Dalia Palchik | FFXnow

All-affordable apartment building near McLean Metro breaks ground

Published July 18, 2024 at 11:00AM

Officials participate in a ceremonial groundbreaking for Somos at McLean Metro, a 456-unit workforce housing apartment complex in Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Construction has commenced on an affordable housing project in Tysons that the developer, local officials and their financial partners touted yesterday (Wednesday) as literally and metaphorically groundbreaking.

With two cranes looming above and excavators rumbling around the cleared site in the background, representatives from SCG Development, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Amazon and more shoveled some dirt to formally celebrate the start of work on Somos at McLean Metro, which will deliver two apartment buildings with 456 workforce dwelling units (WDUs).

Countywide

Civil rights activist who fought to desegregate Fairfax County gets historical marker

By Angela Woolsey

Published June 3, 2024 at 3:30PM

A historical marker honoring civil rights activist Lillian Blackwell is unveiled in front of Oakton High School (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

When students arrive at Oakton High School, they will now encounter a historical marker honoring civil rights activist Lillian Blackwell, whose own children might not have been allowed inside when the school opened in 1967 if not for her advocacy.

Fairfax County officials unveiled the plaque detailing Blackwell’s legacy, including her fight against the segregation of local public schools and movie theaters, at a ceremony on Saturday (June 1) attended by some of her family members and the students who suggested her for the recognition.

Countywide

Fairfax County kicks off menstrual supply drive for Women’s History Month

By Melanie Pincus

Published March 4, 2024 at 9:30AM

Menstrual pads and tampons (via Natracare on Unsplash)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is marking Women’s History Month with a menstrual supply drive.

Starting today (Monday) through March 29, sites throughout the county will collect new, sealed packages of tampons, pads, liners and menstrual cups.

News

County to consider scaled-back vision for housing at Idylwood church site

By Angela Woolsey

Published February 22, 2024 at 12:15PM

St. Paul's Lutheran Church is seeking to sell part of its property in Idylwood, including a now-vacant building, to a housing developer so it can expand its sanctuary (via Google Maps)

Plans to build housing in front of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Idylwood have been resurrected.

After a previous attempt in 2019 sputtered out, the church has found a new developer partner to potentially buy vacant portions of its property at 7426 Idylwood Road and transform it with residential development.

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County board seeks answers on uncertain timeline for Route 7 bus rapid transit

By Angela Woolsey

Published December 14, 2023 at 10:15AM | Updated June 24, 2024 at 6:29PM

Bus shelters at the Spring Hill Metro station, which will be the northern terminus of the planned Route 7 bus rapid transit system (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

(Updated at 9:25 a.m. on 12/15/2023) The long-running effort to bring bus rapid transit (BRT) service to Route 7 is about to enter a new stage of planning, but for some Fairfax County leaders, the milestone doubles as a reminder of how much more still needs to be done to turn Northern Virginia’s vision into a reality.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved an agreement at its Dec. 5 meeting to help fund an engineering study and environmental analysis required to implement the bus system, which will serve the corridor from the Spring Hill Metro station in Tysons to the Mark Center in Alexandria.

News

County to consider mixed-use development for former ICF office buildings in Oakton

By Angela Woolsey

Published November 29, 2023 at 11:00AM | Updated January 3, 2024 at 11:48AM

The Hunters Branch office buildings, formerly home to ICF International, in Oakton (via Google Maps)

(Updated at 4:50 p.m.) After initially holding off, Fairfax County is now ready to consider allowing a redevelopment of the former ICF International headquarters in Oakton.

At Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik’s request, the Board of Supervisors authorized county staff on Nov. 21 to craft a comprehensive plan amendment that would open the door for residential or mixed-use development at the Hunters Branch office buildings (9300 and 9302 Route 29).

News

Road diet and bicycle lanes proposed near Dunn Loring Metro station

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 24, 2023 at 11:00AM

Prosperity Avenue outside a Dunn Loring Metro station parking lot (via Google Maps)

Fairfax County is designing a new layout for Prosperity Avenue near the Dunn Loring Metro station.

The new configuration will reduce the roadway from four to two lanes by adding a road diet and protected bicycle lanes between Gallows Road and Prosperity Metro Plaza, the two-building office center whose tenants include U.S. Customs and Immigration Services’ D.C. field office.

News

Emergency repairs needed to prevent Shreve Road sewer pipe collapse

By Angela Woolsey

Published June 29, 2023 at 2:15PM

The location of a sewer pipe on Shreve Road undergoing emergency repairs (via Dalia Palchik/Twitter)

A hole was recently found in a sewer pipe along Shreve Road in Idylwood, necessitating emergency repairs that started yesterday (Wednesday).

The issue was discovered during a “routine inspection” of the pipe, which carries wastewater from 34 homes and Shrevewood Elementary School, according to the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services.

News

Winter clothing donation drive starts today in the Providence District

By Angela Woolsey

Published December 19, 2022 at 1:30PM

A snow-covered mitten holds a paper heart (via Eli Pluma on Unsplash)

Winter is coming, and with temperatures projected to top out in the 30s and low 40s next week, staying warm will soon become even more of a challenge for many Fairfax County residents.

To help those in need get through the season, Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik’s office will launch a winter clothes drive today (Monday), collecting coats, gloves and hats of all sizes for donation to local shelters.

News

NEW: A pedestrian crossing on Route 123 from Tysons Corner Center is in the works

By Angela Woolsey

Published December 13, 2022 at 1:30PM

The intersection of Route 123 (Chain Bridge Road) and Tysons Blvd outside Tysons Corner Center (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Talks are underway to design a street-level crossing across Route 123 at Tysons Blvd, a daunting challenge that would — at least in theory — improve access to Tysons Corner Center for pedestrians, bicyclists and others.

Fairfax County, the Virginia Department of Transportation and Macerich, the mall owner and developer, are currently hashing out an agreement for the crossing as an alternative to the existing pedestrian bridge that links the mall’s plaza to the Tysons Metro station on the other side of Route 123, also known as Chain Bridge Road.