Fairfax County Public Library is giving away free solar eclipse viewing glasses in anticipation of next month’s event, but to snag a pair, you’ll have to move fast.
Each branch will have “a very limited allotment” of a few hundred glasses at most, FCPL Board of Trustees chair Brian Engler confirmed. Though some branches received shipments early, the glasses were expected to be ready for distribution at all locations today (Wednesday), according to FCPL Director Jessica Hudson.
A plan to renovate Reston’s Armstrong Elementary School is coming to fruition.
The Fairfax County Planning Commission is set to consider a proposal tonight (Wednesday) to expand the school at 11900 Lake Newport Road with several additions and amenities.
Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid is urging national elected officials to step up their efforts to safeguard local schools from cybercrime threats.
During a Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce event in Tysons on Monday (March 11), Reid asked Sen. Mark Warner about Congress’s strategy to address privacy threats to FCPS students and staff and other communities nationwide that are susceptible to ransomware attacks.
County to Update Zoning for Data Centers — “Several board members expressed concern that some zoning districts currently allow for the development of data centers by right…Committee Chair Karen Smith (D-Sully) suggested that the board begin the process of updating the zoning ordinance at its next meeting on March 19, which received unanimous support from the other board members.” [Patch]
Covid Survivors Revisit Inova Fairfax Hospital — “This week marks four years since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic and 7News Health and Wellness Reporter Victoria Sanchez caught up with two survivors after first sharing their stories in 2020. Titou Phommachanh and Rodrigo Valderrama greeted each other with a hug in front of Inova Fairfax Hospital. Before the two became the faces of COVID-19 in Northern Virginia four years ago, the men had never met.” [WJLA]
Great Falls volunteer firefighters are set to bartend at The Old Brogue this Thursday (March 14) to raise funds for the casualties of the Feb. 19 Sterling house explosion, including Sterling Volunteer Fire Company firefighter Trevor Brown.
Fundraising hours will take from place from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday.
A regional staple in the arts community is returning to Reston Town Center this May.
Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art is organizing the Tephra ICA Arts Festival — formerly known as Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival — on May 18 and 19, bringing more than 200 artists from across the country to RTC.
South Lakes HS Wins State Basketball Title — South Lakes High School’s varsity boys team handily defeated Patriot High School 65-39 on Saturday (March 9) to win the Class 6 state boys basketball championship. The Seahawks won with a “stellar supporting cast” led by junior guard Jordan Scott, who scored a game-high 23 points. [Washington Post, Inside NoVA]
Virginia’s Prison Population Drops — “Virginia’s prison population shrank 10.5% between 2021 and 2022, per the latest Justice Department data…That’s the greatest decline of any state during a period when the U.S. was seeing its prison population increase for the first time in nearly a decade.” [Axios Richmond]
(Updated at 3:35 p.m.) Congress has passed another short-term budget package, averting a partial shutdown of the federal government just hours before a midnight deadline.
In addition to funding the Justice Department, Housing and Urban Development, and other key agencies, the slate of bills passed 75-22 by the Senate on Friday (March 8) includes $12.7 billion in “pork” — money designated for local projects requested by lawmakers for their constituents.
Local police have uncovered a drug operation in Reston that involved the discovery of 1,800 THC vape cartidges, 36 pounds of marijuana and other narcotics, along with guns.
The Fairfax County Police Department says its Gang Intelligence Unit uncovered the stash after they were alerted in February to a juvenile suspected of dealing narcotics and illegally possessing firearms.
Two Reston men are facing multiple charges — including attempted murder in one case — after allegedly getting involved in police pursuits on the Capital Beltway last Thursday (March 7).
The first chase began around 9:54 p.m. when a Virginia State Police trooper moved to stop a Jeep Cherokee SRT for reckless driving on I-495 near S. Van Dorn Street in Rose Hill, according to the VSP.
