Fairfax County will alight with joy and celebration with a variety of opportunities to celebrate Juneteenth this coming weekend (June 17-19).
Just last week on June 6, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors officially recognized Monday, June 19 of this year as Juneteenth. Only recently anointed a state and federal holiday, the occasion commemorates the day in 1865 when enslaved men and women in Galveston, Texas finally heard the news that they had been freed two years prior under the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.
Below is a sampling of Juneteenth celebrations taking place across the county this weekend.
Fairfax Juneteenth Celebration
Saturday, June 17
Begins at 10 a.m.
Opening ceremony at Veteran Amphitheatre, then parade to Mount Calvary Baptist Church
Co-hosted by the City of Fairfax and Mount Calvary Baptist Church, the Fairfax Juneteenth Celebration will begin with a formal ceremony at 10 a.m. at the Veteran Amphitheatre at City Hall (10455 Armstrong Street), featuring anthem performances and guest speakers.
Following the ceremony, guests are invited to participate in a parade from the amphitheatre to the Mount Calvary Baptist Church entrance on School Street (4325 Chain Bridge Road). From there, festivities will commence, including food trucks, craft and informational vendors, live music and dance, a car show, family activities and sharing of African American history and genealogical resources.
Bull Run Church and Harris Cemetery Juneteenth Celebration
Saturday, June 17
10:30 a.m.-noon
Bull Run Regional Park, behind the Atlantis Waterpark
Returning for a second year in a row, the Juneteenth Celebration at Bull Run (7700 Bull Run Drive) seeks to “recognize the largest private emancipation of the enslaved” as a joint initiative between Virginia NAACP and NOVA Parks, per its website.
Attendees will hear from a guest speaker and participate in a Black Expo and a children’s activity. They are strongly encouraged to bring toddler and children’s books as donations to Centreville United Methodist Church’s local literacy ministry.
Gum Springs Community Day/Juneteenth
Saturday, June 17
10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Martin Luther King Jr. Park Reservable Picnic Area
This Community Day/Juneteenth celebration commemorates the 190th anniversary of the founding of Gum Springs, the oldest African American community in Fairfax County, by West Ford. The day will begin at the park (8115 Fordson Road) at 10:30 a.m. with a historic marker dedication and unveiling of a new sign with Ford’s story. A parade will kickoff at 11 a.m., and guests can also enjoy an auction, health fair, carnival rides, food and music.
Juneteenth Fairfax County Celebration at Frying Pan Farm Park
Saturday, June 17
11:00 a.m.-2 p.m. (divided into three one-hour-long sessions that you can sign up for here)
Frying Pan Farm Park
In addition to the chance to see adorable farm animals, Frying Pan Farm Park (2709 West Ox Road) is offering families a venue for celebrating Juneteenth. Guests will be able to engage in African American culture and history through “a special guest storyteller, live music, crafts, history, and food trucks offering African American cuisine,” per the county website. Read More
Fairfax County is beginning the process later this month of selecting the next inhabitants of the 238-year-old Mount Gilead property in Centreville.
The Fairfax County Parks Authority (FCPA) has scheduled a June 20 public Zoom meeting to discuss Mount Gilead’s inclusion in the county’s Resident Curator Program.
Under the program, the county leases out a historic property to a private citizen or nonprofit group who will occupy it long-term for free in exchange for an agreement to rehabilitate and maintain the property.
The June 20 meeting is an “introductory conversation” that will allow interested parties to get more information about what exactly the county is looking for in terms of a curator for the property, FCPA spokesperson Ben Boxer wrote FFXnow in an email.
In addition, on Saturday, June 24, there will be an in-person open house from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. where members of the community and prospective applicants to the program can visit the property and ask questions.
Normally, Mount Gilead is only open to the public once a year during the annual Centreville Day celebration, which is being held on Oct. 14 this year.
While other properties in the program have been adapted into an adult day support center and a public park, only residential use applications will be considered for this particular property.
“Given the historical significance of this site, it was determined that residential use best befits the long-term goals of the property and the preservation of the historic integrity of the site,” Boxer told FFXnow.
Mount Gilead in Centreville was first built in 1785 as a combined residence and tavern. During the Civil War, it housed both Union and Confederate soldiers. Local lore says it was the headquarters for Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston, famed for being replaced by Robert E. Lee.
In the 1930s, ’50s, and ’60s, it underwent several notable remodelings that included additions. It has since been recorded on the Virginia Landmarks Survey, as well as in the 1969 Historic American Buildings Survey.
FCPA acquired the 6-acre property in 1996, but it has remained unoccupied ever since, with the county making continuous repairs over the last few decades.
While resident curators get to live on the property rent-free, they are responsible for all the costs associated with rehabilitation and maintenance.
A strictly-defined “treatment plan with respect to the preservation of the house itself” is determined by the county. This plan is “not open to definition by potential curators,” Boxer told FFXnow.
“Applications, including the proposed use and curator workplan, will be evaluated by a committee and to undergo a public comment period before a decision is made. The curator workplan and investment will be consistent with the requirements of the treatment plan,” Boxer continued.
Plus, the resident curator must also provide “reasonable” and “periodic” access to the public.
While there’s no timetable yet for when the county will select the next inhabitants for Mount Gilead, it did take close to four years from when plans were first submitted to new occupants moving into Herndon’s Ellmore Farmhouse.
Fairfax County police are investigating an apparent domestic dispute that involved a Centreville man and his family’s dog getting stabbed.
Brendan Hadermann, 22, of Centreville was arrested by Virginia State Police on Tuesday (April 25) after a pursuit that extended into Lorton. He has been charged with malicious wounding, animal cruelty, and disregarding police commands to stop.
Officers were dispatched to the 5500 block of Cedar Break Drive at 9:14 a.m. for the reported stabbing, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
“The victim reported he suffered multiple stab wounds from a domestic-related incident,” the FCPD said in a news release yesterday (Wednesday). “When officers arrived, they also found the family dog suffering from a puncture wound to its abdomen.”
The man, who hasn’t been publicly identified, was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The dog was transported to an animal hospital, where it is currently in stable condition, the police said.
Scanner traffic suggests the man is Hadermann’s father, but the FCPD said it can only confirm that the incident is “domestic related” right now.
According to police, Hadermann was seen leaving the scene of the stabbing in a black Chevrolet pickup truck.
After an alert for the vehicle was sent to neighboring jurisdictions, Virginia State Police troopers encountered the truck on I-95 and attempted a traffic stop around 10:30 a.m. Hadermann evidently fled, leading to a high-speed chase that ended around 10:37 a.m. in the Lorton Valley area.
Hadermann is currently in custody at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, where he’s being held without bond.
The FCPD says anyone with information about this or similar cases can contact its detectives at 703-246-7800, option 5. Tips are also accepted through Crime Solvers by phone (1-866-411-TIPS) and online.
A trio of dogs was rescued from a townhouse fire in Centreville’s Bryarton neighborhood this morning (Wednesday).
Multiple Fairfax County Fire and Rescue units were dispatched to the 14600 block of Seasons Drive around 11:17 a.m., according to scanner traffic from Open MHz.
The fire department tweeted at 11:27 a.m. that units had arrived at the three-story residence and could see smoke issuing from the second floor.
“Crews working to extinguish a fire on the second floor,” the department said.
Per scanner traffic, firefighters said multiple pets were found in the townhouse. At one point, a responder report that there may be an elderly person in the house, but the department didn’t immediately confirm to FFXnow whether any people were inside.
The fire was extinguished shortly before 11:45 a.m., and no injuries were reported, including to the dogs, according to the FCFRD.
“Three dogs rescued are in good shape after treatment by #FCFRD firefighters and paramedics,” the department said.
UPDATE: Fire is out. Three dogs rescued by firefighters. #FCFRD https://t.co/PZuFoJcRhc
— Fairfax County Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) April 19, 2023
UPDATE- townhouse fire in the 14600 block of Seasons Drive in Centreville. Three dogs rescued are in good shape after treatment by #FCFRD firefighters and paramedics. No other reported injuries at this time. pic.twitter.com/zDteBtULYe
— Fairfax County Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) April 19, 2023
Fairfax County and the Virginia Department of Transportation have kicked off construction to widen a 1.5-mile stretch of Route 29 near Centreville.
Though there will be a ceremonial groundbreaking today (Wednesday), construction on the project began Feb. 9 to add two lanes to the roadway between Union Mill Road and Buckleys Gate Drive.
By the time work finishes in spring 2026, there will be six lanes instead of four on that stretch of road. In addition to the new lanes, the project aims to make improvements to sight distance for drivers and shared-use paths on the roadway.
It will also connect pedestrian and bicycle trails located at the Fairfax County Parkway/West Ox Road interchange.
This work has been on VDOT’s radar for years, with the project first coming to the public at a meeting in October 2018. Notes from a 2019 public hearing say that a 2005 VDOT study “explored the feasibility of providing a continuous 6 lane section from Centreville to the City of Fairfax.”
“Over the past several years, portions of Route 29 have been widened to six lanes (three in each direction) between Centreville and the City of Fairfax,” Mike Murphy, a senior communications specialist at VDOT, wrote in an email to FFXnow.
After this widening, a continuous six-lane section will exist “along the five-mile stretch between Pickwick Road and Shirley Gate Road/Waples Mill Road to improve capacity and safety through the corridor,” Murphy wrote.
The project is removing trees between Stringfellow Road and Meadow Estates Drive on the north side of Route 29. To accommodate that work, residents will need to use alternate routes in place of part of Willow Pond Trail through April 2023.
The estimated cost is $97 million, and those dollars come from four sources: federal, state and local money, plus funding from a I-66 concession fee.
Today’s groundbreaking will be held on the Route 29 service road, near the Brightview Fair Oaks senior living facility. Two members of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors — Pat Herrity (Springfield) and Kathy Smith (Sully) — plan to attend.
Seven restaurants in Fairfax County are part of this year’s Washingtonian’s 100 Very Best Restaurants list.
The restaurants that earned a coveted spot include:
- A&J Restaurant in Annandale
- Aracosia in McLean
- Elephant Jumps in Falls Church
- Honest Grill in Centreville
- L’Auberge Chez Francois in Great Falls
- Mama Chang in Fairfax
- Marib in Springfield
The highly anticipated list was published by the regional magazine for the first time since 2020. That year, nine local restaurants made the list, including several that reappeared this year: A&J, Elephant Jumps, Mama Chang, and Marib.
A&J Restaurant at 4316 Markham Street is no stranger to these types of accolades. The two-decade-old Annandale dim sum eatery was on the 2020 and 2019 lists as well, and last summer, it won a RAMMY for its brunch.
“We are excited to be included in the 100 Best again. Since we opened in the mid-90s, the Best Bargains issue featured us every year. 2019 marked the first time we were included in the 100 Best,” a restaurant spokesperson told FFXnow via email. “There are many outstanding restaurants in Fairfax County. It is great to see The Washingtonian highlight some hidden gems in the suburbs.”
Korean barbeque restaurant Honest Grill opened in 2021 in the Centreville Square Shopping Center and immediately got the attention of the magazine’s critics.
Restaurant manager Kevin Yoo told FFXnow that Honest Grill’s inclusion is “a testament to the hard work and dedication of the staff, and a reflection of the restaurant’s popularity among Washington DC foodies.”
Yoo also noted that the county has a “thriving food scene” that’s attracting a “growing local community of culinary innovators,” as evidenced by the restaurants that made this year’s list.
Aracosia, which opened about three years ago in McLean, serves Afghan cuisine and is owned by a Kabul native. Elephant Jumps on Arlington Blvd near Merrifield is regarded as one of the best Thai restaurants in the region.
The famed French establishment L’Auberge Chez Francois has been in Great Falls for close to 50 years. Springfield’s Marib is perhaps the centerpiece of a booming Yemeni food scene in Northern Virginia, while Mama Chang is one of several very popular area restaurants by former Chinese embassy chef Peter Chang.
Elsewhere, Arlington County placed four restaurants on the 2023 list. Plus, the magazine included a number of restaurants in Alexandria and Falls Church City included as well.
A bus route carrying passengers between western Fairfax County and Tysons on the new I-66 Express Lanes will take effect early next month.
Fairfax Connector will start operating its new Route 660 on Monday, Feb. 6, providing weekday, rush-hour service from the Stone Road Park & Ride in Centreville to the Tysons Metro station, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation announced Friday (Jan. 20).
The route will include stops at the Fairfax County Government Center, the Vienna Metro station and the intersection of Tysons Blvd and Westbranch Drive.
With the addition, the transit agency will eliminate Route 644, which currently connects Centreville and the Sully Government Center to the Vienna Metro on weekdays.
A couple of tweaks to service in the Reston and Herndon area will also go into effect on Saturday, Feb. 4:
- Route 937: Coppermine-Elden-Herndon Metrorail Station — Southbound service on Route 937 will be realigned to serve Coppermine Rd, with a left turn to Frying Pan Rd. Northbound Route 937 remains unchanged.
- Route 951: Wiehle-Reston East Metrorail Station to Innovation Center Metrorail Station — Eastbound service realigned to serve Coppermine Rd, with left turn to Frying Pan Rd. Westbound remains unchanged.
The service changes were approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in September. They’re being implemented slightly later than previously anticipated.
In a report, county staff said the changes are intended “to improve the customer experience and increase ridership through improved connectivity, on-time performance, service reliability, and effectiveness.”
A bus driver was indicted by a grand jury yesterday (Tuesday) for allegedly driving drunk while transporting D.C. kindergarten students home from a trip to Cox Farms in Centreville.
Troy Reynolds, 48, faces nine felony charges of child endangerment and three misdemeanor charges, including a second offense of driving while intoxicated, driving with a disqualified commercial license, and driving a bus without a commercial driver’s license, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano announced today.
“My office takes crimes that endanger children very seriously,” Descano said in the press release. “We’re grateful to our partners at the Fairfax County Police Department for their collaboration on this case.”
CA Descano announced that a grand jury indicted Troy Reynolds, 48, for charges related to driving a school bus full of kindergartners while intoxicated. pic.twitter.com/UAJZvcnjpF
— Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Descano (@FairfaxCountyCA) December 21, 2022
Reynolds was arrested on Oct. 27 after he reportedly drove a school bus carrying 44 students and four adults from Murch Elementary School off the road, hitting a rock and flattening a tire. Nine kids were injured, according to Descano’s office.
At the insistence of staff on board, the bus stopped in the 1500 block of Conference Center Drive in Chantilly, and the kids were transferred to the Fairfax Criminal Justice Academy, where two buses provided by Fairfax County Public Schools took them to D.C.
The FCPD said at the time that a test revealed that Reynolds had a blood alcohol content of .20. Officers also found that his commercial driver’s license had been revoked in Virginia due to a prior DWI and suspended in Maryland.
The case will go to trial tomorrow (Thursday), according to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
(Updated at 10:25 a.m. on 12/5/2022) A pedestrian died last night after a vehicle hit them on Route 29 (Lee Highway) in Centreville.
The crash occurred at 9:03 p.m. in the Trinity Parkway/Centrewood Drive intersection, which is outside the Centrewood Plaza and Centreville Square shopping centers.
Officers arrived at the scene before 10 p.m., shutting down southbound Lee Highway until around 1:20 a.m., according to Fairfax County Police Department tweets.
The pedestrian, 29-year-old Jacinto Chavez Ramos from Centreville, was using a crosswalk from Trinity Parkway when the driver of a 2021 Toyota Corolla going south on Lee Highway struck him, police say.
“The driver of the Toyota remained at the scene. Rescue personnel responded and pronounced Chavez Ramos deceased,” the FCPD said this afternoon. “Preliminarily, speed and alcohol do not appear to be factors for the driver in the crash. The investigation remains active.”
Crash Reconstruction Unit detectives continue to investigate this crash. Lee Hwy is now open. Follow our blog, https://t.co/lhGv3NDvYs, for updates when available. #FCPD
https://t.co/jGV4Sl90pV— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) November 29, 2022
At Trinity Parkway, Route 29 has three travel lanes in each direction, plus right and left turn lanes. The intersection has a traffic signal, but there is only a narrow median, and the crosswalks aren’t striped.
Virginia crash data indicates there have been at least three crashes involving pedestrians at that intersection since 2010: one in 2019 and two in 2020, all resulting in injuries but none fatal. The database doesn’t include a crash on Sept. 8, 2016 where a woman suffered critical injuries, according to an NBC4 report at the time.
Nearby, a 25-year-old man died in December 2018 after being hit by a sedan while crossing Centrewood Drive near Centrewood Plaza.
After last night’s crash, Fairfax County’s pedestrian death toll for 2022 has risen to 24 people — the highest it has been in over a decade. That includes 19 deaths on county roads, almost doubling the 11 fatalities recorded by FCPD at this point in 2021.
Photo via VDOT Northern Virginia/Twitter
A man from Centreville is facing firearm and animal cruelty charges after allegedly shooting his neighbor’s dog multiple times, resulting in the animal’s death.
According to Fairfax County police, 33-year-old Roman Vyacheslavov Gorelov shot a 2-year-old yellow Labrador and beagle mix after an argument with the dog’s owner at the Stonegate Faircrest Condominiums Friday morning (Nov. 11):
Detectives from our Major Crimes Bureau preliminarily determined Gorelov exchanged words with the owner of the Labrador mix in the breezeway of the apartments. Gorelov then displayed a firearm and shot the dog. The owner picked up the dog and ran away from the breezeway. Gorelov followed the man then shot the dog several more times.
Officers responded to the scene in the 5100 block of Brittney Elyse Circle at 9:47 a.m. and found the dog’s owner next to the animal near a playground, police said.
They were told that Gorelov “returned to his nearby apartment” after the shooting, according to police.
“Officers contacted Gorelov by phone, and he surrendered to police. The dog was taken to a nearby veterinarian hospital and pronounced deceased,” the Fairfax County Police Department said.
Gorelov has been charged with animal cruelty and reckless discharge of a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school — both felonies. The Stonegate Faircrest Condos are just south of I-66 near Arrowhead Park and Colin Powell Elementary School.
Detectives located a firearm while conducting a search of Gorelov’s apartment, according to police.
Gorelov is currently in being held without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
