morning notes

Downed Wires Close I-66 in Fairfax — Fallen power lines completely shut down I-66 at Route 50 in Fairfax City for about 45 minutes during rush hour this morning, prompting warnings of travel delays. The Virginia Department of Transportation said at 8:15 a.m. that all lanes had reopened. [FCFRD, VDOT]

Last Day to Apply for Free and Reduced-Price School Meals — “Apply for Free and Reduced-Price Meals by the deadline of Thursday, October 6. Any family interested in free or reduced-price meals MUST submit a new application, even if your child has received free meals in the past.” [FCPS/Twitter]

GMU Explores Possible Mixed-Use Development — George Mason University recently issued a request for proposals to study the feasibility of building up nearly 300 acres at its main Fairfax campus. The potential development could bring housing, “experiential learning space” and commercial uses, such as retail, office, a hotel or entertainment, to three university-owned properties. [Washington Business Journal]

Metro to Crack Down on Fare Evasion — “Metro is rolling out a multi-faceted plan to address a $40 million fare evasion problem. Beginning this month, Metro will start posting reminders on digital screens in stations, and Metro Transit Police officers will hand out fliers reminding riders to pay their fares. Metro will have more police out on the system and install cameras and monitors to deter gate-jumping.” [DCist]

Special Education Disparities Persist in FCPS — “Students with disabilities in Fairfax County Public Schools perform substantially lower than their peers on standardized tests and face significantly higher rates of extended suspensions and expulsions, according to a new report on the school division’s special education program.” [DCist]

Pedestrians Hit in Fair Lakes Parking Lot — “Three pedestrians were hit by a car at Fair Lakes Shopping Center in Fairfax, Virginia, on Sunday, according to Fairfax County police. First responders were called shortly after 4 p.m. to the BJ’s parking lot…One of the victims was taken to the hospital in critical condition, authorities said.” [NBC4]

Metro Extends Blue Line Shutdown — The closure of all six Blue and Yellow Line stations south of Washington National Airport will now last until Nov. 5, instead of Oct. 22, as previously scheduled. Metro said Friday (Sept. 30) that “unexpected site conditions and remediation efforts” required the change, delaying the completion of the future Potomac Yard station in Alexandria. [WMATA, ALXnow]

Woman Killed in Annandale Hit-and-Run — “Officers investigating a fatal hit and run involving a pedestrian at Annandale Rd/Maple Pl in Annandale. The adult female pedestrian was taken to the hospital and succumbed to her injuries.” [FCPD/Twitter]

Fare-Free Connector to Metrorail Transfers Start Tomorrow — “To continue to improve transit service in Fairfax County, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors recently approved service and fare changes on Fairfax Connector that will go into effect on October 1, 2022. Members of the public provided input on these proposed service changes in the Spring of 2022″ [Fairfax Connector]

County IT Worker Arrested for Embezzlement — A 43-year-old Maryland man allegedly embezzled more than 150 Wi-Fi routers from the Fairfax County Department of Information and Technology. DIT employees reported 178 missing Mist Wi-Fi Access point routers to police on Sept. 13. The county has placed the man on administrative leave during the investigation. [FCPD]

State of Emergency in Virginia for Hurricane — “Governor Glenn Youngkin today declared a State of Emergency in advance of Hurricane Ian, which is expected to impact portions of Virginia starting on Friday, September 30, 2022…Virginians should be prepared for the potential of severe rainfall, flooding, wind damage, tornadoes, and other storm-related impacts.” [Governor of Virginia]

Burke VRE Station Gets Longer Platform — Fairfax County officials cut a ribbon yesterday (Wednesday) to celebrate the completion of a platform expansion project at the Virginia Railway Express Rolling Road Station. With an added 290 feet, the platform can now fit eight-car trains, reducing passenger loading times. [Jeff McKay, James Walkinshaw, Pat Herrity/Twitter]

Board Chair Calls on Youngkin to Withdraw Trans Student Policies — “I am so proud of the FCPS students who today stood together in support of their transgender classmates who are under threat by the proposed Model Policies. I joined the ~20,000 others providing comments to the Youngkin Administration stating my strong opposition to these Policies” [Jeff McKay/Twitter]

Teachers’ Union Also Opposes Proposed Policies — “Our union firmly opposes the VDOE 2022 Model Policies which will create an unsafe school environment for trans and nonbinary students if implemented. We urge our members to submit public comments against these proposed policies here” [Fairfax County Federation of Teachers/Twitter]

Tolls on First Day of New I-66 Lanes Top $6 — “Washington-bound drivers paid an average of $6.10 during the Monday morning commute to use new Interstate 66 toll lanes from Gainesville to Centreville, according to the toll operator. The highest toll in the eastbound lanes was $6.50 at the peak of the commute, officials said.” [The Washington Post]

Monkeypox Vaccine Eligibility Expands — “The VDH announced eligibility expansion for JYNNEOS, the monkeypox vaccine to include people of any gender or sexual orientation living with HIV/AIDS or who were diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection in the past three months.” [Fairfax County Health Department/Twitter]

Rat Causes Tysons Power Outage — “Rats! Power Outage in Tysons area tonight was caused by a rat that infiltrated a piece of equipment. 1,588 customers lost power. All customers restored in 1 hour and 5 minutes.” [Peggy Fox/Twitter]

Reston Woman Arrested for Leaving Kids With Stranger — “Herndon Police arrested 24-year-old Paola Alejandra Salinas Padilla of Reston for child abuse after she left her two children at a stranger’s home on Thursday, according to a post on the department’s official Twitter account. Salinas Padilla left her two children around 3 p.m., on Thursday…telling the strangers that she would pick them up by 11 p.m., according to police.” [Patch]

Reminder: Early Voting Begins — “[It’s] the first day to #voteearly in the congressional #midterms! The 8th, 10th & 11th U.S. House seats are up for election and there are three sites open for #earlyvoting on weekdays” [Office of Elections/Twitter]

Sexual Battery Trial Against Former Teacher Cut Short — “A Fairfax County, Virginia, circuit court judge has dismissed an indictment alleging aggravated sexual battery against a former music teacher who gave lessons to students out of his house. The dismissal came Monday, Sept. 12, in the midst of the jury trial of Roger McKay, according to court records obtained by WTOP.” [WTOP]