On March 12, a resident of Fairfax County, or possibly the cities of Fairfax or Falls Church died from COVID-19.
Reported to the Virginia Department of Health within the past week, the most recent confirmed death brings the Fairfax Health District’s death toll from the pandemic up to 1,500 people.
In a sequence of events that could’ve been ripped out of a pulpy crime thriller, a man in Vienna was reportedly taken for a ride and robbed at gunpoint — potentially by a trio spotted patronizing a local gun shop earlier that day.
Around 2:40 p.m. on April 9, the man was picked up by three men in a vehicle, one of them an acquaintance, at the Giant shopping center (359 Maple Avenue), according to the Vienna Police Department’s recap for the week of April 8-14.
Fairfax County firefighters have been working for almost two hours now to extinguish a fire at an apartment in the Fair Oaks area.
Units arrived on the scene in the 4200 block of Mozart Brigade Lane before 11 a.m., the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department reported on social media.
The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority wants the public’s input on more than two dozen projects that could drastically change travel in the region.
The projects cover a six-year funding span and involve over $1.2 billion in requests, though the authority acknowledged it’s not immediately clear how much funding will be available.
Environmental advocates say Fairfax County’s government, residents, and businesses need to drastically accelerate their efforts to go green.
During budget hearings last week, speakers urged the county to increase its funding for environmental initiatives and recommended adopting electric vehicle rebates — which the state hasn’t been funding — as well as zero energy buildings and other measures.
In the morning and afternoon, traffic on Herndon Parkway in the southwestern part of town settles into a sluggish crawl. While some congestion is inevitable in a modern-day commute, some town leaders wonder if another culprit can be to blame: a rise in cut-through traffic in the town.
Councilmember Sean Regan, who is pushing the town to explore the issue, believes a big chunk of Herndon’s traffic problem is caused by out-of-towners who do not live or work in the town. Some are commuters from the west seeking a quick path to avoid the main toll plaza.
Vienna was shaken on Saturday (April 16) when a fire tore through a house that has stood in the town for more than a century.
Units from the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department were called to the 100 block of Park Street NE around 4:28 a.m. for a house fire.
Saturday Morning Shooting in Herndon Under Investigation — “Officers are investigating a shooting in the 2100 block of Astoria Circle in Herndon. One person taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Suspect(s) believed to have left the area in a silver sedan.” [FCPD/Twitter]
New Route 123 to I-66 Ramp to Open Tomorrow — “The new permanent ramp from Route 123 (Chain Bridge Road) South to I-66 West is planned to open during the early morning hours on or about Tuesday, April 19. The current temporary left turn and connector ramp from Route 123 South to I-66 West will close as part of this work.” [VDOT]
The weekend is almost here. Before you get distracted by panda videos or head to bed for some much-needed sleep after avoiding those pranksters, let’s revisit the past week of news in Fairfax County.
Here are the 10 most-read stories on FFXnow this week:
Whenever the planned I-66 Trail is unveiled, it might have some glaring gaps in Fairfax County.
For a second time, the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission has opted not to recommend funding for the county’s planned 1-mile segment of trail from the Vienna Metro station near Nutley Street to Blake Lane in Oakton.
