Fairfax County Board of Supervisors

Published July 24, 2024 at 1:30PM

A crossing on Ridge Heights Road outside Langston Hughes Middle School in Reston (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County officials are exploring privatizing the police department’s school crossing guard program as a potential solution to address staffing challenges and reduce the burden on officers.

The Fairfax County Police Department has struggled to meet the demand for crossing guards in recent years, leading sworn police officers to step in and provide additional support, Assistant Police Chief Bob Blakley told the Board of Supervisors at a Safety and Security Committee meeting yesterday (Tuesday).

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Fairfax County adds five HOAs to EV charging station grant program

By James Jarvis

Published July 24, 2024 at 9:30AM

A Fairfax County-owned electric vehicle charger at the Bulova Center for Community Health in Merrifield (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Five more homeowners’ associations have been selected to receive grants for electric vehicle charging stations through Fairfax County’s Charge Up Fairfax program.

Spearheaded by the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination (OEEC), the initiative originally launched in 2023 as a pilot program to encourage residential neighborhoods to invest in electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure by reimbursing HOAs for up to a third of the costs to install charging stations.

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Fairfax County partners with USGS for $1.14 million study to preserve Lake Accotink

By James Jarvis

Published July 22, 2024 at 11:30AM

A 3.9-mile trail loops around Lake Accotink (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has signed off on a four-year, $1.14 million partnership with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to examine sediment levels in Lake Accotink and Accotink Creek and identify the best strategies for preserving the lake.

The partnership follows a December 2023 recommendation by a task force of community members, environmental groups, nonprofits, and a Park Authority representative that found preserving 20 to 40 acres of the popular Springfield lake could be a viable alternative to either fully dredging it or letting it fill up and disappear.

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New Tysons-Bethesda bus service coming soon to I-495

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 19, 2024 at 1:30PM

Traffic passes construction on I-495 near the Georgetown Pike exit in McLean on March 30, 2024 (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Commuters will soon get the option to travel directly between Virginia and Maryland’s most populous counties by bus, though the initial journey likely won’t be swift.

Fairfax County will receive $2 million from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) to provide Fairfax Connector bus service between the Tysons West Park Transit Station (8300 Jones Branch Drive) and the Bethesda Metro station (7450 Wisconsin Avenue) in Montgomery County.

Countywide

Fairfax County expands workforce housing program, lowers income ceiling

By Melanie Pincus

Published July 19, 2024 at 9:30AM

Housing under construction in the Westfields area of Chantilly in 2024 (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County has revised its workforce housing program in the hopes of making for-sale units viable in more locations.

The Board of Supervisors voted 9-0 on Tuesday (July 16) to change its workforce dwelling units (WDU) policy, which aims to incentivize affordable housing in mixed-use centers such as Tysons by awarding additional density to developers who participate.

Countywide

Fairfax County board delays vote on data center regulations after lengthy public hearing

By James Jarvis

Published July 17, 2024 at 3:50PM

The future of data center development in Fairfax County remains in limbo after the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously last night (Tuesday) to delay their decision on a contentious zoning amendment another two weeks.

The supervisors said they needed more time to consider the input provided by 65 residents, attorneys, environmental activists and other community members during a public hearing that lasted nearly five hours.

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County seeks funds to build Town Center Parkway underpass in Reston

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 17, 2024 at 2:30PM | Updated July 31, 2024 at 2:51PM

Fairfax County plans to eventually extend Town Center Parkway from Sunset Hills Road to Sunrise Valley Drive via an underpass under the Dulles Toll Road (via Volkert study)

With development continuing to emerge around Reston Town Center, Fairfax County is making a new push to obtain funding for a long-planned extension of the Town Center Parkway.

The proposed Dulles Toll Road underpass, which will connect Sunrise Valley Drive and Sunset Hills Road, is one of four major projects that the Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) plans to submit for state funding from Virginia’s FY 2026- FY2031 Smart Scale Program.

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Fairfax County School Board jumps regulatory hurdles to OK solar panels for nine schools

By James Jarvis

Published July 17, 2024 at 10:30AM | Updated July 18, 2024 at 9:56AM

A solar panel demonstration project outside Luther Jackson Middle School (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

In a bid to cut energy costs by tens of thousands of dollars, the Fairfax County School Board finalized a deal with a local solar developer last month to outfit nine elementary schools across the county with 250-kilowatt (kW) solar panels.

The solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) comes years after the school board approved a series of much larger solar projects that were halted after Dominion Energy introduced new interconnection rules that substantially increased project costs, rendering the projects economically unfeasible.

Countywide

Fairfax Connector fares to increase for first time in seven years

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 16, 2024 at 3:30PM

A Fairfax Connector bus in Reston (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The price of taking Fairfax Connector is officially going up.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the bus system’s first fare increase in seven years without discussion at a meeting today (Tuesday). Starting on July 29, fares will jump about 12% from $2 to $2.25 for the base rate and from $4.25 to $4.80 for express fares.

News

Proposed apartment building near Huntington Metro station moves closer to approval

By Acacia James

Published July 16, 2024 at 11:30AM

A rendering of Capital Investment Advisors' proposed apartment building at Huntington Avenue and Metroview Parkway (via SK+I Architecture/Fairfax County)

A proposal to build housing in the Mount Vernon District near the Huntington Metro Station is closer to being approved.

During a meeting last Wednesday (July 10), the Fairfax County Planning Commission recommended the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approve developer Capital Investment Advisors’ proposal for a 200-unit apartment building at the corner of Huntington Avenue and Metroview Parkway.