Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has rejected legislation that would’ve opened the door for a casino in Fairfax County.
The governor vetoed SB 756 from Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell today (Thursday) ahead of an April 13 deadline for her to take action on all of the bills passed by the General Assembly during its 2026 session.
Community members may soon get more information on local transportation projects across Fairfax County earlier in the development process — but they also may find their input opportunities cut off earlier, too.
That was one potential scenario considered by county supervisors and staff on April 6, as they brainstormed ways to improve a process they acknowledged can take frustratingly long.
Metro Seeks Funding for New Fare Machines — “Over the decades Metro’s fare vending machines have not changed very much, but this Thursday the transit agency’s board of directors will vote on a plan that would get rid of them. Metro wants to spend more than 93 million dollars to buy and install new machines” that could also be used to “plan trips and receive alerts.” [WJLA]
Dulles Toll Road Closures in Tysons This Weekend — “Beginning on or about Friday night, April 10, and continuing nightly through Sunday night, April 12, all lanes of eastbound Dulles Toll Road (Route 267) will be closed and detoured between Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) and the I-495 (Capital Beltway) interchange … These closures are to accommodate overhead sign work as part of the 495 NEXT project.” [VDOT]
Spanberger Tries to Balance Governing and Campaigning — “Gov. Abigail Spanberger on Wednesday pushed back against criticism from some fellow Democrats who say she has not done enough publicly to rally support for Virginia’s April 21 redistricting referendum. Spanberger argued that she has been clear in her support while prioritizing governing in the early months of her administration.” [Virginia Mercury]
Great Falls Family Cheers on Tanking Wizards — “Erin-Michael Gill and his son Nicholas had tickets just behind the scorer’s table. Good ones. They got up Sunday morning in Great Falls, Va., went to Easter Mass at 7 a.m., and then drove four and a half hours from the D.C. area to get [to Barclays Center in New York City] for the 3:30 p.m. tipoff.” They were among the hundreds crowding the arena for a Kids’ Day game between the Wizards and Nets, despite the teams’ dire records. [The Athletic]
Park Service to Restore GW Parkway Vistas — “A major phase of the years-long repaving project on the George Washington Parkway is finally winding down. And now the National Park Service will focus on rehabbing the roadway’s trademark views,” considering several options for 15 locations along a 2.65-mile segment of the roadway. [Axios DC]
Annandale Cafe Eyes Second Location — “Underdog Coffee & Bread, the café that opened on Columbia Pike in Annandale a year ago, is opening a second location on Carlin Springs Road in Bailey’s Crossroads next to REI.” [Annandale Today]
Wonder Wagon Coming to Vienna — “Join us to explore with the Parks & Rec Department’s Wonder Wagon at Patrick Henry Library’s Temporary Location (Cedar Park Shopping Center)!” The mobile nature center will stop by the temporary library at 262 Cedar Lane from 10:30-11:30 a.m. tomorrow (Friday). [Fairfax County Public Library]
New Look for Falls Church Pottery Studio — “A paint-your-own-pottery studio in Falls Church has received a freshly glazed look under new ownership. Jessi Cash, who has worked at Clay Cafe Studios since 2019, took over the reins from retired owner Gayla Hassett in January.” [ARLnow]
New Legal Notice — Establishment seeks mixed beverage, wine and beer on/off-premises license. [Public Notices]
It’s Thursday — The day will be mostly sunny with a high of around 62°F. Winds will be calm initially, becoming southeast at about 6 mph in the afternoon. Night will be mostly clear, with temperatures dropping to around 42°F and southeast winds between 3 and 6 mph. [NWS]
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As the current school year enters its final stretch, the Fairfax County School Board is considering tweaking the calendar for the next year in response to mounting complaints about disruptions to class schedules.
At the board’s meeting tomorrow (Thursday), members led by governance committee chair Melanie Meren will propose nixing Indigenous Peoples’ Day and Veterans Day as official student holidays and limiting the number of scheduled early release days to four per year.
Fairfax County transportation officials think they have found a better way to prioritize and manage sidewalk, trail and crosswalk improvements after several rocky years.
Yesterday (Tuesday), the Board of Supervisors informally ratified a proposal for Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) staff to develop a three-year cycle for listing all potential projects, then prioritizing them based on cost and community impact considerations.
Chantilly-Based Company Providing Tech to ICE — “Immigration and Customs Enforcement is using spyware tools that can intercept encrypted messages as part of the agency’s efforts to disrupt fentanyl traffickers, according to a letter sent last week by the agency’s acting director, Todd Lyons.” Last year, the Trump administration revived a $2 million contract with Paragon Solutions, an Israeli company with a U.S. branch in Chantilly, to use Graphite. [NPR/VPM News]
Opposition to Vienna Pool Surfaces — “Local officials said the community has been asking for a pool for decades, and the demand intensified when one wasn’t added during renovations to the Vienna Community Center … But critics of the project are frustrated about the cost, and have questioned whether a pool is needed. In some pockets of Vienna, lawn signs that say ‘small pool, BIG cost’ have gone up.” [WTOP]
Elections Could Make Case for Ranked Choice Voting — “Backers of ranked-choice voting (RCV) believe this fall’s congressional races may bolster their case for changing the format of statewide elections. If Virginia voters approve the congressional redistricting constitutional amendment on April 21, crowded ballots in many parts of the state” could expose flaws in the current winner-take-all approach, RCV supporters say. [ARLnow]
Va. HIV Health Clinics Strained — “People living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus — and safety net clinics that serve them — have spent the past year on edge, squeezed by federal funding cuts and a state health department billing error that has made critical medication harder to access.” [Virginia Mercury]
ICE Arrests Up in Virginia — “Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made nearly 20,000 arrests in D.C., Maryland and Virginia from the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second administration last year through March 10, according to a Washington Post analysis of recent federal data. By comparison, in the last full year of President Joe Biden’s administration, ICE recorded nearly 3,800 arrests in the region.” [Washington Post]
Wexton Endorses Former Va. First Lady — “Former U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton has thrown her support behind former Virginia first lady Dorothy McAuliffe in the latter’s bid for Congress in the proposed 7th Congressional District under Democrats’ redistricting plan.” [Inside NoVA]
Annandale Chicken Restaurant Rebrands — “Restaurateur Eddie Ryu wants the public to know his restaurant has a new name, but the food has not changed. K Chicken, located at 6653-H Little River Turnpike in the Willow Run retail center in Annandale, was formerly known as Chi Mc.” [Annandale Today]
Sisters Thai to Pair Dining and Dancing — “Sisters Tysons will host a weekly Songkran dining event on Fridays in April, pairing a family-style Thai menu with live traditional dance performances at its Capital One Center restaurant … The event is tied to Songkran, the Thai New Year.” [Patch]
It’s Wednesday — Expect sunny weather with a high near 54°F and a northeast wind around 6 mph. Tonight, skies will be mostly clear with a low around 35°F and areas of frost developing after 3 a.m. The southeast wind will range from 3 to 6 mph. [NWS]
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After a warmer-than-usual start to spring, the D.C. region is expected to be hit overnight with a throwback blast of winter.
The National Weather Service has issued a Freeze Warning for much of the area, including Fairfax County, starting at midnight and continuing until 9 a.m. tomorrow (Wednesday).
Parole Denied for Woman Involved in Killing — “Convicted murderer Erika Sifrit has been refused parole in connection with the killing of a Fairfax, Virginia, couple in Ocean City, Maryland, in 2002, WTOP has learned … Sifrit appeared in her first parole hearing since she was sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years for her role in the 2002 murders of Joshua Ford and Martha Crutchley.” [WTOP]
Route 28 Widening to Be Considered — Today (Tuesday), the Prince William Board of County Supervisors “will discuss whether to move forward with plans to widen Route 28 from Liberia Avenue, in Manassas, to the Fairfax County line. Last year, the board voted to cancel the Route 28 bypass project” that had been in the works since 2019, frustrating some Fairfax County leaders. [WTOP]
Va. News Coverage Declining — “The number of ‘news deserts’ in Virginia more than doubled between 2023 and 2025, per Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism’s ongoing State of Local News project … As of last year, 16 Virginia counties didn’t have a local news source. Another eight were at high risk of losing theirs.” [Axios Richmond]
AI Already Shaping Virginia Job Market — “Virginia is quickly becoming a national hotspot for AI adoption — and disruption, according to a Virginia Chamber Foundation report released last year, looking at the effect of the technology on statewide jobs … The Virginia report estimates 1.5 million jobs statewide could be affected.” [Axios DC]
State to Rejoin RGGI — “Virginia is poised to reenter the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative this summer, a move that could again add a monthly charge to electricity customers’ bills as utilities resume buying carbon credits.” The General Assembly passed legislation directing the Department of Environmental Quality and Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources David Bulova to finalize regulations for participating in the program by May 21. [Virginia Mercury]
Springfield Library Reopens After Emergency Closure — “We are pleased to announce that Richard Byrd Library will reopen with normal operating hours beginning Monday, April 6 at 10 a.m. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we worked to replace the branch’s heating system,” which forced the library to temporarily close in December. [Fairfax County Public Library]
FCDOT Seeks Input on Proposed Tysons Street — The Fairfax County Department of Transportation is gauging interest in a public hearing on the planned Lincoln Street that would connect Old Meadow Road and Magarity Road in Tysons. Requests for a hearing must be submitted via written letter to FCDOT project manager Sonia Shahnaj by the end of this Friday (April 10). [Patch]
Glass-Blowing Studio Planned in Lorton — “Lorton’s Workhouse Arts Center is in the process of creating a new public glassblowing studio called the Hot Shop. This new studio will transform Workhouse’s Building W-7A into a space with specialized glass-working equipment and facilities.” Other upcoming additions to the former prison campus include a pizzeria partnered with Bunnyman Brewing. [Northern Virginia Magazine]
It’s Tuesday — Expect a sunny day with a high around 53°F and northwest winds blowing at 10 to 14 mph, gusting up to 26 mph. Tonight will be clear, with temperatures dropping to about 33°F and a north wind at 6 to 8 mph. [NWS]
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A Virginia bill crafted in memory of Oakton High School students killed on Blake Lane in 2022 is on its way to becoming law.
Del. Holly Seibold (D-12), whose district includes part of Oakton, has been pushing for a bill (HB 994) to expand speed camera locations to “safety red zones” designated by the state. The bill passed the Virginia General Assembly and is awaiting action from Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D).
Fairfax County drivers can expect to see an increase in traffic enforcement this month.
Local law enforcement will revive their Road Shark initiative, which aims to reduce speeding and reckless driving, later in April in conjunction with National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, the Fairfax County Police Department said.
