Fairfax County Fire and Rescue personnel at the groundbreaking of Gunston Fire Station 20 in the Mason Neck area of Lorton, Oct. 22, 2025 (via FCFRD/Facebook)
Community leaders were on-hand in Lorton late last month to break ground on the new Gunston Fire Station 20 in the Mason Neck area of Lorton.
The groundbreaking on Oct. 22 signaled the formal start of construction on the new LEED Gold-certified, 17,600 square-foot, two-story, four-bay facility, which is expected to be completed in fall 2027.
A banner over Maple Avenue alerts passersby to the Vienna Town Council election on Nov. 4, 2025 (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Vienna Mayor Linda Colbert will serve a third term, and Sandra Allen emerged as the odd person out in last night’s Vienna Town Council elections.
Pursuing her first reelection bid after narrowly winning in 2023, Allen was one of seven candidates vying for the council’s six seats. She received 3,146 votes, trailing the next lowest vote-getter, Dann Nash, who secured 3,917 votes, according to unofficial results from the Virginia Department of Elections.
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President Donald Trump speaks during a breakfast with Senate and House Republicans in the State Dining Room of the White House on Nov. 5, 2025 (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
By LISA MASCARO and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press
Krop's Crops in Great Falls (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Nearly two months after Krop’s Crops was devastated by a fire, its owners are hopeful they’ll be able to recover, thanks to an outpouring of support from the community.
The Sept. 9-10 fire consumed a one-story barn and the main marketplace building at the family-owned produce farm in Great Falls (11110 Georgetown Pike). No injuries were reported, but everything in storage, including its antique collectibles and Christmas sleigh, was lost, co-owner Andy Krop says.
Toastique will open in the former Greenheart Juice storefront at 208 Dominion Road NE in Vienna (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Just a few months after Greenheart Juice abruptly closed its doors in Vienna, a new homegrown, health-focused cafe has moved into the nearly-century-old building it occupied off the Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail.
As rumored, the gourmet toast chain Toastique took over Greenheart’s space at 208 Dominion Road NE and now anticipates opening to the public at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 15.
A lane is blocked off for construction on a sidewalk along Park Street in Vienna (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Dems Sweep N. Va. House Seats — “Democratic candidates won all 30 of Northern Virginia’s seats in the Virginia House of Delegates on Tuesday as the party seemed likely to significantly expand its 51-49 majority in the state’s lower chamber. As of 9 p.m. Democrats had already picked up four seats statewide, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.” [Inside NoVA]
Virginia Launches Statewide Food Drive — “Building on a temporary state-level version of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) announced last week, state agencies are collaborating on a food drive effort to further bolster food-insecure communities around Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Tuesday morning.” [Virginia Mercury]
DCA Flight Evacuated for Bomb Threat — “All flights were grounded at Reagan National Airport midday Tuesday while a United Airlines jet was evacuated over a reported security threat … The main runway reopened at 12:50 p.m. but many flights were delayed by about an hour ‘due to security,’ according to the FAA.” [ARLnow]
Bus Driver Crashes on Dulles Toll Road — “Crews with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department responded to a crash involving a bus at around 6 a.m. on Route 267, just before the Wiehle Avenue exit.” The Fairfax Connector bus had hit a guardrail, and the trapped driver had to be extracted before getting taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. No passengers were on board, as the bus wasn’t in service at the time. [DC News Now]
Former Va. Rep. Weighs in on Shutdown — Former Virginia Rep. Tom Davis, “a Republican who served on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and preceded the late Rep. Gerry Connolly in Congress, said the House of Representatives has done its part to try and end the shutdown by passing a continuing resolution. But, he said, the Senate needs to take action, which would require ‘bipartisan buy-in, and at this point, we don’t have it.'” [WTOP]
Fairfax City Names New Schools Head — “At Monday night’s regular meeting, the City of Fairfax School Board announced that it will be appointing Dr. Dustin Wright as the new superintendent, effective Dec. 1. He will succeed former Superintendent Jeff Platenberg, who retired in July.” [Patch]
Algae Bloom Spotted at Reston Lake — “Lake Thoreau is experiencing a minor algae bloom impacting cove areas in the areas surrounding South Lakes shopping center. RA Environmental staff members are testing the area and advise people and animals avoid contact with the water at this time.” [Reston Association]
McLean Student Tests Drinking Water — “Virginia high schooler Hera Lu-Yang set out in the spring to determine how safe drinking water is in Northern Virginia by conducting tests in numerous localities, including Alexandria, for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances, also called PFAS.” The BASIS Independent School student found “that Alexandria’s water contains a high level of PFAS chemicals — almost three times that of neighboring localities.” [Alexandria Times]
It’s Wednesday — Expect sunny skies and a high near 70, accompanied by a southwest wind of 7 to 16 mph, with gusts reaching up to 32 mph. Wednesday night will be mostly clear, with temperatures dropping to around 45. The southwest wind will blow at 13 to 16 mph but will shift to the northwest after midnight, with potential gusts as high as 43 mph. [NWS]
Expect sunny skies and a high near 70, accompanied by a southwest wind at 7-16 mph and gusts up to 31 mph. Wednesday night will be mostly clear with a low of around 44, as a southwest wind of 13-16 mph turns northwest after midnight, with potential gusts reaching 43 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
Campaign signs outside Cedar Park Elementary School in Vienna for the 2025 Republican and Democratic statewide tickets (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Democrat Abigail Spanberger won the governor’s race in Virginia today (Tuesday), defeating Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, the Associated Press declared at 7:58 p.m.
Spanberger will succeed Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is not allowed to run for a second consecutive term. Her victory aligns with recent voting patterns in Virginia, which picks its governors the year after a presidential election and tends to elect someone of the opposite party of the president.
A growing fast-casual chain specializing in chicken salad will open its doors in Herndon later this month.
Chicken Salad Chick is set for a grand opening at Herndon Centre (494 Elden Street) on Tuesday, Nov. 18, kicking off a series of promotional giveaways that will continue through that Saturday (Nov. 22).