene of a car overturned in the 5000 block of Backlick Road. One occupant was trapped. Extricated by Rescue Squad 426, Edsall Road, and transported to hospital with minor injuries.” [FCFRD/Twitter]

Innovation Station Development Nears Vote — Loudoun County supervisors discussed the latest draft of the Rivana at Innovation Station project last week, scheduling a vote for May 16. Straddling the Fairfax County border, the development “could include more than 2,700 apartments or condominiums, 450 hotel rooms, 2.4 million square feet of office space, 347,000 square feet of commercial space and 127,000 square feet of ‘civic uses,’ the last of which could include a performing arts center.” [Loudoun Times-Mirror]


Fairfax County is currently set to keep its real estate tax rate the same as last year, but some local residents accused county leadership of trying to disguise a tax hike for local residents.

During a meeting on Tuesday (April 11), the Board of Supervisors held a public hearing for the fiscal year 2024 tax rate, which is likely to hold steady at $1.11 per $100 of assessed value.


Updated at 12:55 p.m. — The National Park Service has delayed the GW Parkway changes due to forecasts calling for inclement weather over the weekend. The lane shift is now expected to begin around April 21-24.

Earlier: Reminder: Southbound GW Parkway Closure Begins — “Starting Saturday, the National Park Service will begin making changes that will slow traffic on the northern part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway until December 2025…On the northbound side, there will be three lanes instead of the usual two, with the middle of the three being reversible.” [ABC7]


It’s repaving and restriping season once again, with public meetings coming later this month on proposed projects that would add bicycle lanes and improve crosswalks.

April marks the beginning of an annual process that ends in November with hundreds of miles of roadway being repaved and restriped by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT).


Report: County 911 Center Contributed to Confusion on CPR Call — “When firefighters and medics were sent to the wrong Reston, Virginia Metro station last month for a man in cardiac arrest Fairfax County blamed Metro…A recording of Metro’s call along with 911 center documents show Fairfax County provided both misleading and wrong information in its official statements.” [STATer911]

McLean Mac and Cheese Startup Lands New Funding — “McLean frozen food brand 8 Myles Inc. is closing a $1.05 million seed round this week to expand its operations and hire its first-ever full time employee. Co-founded by Myles Powell in 2015, 8 Myles makes frozen homestyle macaroni and cheese dinners that use no preservatives or artificial ingredients.” [DC Inno]


Fairfax County and the rest of the D.C. area should be on alert for potential outdoor fire hazards today (Wednesday), the National Weather Service says.

A combination of wind gusts and dry weather has created an “elevated threat” of wildfires throughout the region until the early evening, according to a special weather statement issued just after 9 a.m.


Metro Worker Fired After Overrunning Innovation Station — “On March 17, safety commission officials said Tuesday, a train operator put his train into [automatic mode] several times during the day. He was caught when his train shot past the Innovation Center station platform in Virginia, triggering a Metro probe into the platform overrun.” [The Washington Post]

Disciplinary Incidents Rise in FCPS — “The number of disciplinary incidents reported in Fairfax County, Virginia, public schools more than doubled in the first semester of the current school year, compared to the first semester of the 2021-22 academic year, according to preliminary county data.” [WTOP]


Several county-run farmers markets are returning for the spring season this month with the remainder opening soon after.

The Fairfax County Park Authority operates 10 farmers markets across the county where residents can pick up fresh veggies, fruit, meat, and other locally produced goodies.


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