Update: A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s order freezing federal grants and loans minutes before it was set to take effect at 5 p.m.
Earlier: Fairfax County officials are scrambling to assess how a new federal directive halting financial aid programs might impact local services and capital projects.
Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid is requesting an additional $268.3 million from the county for fiscal year 2026, with most of it going toward a 7% across-the-board pay raise for teachers and staff.
The raise, costing $213 million, is part of a newly negotiated collective bargaining agreement between the school board and the recently formed Fairfax Education Unions. Whether the county can afford it, however, is still an open question.
The Town of Herndon is considering adding more than a dozen infrastructure and facility projects to its capital improvement plan (CIP).
Presented to the Herndon Planning Commission at a work session on Jan. 13, the proposed fiscal years 2026-2031 CIP features a total of 40 projects — 16 of them new — that would cost an estimated $268.6 million over the next five years, including more than $32.3 million for the upcoming fiscal year that will start on July 1.
Fairfax County Public Schools needs $2.6 billion over the next decade to address renovations and construction projects already in its pipeline, school officials say.
While $428 million is available from past bond referendums, it’s far from enough to cover the school system’s current priorities, which were laid out in a draft Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for fiscal years 2026-2030 presented to the Fairfax County School Board on Tuesday (Jan. 14).
After years of anticipation, the Mount Vernon RECenter is skating closer to its grand reopening.
The Fairfax County Park Authority plans to host an information session next Thursday, Jan. 23, at 7 p.m. in the Belle View Elementary School cafeteria (6701 Fort Hunt Road) to preview the revamped facility.
Fairfax County Public Schools won the Fairfax County Planning Commission’s support yesterday (Wednesday) for construction of a new Dunn Loring Elementary School.
The zoning recommendation, which now goes to the Board of Supervisors, will help support “decades of [student] growth to come,” Providence District Commissioner Jeremy Hancock said.
A plan to renovate and expand Herndon Elementary School got an enthusiastic vote of confidence from the town’s Architectural Review Board (ARB) last month.
At its meeting on Nov. 20, the Town of Herndon ARB unanimously approved Fairfax County Public Schools’ site design application for the project, which will update the existing building at 630 Dranesville Road and add another 25,000 square feet of space to better accommodate the growing student body.
Reston Association members will once again see an uptick in the annual assessment that they pay for the services and facilities provided by the homeowners’ organization.
The RA Board of Directors voted at its meeting on Thursday (Nov. 21) to adopt a $23 million budget for 2025 and implement a $848 assessment fee — a $31 or 3.8% increase from the current rate of $817, according to a memo from RA staff to the board.
Fairfax County School Board members hope an infusion of $3 million in additional cash will help create an objective evaluation of public school facilities as new renovation timetables are developed.
Board members voted 11-0, with one abstention, on Thursday (Nov. 14) to add the funding to $2 million previously appropriated. It will support upcoming work by consultants evaluating the conditions of all schools, athletic facilities and administrative buildings.
Design work is progressing on a planned redevelopment that will combine Fairfax County’s Joseph Willard Health Center and Fairfax City’s Stacy Sherwood Community Center.
Staff working on the approximately $130 million effort — a joint project of the county and city governments — will detail plans for the final design and construction phase at a forum on Saturday (Nov. 16) from 9 to 11 a.m. at the community center (3740 Blenheim Blvd).
