Around Town

The Virginia Wine Festival is no longer coming to Tysons.

The festival informed ticket-holders overnight that its upcoming stay at Lerner Town Square (8025 Galleria Drive) on May 31 has been canceled due to “unforeseen circumstances,” one prospective attendee told FFXnow.


Opinion

Hoping to beat the heat? Over a dozen swimming pools in Fairfax County provide a space to cool down, and some are complete with nearby recreation facilities.

Here are the nominees for “Best Swimming Facility in Fairfax” as part of our FFXnow Readers’ Choice Awards. See your favorite location below? If not, write them in!

Voting will close in two weeks. Be sure to cast your vote before 9 a.m. Friday, May 30.

Voting for the Best Outdoor Dining in Fairfax is still taking place. Be sure to cast your vote before voting closes next Friday at 9 a.m.

Two weeks ago, we voted on the Best Ice Cream and Dessert Shop in Fairfax. The results are now official:

  1. Moo Thru Herndon
  2. Toby’s Homemade Ice Cream
  3. Peterson’s Ice Cream Depot

News

Traffic will be limited to one lane on a portion of Walker Road in Great Falls this weekend.

Flaggers will direct traffic on the 0.2-mile stretch of road between Park Royal Drive and Walker Mill Road from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday) and Sunday (May 18), the Virginia Department of Transportation announced.


Around Town

Get your coffee and pie ready: “Twin Peaks” is coming to Tysons.

Tickets will go on-sale at 10 a.m. today (Friday) for Twin Peaks: Conversation With The Stars at Capital One Hall (7750 Capital One Tower Road).


Event

Flowers, Fine Art & Fashion is an immersive cultural experience presented by People of The Garden LLC, where nature, creativity, and modest couture converge in a breathtaking indoor garden setting.

Guests will journey through a living landscape featuring dramatic floral installations, botanical art, and a one-of-a-kind rectangular runway designed around lush greenery and sculptural plantings. Throughout the evening, attendees will experience a curated runway presentation showcasing modest fashion designers, alongside original fine art, artisan vendors, and interactive floral experiences.


News

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors around midnight on Tuesday (May 13) voted 9-0 to move forward with a plan for affordable housing on the soon-to-be-vacated Franconia Governmental Center site.

The vote — unanimous except for absent Springfield District Superivsor Pat Herrity — came after hours of public testimony for and against the proposal to amend the county’s Comprehensive Plan related to the 22.75-acre site known as the Franconia Triangle.


Countywide
The parking lot for Centreville Square (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

FCPS Teachers Struggle to Afford Living in Fairfax — “Fairfax County teachers largely can’t afford to rent or buy a house near the school where they teach, according to a new report from the National Council on Teacher Quality. The report said Virginia’s largest school district is one of the Top 10 least affordable places in the nation when it comes to new teachers and housing.” [WTOP]

Laid-Off Federal Workers Flood Job Market — “At least 121,000 federal workers have been laid off or singled out for layoffs since Jan. 20, estimates CNN, and the DMV likely doesn’t have enough white collar jobs to absorb the number of local former feds now looking for new positions, per Indeed.” [Axios DC]

Youngkin’s Budget Vetoes Rejected — “The clerk of Virginia’s House of Delegates on Wednesday night rejected three of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s recent vetoes in the state’s revised two-year budget.” The vetoes of items related to Medicaid and state employee health benefits were deemed impermissible under Virginia’s constitution by Keeper of the Rolls Paul Nardo. [Virginia Mercury]

Korean Street Food Restaurant Opens — “Oiso, a restaurant focusing on Korean street food, is having a soft opening on May 15. The restaurant, located at 7133-C Columbia Pike, Annandale, is in the space formerly occupied by Gom Ba Woo … Oiso will have a Grand Opening on May 22, with free Yoju (soju and yogurt) cocktail tastings 4-8 p.m.” [Annandale Today]

Retired Nats Star’s Former Home for Sale — “Former Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg sold his McLean home just last year following his retirement from baseball. Now, that home is coming back on the market. The nearly 12,000 square-foot house will be listed for sale this Friday for $9.25 million.” [DC UrbanTurf]

Accounting Firm to Open Tysons Office — “WithumSmith + Brown PC, one of the country’s largest accounting firms, is closing its Bethesda and Baltimore offices and opening new offices in Columbia and Tysons.” The Tysons office will be 11,000 square feet in size and located at 1800 Tysons Blvd. [Washington Business Journal]

Clothing Diverted From Landfill — “Fairfax County staff joined regional partners for a tour of the Helpsy textile recycling facility, where unwanted clothing is baled for reuse or recycling Since January, Fairfax residents have helped divert over 10,000 pounds of clothing from landfills.” [Fairfax County Government/X]

It’s Friday — There’s a 60% chance of rain, with showers and thunderstorms likely before 11 am. Cloudy skies will gradually become mostly sunny, reaching a high of 87. Friday night, there is a 50% chance of severe showers and thunderstorms, as temperatures drop to approximately 69. [NWS]


Around Town

Good Thursday evening, Fairfax County. Let’s take a look back at today’s stories and a look forward to tomorrow’s event calendar.

🕗 News recap

The following articles were published earlier today — May 15, 2025.

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on Friday throughout the county, from our event calendar.

⛈️ Friday’s forecast

Expect showers and thunderstorms to occur primarily before 11am, with chances of more showers between 11am and 2pm, and possible showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Partly sunny skies and a high of 87°F, accompanied by a west wind of 3-7 mph. The chance of precipitation stands at 60%, with new rainfall amounts between a tenth and a quarter of an inch; however, higher amounts are possible during thunderstorms. Friday night will be mostly cloudy with a low of 68°F and a southwest wind of 3-5 mph, with a 50% chance of showers and potentially severe thunderstorms. See more from Weather.gov.

🌅 Tonight’s sunset

The MonumentCam screenshot above is used with permission of the Trust for the National Mall and courtesy of EarthCam.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.


Countywide

The Fairfax County Courthouse will be closed again tomorrow (Friday) due to ongoing technical issues.

All courts fully suspended operations today (Thursday) to address “ongoing technical difficulties” that the county hoped would be quickly resolved. When announcing this afternoon that the closure will be extended a day, the county elaborated that the issue is related to the courthouse’s “electronic access control system.”


News

The Monument Drive Transit Center is a fairly grandiose name for what’s basically a large parking garage and bus stop, but as the facility approaches its one-year anniversary, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation credits the facility for an uptick in bus ridership along I-66.

The $43 million facility launched at 12113 Government Center Parkway near Fairfax Corner last June with 820 free parking spaces, electric vehicle charging stations, a secure bike room and bike racks. It connects to a large roundabout for buses that serve 13 Fairfax Connector routes and two Metrobus routes.