Fairfax City Council members voted unanimously Oct. 28 to ask the General Assembly to remove the existing cap on taxes levied on hotel stays in the city.
The City Charter currently caps the rate at 4%, below most jurisdictions across Virginia. In Fairfax County, the occupancy tax rate increased from 7% to 9% on Oct. 1, with different portions of the revenue going toward general county funds, tourism and regional transportation.
Fairfax City is considering whether to keep a fare-free policy in place for its CUE bus system.
The city’s CUE buses stopped collecting fares in mid-2020 when the pandemic started. In 2022, the city adopted a four-year zero-fare pilot program that will expire at the end of fiscal year 2026, according to city documents.
Plans to redevelop a portion of the Courthouse Plaza Shopping Center near Old Town Fairfax into housing were rejected by Fairfax City Council members late last month, leaving the aging site’s future in limbo once again.
The 4-2 vote on Oct. 28 came three months after council members opted on July 22 to delay a final decision in hopes a revamped proposal by developer Combined Properties would address concerns raised by critics throughout the development process.
The list of places where guns can be carried in Fairfax City is getting smaller.
An ordinance to ban the possession of guns at city-permitted events and parks owned and operated by Fairfax City was approved Tuesday (Oct. 28) by the city council, aligning the city’s firearms policy with that of Fairfax County.
Most Fairfax City residents appear to be in favor of efforts by the city council to further restrict the ability to carry firearms around town.
An overwhelming majority of the 12 speakers during a public hearing on Oct. 14 expressed support for a proposed ordinance that would align the city’s gun policy with that of Fairfax County.
The Fairfax City Council approved a handful of special exceptions for the forthcoming Willard-Sherwood Health and Community Center last week, but not every official was on board.
Three of the councilmembers — Stacy Hall, Rachel McQuillen and Thomas Peterson — symbolically voted against each of the zoning requests at the council meeting last Tuesday (Oct. 14), though all items ultimately passed by a slim majority vote.
Fairfax City residents think it’s a great place to live and rate its services highly, despite ongoing concerns over traffic and lack of affordable housing, according to new data from the City of Fairfax’s first community survey.
The results of the survey — which was conducted over the summer by the ETC Institute, a Kansas-based firm that provides market research for local governments — were presented to city council members during a work session on Oct. 7.
An $18.4 million project to reduce congestion and improve safety on a nearly mile-long portion of Jermantown Road has been more than half a decade in the making. Now, an updated proposal is finally ready for public viewing.
Presented to the Fairfax City Council at a work session on Oct. 7, the project calls for a number of new turn lanes, enhanced markings for pedestrians, and tighter management of access to the roads.
Fairfax City is considering transforming its CUE bus system by offering more frequent and direct connections between the most popular stops, as well as speeding up routes — but also cut service for some riders.
A draft transportation development plan for the next 10 years of service envisions three simplified routes between the Vienna metro station, Old Town, and George Mason University, the areas with the highest demand.
Updated 9/16 — City of Fairfax officials said the project was not slowed by leadership changes. According to a spokesperson for the City:
The land use application for the City Center West project has been deemed inactive, as your article states, but the same status exists for the “Block A” proposal. Attached is the July 4, 2025, letter notifying Ox Hill that the City Center West site plan application was void and closed due to inactivity.
