As the use of chatbots and other types of “artificial intelligence” continues to grow, Fairfax County is working to ensure its government employees are educated on the opportunities and risks associated with the technology.
During an information technology committee meeting on Tuesday (June 4), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors received an update on the use of generative AI within the county government — including how to “deliver improved business outcomes” while maintaining the county’s “rigorous security standards.”
Political yard signs outside of Fairfax County Government Center (staff photo by James Jarvis)
Early voting in the upcoming Virginia primaries will expand this weekend, with Fairfax County opening additional in-person sites starting this Saturday (June 8).
Voters will determine representatives for Virginia’s 10th and 11th Congressional districts, as well as the Republican who will challenge Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine this fall. Early voting for the June 18 primary began on May 3 and will continue in-person through June 15.
The entrance to the McLean Metro station in Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Thursday afternoon commutes to and from Tysons are about to get more melodious for transit users.
Throughout the summer, musicians will serenade riders at one of the area’s four Metro stations every week for a free “Metro Musicians” concert series organized by the Tysons Community Alliance (TCA) and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.
The concerts will be held every Thursday at 5-6:30 p.m., starting tonight with acoustic soul duo Zach Cutler and Deborah Bond at the McLean Metro station. The series will continue through Aug. 29.
According to the TCA, the series is part of WMATA’s Art in Transit program, where the transit agency collaborates with visual and performing artists around the D.C. region to bring their work to Metro facilities.
The program has introduced murals, sculptures, digital displays and poetry at various Metro stations and buildings. It also ran a contest where students submitted designs for Earth Day-themed bus wraps.
The full Metro Musicians schedule is below:
June 6: Zach Cutler & Deborah Bond (McLean Metro station)
June 13: Dupont Strings (Tysons Metro station)
June 20: Dance Flamenco D.C. (Greensboro Metro station)
Storm clouds over the Reston Parkway and New Dominion Parkway intersection (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Plea Deal Rejected in Annandale AbductionCase — “A Fairfax County judge rejected a plea deal for a suspected child sex offender, saying it would put the community in danger. A man broke into an apartment in Annandale June 15 [2023], grabbed a 4-year-old girl from her bed and dragged her to the living room before her screams woke her mother, police said.” [NBC4]
Culmore 7-Eleven Focus of Police Crackdown — “The Mason Police District is cracking down on public drinking, drug abuse, and shoplifting at the 7-Eleven in Culmore, said station commander Maj. Erin Weeks. The police will be meeting with 7-Eleven officials to strengthen security and ban trespassing at the store at 3337 Glen Carlyn Drive.” [Annandale Today]
Fairfax City Council Considers Pay Raises — “Mayor Catherine Read and members of the Fairfax City Council met at Historic Blenheim Tuesday night for their annual retreat. They discussed a variety of issues, including whether to enact raises for elected officials and to extend the terms of councilmembers from two to four years.” [Patch]
Capital Bikeshare Sets Monthly Ridership Record — “Capital Bikeshare (CaBi) broke the all-time monthly ridership record in May 2024, recording 515,394 trips across the Washington, DC, metro area. Annual ridership is up 31.3% through May 2024…The CaBi system has now seen year-over-year monthly increases in ridership for 29 consecutive months.” [Greater Greater Washington]
County Sets Mosquito Traps — “From May to October, Fairfax County’s Health Department is conducting mosquito surveillance, with 75 traps set all across the county weekly…So far the county hasn’t found anything unusual, but the species that typically transmit West Nile Virus will come later in the summer in August and September.” [WJLA]
Real Estate Company to Boost Tysons Office — “Divaris Real Estate has recruited a team of veteran brokers from Long & Foster Commercial as it seeks to beef up its retail and office brokerage business in Northern Virginia.” The Virginia Beach-based firm says the eight additional brokers will double the staffing at its office in Tysons (8150 Leesburg Pike, Suite 501). [Washington Business Journal]
Dulles Airport Has U.S.’s Most Expensive Domestic Flights — “For the third year in a row, it’s been named as the domestic airport with the highest average fares. Flights on average cost $488.40 out of Dulles, according to FinanceBuzz, which looked at 2023 U.S. Department of Transportation data on domestic airfares from the nation’s 45 busiest airports.” [Northern Virginia Magazine]
Public Art Reston Redesigns Website — Public Art Reston has launched a revamped website that highlights the nonprofit’s programs and a “catalogue of 90+ temporary and permanent public artworks around Reston, complete with images, detailed information, and maps so visitors can easily find them.” [Tysons Today]
It’s Thursday — Storms are expected throughout the day, especially between 11am and 5pm, and a high temperature near 84°F. There is a 70% chance of precipitation. At night, the chance of rain decreases to 30%, with partly cloudy skies and a low around 65°F. [NWS]
The Fairfax County Adult Detention Center (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
A former deputy with the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) has pleaded guilty in connection to a scheme involving bribes and smuggling contraband, including drugs, into the county jail.
Robert Theodore Sanford Jr., 37, brought cocaine, fentanyl and the opioid addiction-treatment medication Suboxone to an inmate in the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center from December 2022 through May 2023, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Electric vehicle chargers (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Wednesday that the state will no longer follow car emissions standards set by California, despite his party’s failure to repeal or roll back a 2021 Democratic law that tied Virginia to those regulations.
The move tees up what could be another legal fight over Republican leaders’ efforts to undo climate change-related measures Democrats passed when they had full control of state government a few years ago.
A natural gas-powered stove burner (photo via Kwon Junho on Unsplash)
Fairfax County’s leaders agree that natural gas companies need to communicate more with them and the public on major pipeline projects, but they appear divided on how to make that happen.
At a land use committee meeting on May 14, county staff presented the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors with potential options for regulating “high-pressure” pipelines under local streets. The review was specifically prompted by community opposition to a 2-foot-wide pipeline that Washington Gas plans to build through Pimmit Hills.
The Dragons Concord is a tabletop roleplay gaming center that focuses on providing a safe and professional roleplay and miniature wargaming experience.
Open to children ages 8-14, this camp will run weekly from June 17 to August 16 and give your children an opportunity to make new friends while playing exciting roleplaying games including miniatures painting, character portraits and more!
In addition to our upcoming summer camp, our themed private gaming rooms, free public gaming tables, and growing staff of professional game masters, are all oriented toward one goal — to make roleplay gaming as accessible and fun as we can for everyone!
We’ve had an amazing reception by the community since we first opened our doors last June and look forward to another year.
Gaming at Dragons Concord
The demand for quality game masters is increasing faster than ever before, and we intend to meet that demand head on. Our Storytellers are some of the best in the area, and we work together as a team to both improve our own skills and find ways to improve the community as well.
Dragons Concord is located at 11215 US-29 Suite L, Fairfax, VA 22030. Stop by anytime! And be sure to follow @dragons_concord on Instagram and Facebook.
A Capital Bikeshare station at the West Falls Church Metro station (file photo)
The Town of Vienna may soon be getting its long-planned Capital Bikeshare stations.
During its meeting on May 16, the town’s Board of Architectural Review approved site plans for three rental bicycle docking stations: one at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry Street SE), one in the Town Hall parking lot at 127 Center Street South, and one near the entrance to Navy Federal Credit Union’s headquarters at 801 Follin Lane SE.
The Fairfax County Police Department hopes to slam the brakes on street racing and rowdy car meets, among other issues, with a new summer crime prevention initiative.
The three-month campaign launched yesterday (Tuesday) with an initial focus on “community-based crimes,” particularly the “reckless street takeovers” that have periodically cropped up around the county and activities at bars and other late-night businesses, the FCPD said in a press release.
