GazetteLeader

The Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) is advising its member localities across the commonwealth to hunker down and take a very close look and see if any measures they enacted during the first 15 months of COVID might be in peril following a Virginia Supreme Court ruling.

At issue is the March 23 court opinion invalidating Fairfax County’s zoning rewrite – known as zMOD – because its adoption in early 2021 did not follow public-comment rules still in place at the time and not changed by the General Assembly later that year.

By Brian Trompeter

The Fairfax County Democratic Committee announced April 7 its field of candidates for the June 20 primary, which will determine, in contested races, the Democratic nominees who will be on the ballot this November.

Fairfax County Public Schools officials have claimed vindication from the most serious concerns raised by a failure to notify, in a timely way, students who had been selected for honors by the National Merit Scholarship Corp.

But at the same time, Superintendent Michelle Reid said new safeguards have been put in place to ensure that delays in notification at the school level will not be repeated.

Fairfax County’s jobless rate showed a decline from January to February, mirroring a trend across most of Northern Virginia.

With 636,138 holding jobs in the civilian workforce and 15,527 looking for them, Fairfax’s unemployment rate of 2.4 percent in February was down from 2.7 percent in January and off from the 2.5-percent rate reported in February 2022.

By Brian Trompeter

Fairfax County supervisors on April 11 were expected to approve $22,508,830 in funding for active-transportation projects that would upgrade the county’s pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure.

By Brian Trompeter

Those who visit Fairfax County’s new “Compost Outpost” program at the I-66 Transfer Station in Fairfax should head straight for the pair of green metal shipping containers and stick their heads inside.

By Brian Trompeter

Expressing concerns about high real-estate-tax bills, escalating police attrition and declining quality of life, the McLean Citizens Association (MCA) board of directors on April 6 passed a resolution calling for at least a 3-cent cut in the county’s tax rate, higher police salaries and additional funds for tree maintenance and pedestrian-and-bicycle projects.

By Brian Trompeter

Even in Fairfax County, which local officials routinely trumpet as the safest jurisdiction of its size in the nation, police must wield a wide array of resources to combat human trafficking.

By Brian Trompeter

Utility companies have converted tens of thousands of Fairfax County streetlights to energy-efficient LED lamps since 2019, but county leaders say more lights need to be switched to LED and additional ones provided to bolster safety and security.

By Brian Trompeter

The Vienna Public Art Commission hopes to expand considerably the town’s art offerings and make Vienna more attractive and engaging to residents, businesses and visitors alike.