The Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) announced yesterday that a series of meetings over the next month will cover plans to add new bike lanes and marked crosswalks around the county.
According to FCDOT, the restriping is scheduled for next year’s repaving season, which typically begins in the spring and ends in November.
Uncertainty remains as county leaders and budget staff begin looking toward the fiscal 2027 budget process.
“Overall, we’re kind of sitting in the same place,” said Philip Hagen, director of the county’s Department of Management and Budget. He was briefing members of the Board of Supervisors’ Budget Policy Committee on Sept. 16.
JW Marriott and Comstock Companies announced the opening of the chain’s new Reston Station hotel yesterday.
The new project is a hotel and condominium high-rise building at 11350 Reston Station Blvd, with 247 hotel rooms and 94 residential units.
County supervisors reacted unhappily to how little of their approved funding for pedestrian and bicyclist improvements has filtered down to completed projects.
“How completely unacceptable — it has to change,” said Dranesville Supervisor Jimmy Bierman to the news that only about $12 million of the $82.1 million approved for improvements has been encumbered or spent.
Family Reunited with Missing Cat — “Two years ago, one family’s beloved cat Spencer went missing. Last week, they were finally reunited.” [ABC7]
It’s Wednesday — Showers and potential thunderstorms are likely throughout the day, with temperatures reaching a high near 70°F and north winds of 11 mph, gusting up to 20 mph. There is a 60% chance of precipitation, and new rainfall amounts may vary between a tenth and a quarter of an inch, potentially higher during thunderstorms. The chance of showers decreases to 30% before 2am on Wednesday night, with a cloudy low of 63°F and north winds of 6-8 mph. [NWS]
Senators Demand Education Department Restore School Funding — “U.S. Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner sent a letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon on Monday demanding the immediate reversal of federal funding cuts to Alexandria City Public Schools and four other Northern Virginia school districts over transgender student policies.” [ALXnow]
Dranesville Shooting Suspect Charged with Murder — “A 25-year-old man has been charged with murder after police say he rammed the victim’s vehicle with his own and then shot him multiple times.” [FOX5]
Banners Hallmark Shop Files for Bankruptcy — “A Virginia retail chain filed for bankruptcy, telling the court it hopes to recoup its losses during the upcoming holiday shopping season.” [Patch]
Falls Church Officials Prepare for Early Voting This Week — “Falls Church election officials are getting ready for the start of early voting on Friday and the general election in November.” [ARLnow]
Celebrate Guacamole Day at These 5 Northern Virginia Restaurants — “We’re in the last few weeks of summer, so it’s time to savor all the bites, dishes, and ingredients that remind us of sunny days and balmy nights. One of the best? Chips and guacamole. Plus, September 16 is National Guacamole Day, so we’ve rounded up five NoVA restaurants serving up some of the best guac around.” [Northern Virginia Magazine]
County leaders have now joined School Board members in pushing for more early budget collaboration, to avoid repeating an impasse that soured relationships last spring.
At a Sept. 16 meeting of the Board of Supervisors’ Budget Policy Committee, County Executive Bryan Hill said school leaders needed to develop a “budget of reality” for fiscal 2027.
Fairfax County again leads the region in the number of participants in the Northern Virginia Senior Olympics.
Those competitors are among a record contingent of 1,200 taking part in the 2025 event, which runs Sept. 13-Oct. 1 at venues across the region.
Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent (FCPS) Michelle Reid sent a message to the school community explaining more about the ongoing legal fight with the U.S. Department of Education (DOE).
Earlier this month, a federal judge in Alexandria dismissed a lawsuit the Fairfax and Arlington school boards filed against the DOE after the federal department froze their funding. The DOE put the schools on “high risk” status and restricted their access to federal funds after they refused to rescind policies allowing students to use bathrooms and other facilities that match their gender identity.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors directed staff last Tuesday (Sept. 9) to take a six-month-long deep dive into current housing policies, hoping to eliminate bureaucratic hurdles hampering the creation of more affordable units across the community.
“This is absolutely an essential part of our economic strategy,” said Board Chairman Jeff McKay, who proposed the action. “It comes up in every conversation with the public.”
On-time Metrobus performance declined in fiscal year 2025 from the previous two years, leading transit leaders to plan more aggressive moves to keep the buses on schedule.
“We’ll be focusing on things in our direct control,” said Jordan Holt, senior director of performance, benchmarking and customer service at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) at the Sept. 11 meeting of WMATA’s safety and operations committee.
