News

After a relatively brisk 25 minutes of speeches followed by the snip of a red ribbon, the new Franconia Governmental Center opened to the public Saturday morning (April 11).

That moment represented the culmination of “two and a half — plus — decades of planning,” said Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk at the dedication ceremony, which attracted hundreds to the facility at 7130 Silver Lake Blvd, located south of Manchester Blvd and east of Beulah Street.


Countywide

Data centers present both opportunities and challenges, and at a recent regional meeting, local leaders were urged to become acquainted with both, regardless of whether their jurisdictions are directly impacted.

“Don’t ever have a conversation of ‘all-good’ or ‘all-bad’ — there are a lot of nuances,” Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chair Phyllis Randall said at a March 11 meeting of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG).


Countywide

Fairfax County intends to move forward with phasing out the use of police officers as school crossing guards.

The Fairfax County Police Department would eliminate crossing guards at local public high schools and turn to contractors to fill vacancies at elementary and middle schools under the fiscal year 2027 budget proposed on Tuesday (Feb. 17) by County Executive Bryan Hill.


News

Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk wrapped up a year as chair of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) with a call for continued regional collaboration.

“Regionalism isn’t something that’s easy,” Lusk said in valedictory remarks at COG’s meeting on Wednesday (Jan. 14). During the meeting, he passed the gavel to Reuben Collins II of the Charles County Board of Commissioners, who will chair the body for 2026.


Around Town

Rose Hill Plaza’s future will include Safeway — at least for the immediate future.

Owner Combined Properties announced on Nov. 20 that the grocery chain has signed a lease extension keeping it at the shopping center in Rose Hill “for more than a decade to come.”


Around Town

A new art installation has been unveiled at Springfield Town Center.

The gallery wall, which opened last week through a collaboration between the mall and ArtsFairfax, features seven works from a handful of local artists.


Countywide

More than one in four Fairfax County households meets the definition of “food-insecure,” and that figure is likely to rise in coming months as the full impacts of federal worker and funding cuts materialize.

“More challenging times are ahead,” Hilary Salmon, senior director of marketing and communications for Capital Area Food Bank, predicted when briefing board members of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) yesterday (Wednesday).


News

Fairfax County is revisiting its vision for downtown Springfield in the hopes of adapting it to a new era.

The county’s Department of Planning and Development will formally kick off its Franconia-Springfield Planning Study with a virtual community meeting tomorrow (Tuesday) at 7 p.m. Interested members of the public must register to receive a link to the Zoom meeting.


News

Fairfax County is developing a “Slow Streets” pilot project to slow traffic and scale back cut-through traffic on a residential street in Springfield.

Supported by a federal grant accepted by the Board of Supervisors last week, the project will drop speeds at Cumberland Avenue and Dinwiddie Street to 15 mph from the current 25 mph and make changes to the street in an effort to calm traffic.


News

Residents concerned about a proposal for additional single-family homes in one Franconia neighborhood may not have much recourse, they learned at a recent community meeting.

“I don’t have the ability to stop this process,” Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk said at a community forum last Thursday (Aug. 14) attended by about 35 residents.


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