Countywide

One Found Dead in Christmas Morning Fire — “One person was found dead in a Christmas morning fire at a townhouse in the Centreville area of Fairfax County, according to firefighters. Firefighters from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue arrived at the home in the 14100 block of Red River Drive early on Monday morning, they said in a release.” [NBC4]

Affair at Center of Frying Pan Area Killings — “A website that caters to people with sexual fetishes may have been used as part of a ploy to draw a man to a Herndon home before he and a woman living in the house were killed, according to new allegations laid out in the Fairfax County bond hearing of an au pair charged with murder in the case.” [Washington Post]


Sponsored

Live Fairfax is a bi-weekly column exploring Fairfax County. This recurring column is sponsored and written by Sharmane Medaris of McEnearney Associates. Questions? Reach Sharmane at 813-504-4479.

Christmas is only days away and soon the clock ticks down to bid farewell to 2023.


Countywide

Home sales in Northern Virginia declined 9.8% in November from the same month in 2022, but were up 12.5% from October, according to new data from the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors.

The year-over-year decline continued a trend that has been ongoing since the middle of 2022 although it was not as much as in some prior months. And prices rose 5.7% from November 2022, NVAR reported.


Around Town

Local government offices are closing early today (Friday) to give staff a head start on Christmas weekend.

With Christmas Eve falling on Sunday (Dec. 24) this year, Fairfax County, Fairfax City and the towns of Vienna and Herndon are all instead observing the occasion with a half-day today. All local government offices will shut down at noon, though schedules vary for some other public facilities and services.


Countywide

Region’s Busiest Travel Period Underway — “If you’re someone who travels out of the D.C. region for the holidays, one of the busiest winter holiday travel days has arrived…While the regional airports might sound busy, AAA Mid-Atlantic predicts the vast majority of travelers in the D.C. metro area, 98%, will be driving to their destinations.” [WTOP]

Two Arrested for Fatal Franconia Shooting — “Two juvenile suspects have turned themselves in for their involvement in the Franconia shooting that left a Woodbridge man dead. [On Wednesday], officers were notified of two juvenile suspects who turned themselves in to Arlington Police. Both juveniles were transported to Fairfax County and charged.” [FCPD]


News

(Updated at 12:45 a.m. on 12/22/2023) No holiday miracle was necessary for the McLean Central Playground Team to reach its goal of raising $400,000 to update the play equipment at their local park.

The group of moms announced on Tuesday (Dec. 19) that they have reached their fundraising target with days to spare before a year-end deadline set by the Fairfax County Park Authority, which is responsible for the planned renovation of the playground and tot lot at McLean Central Park (1468 Dolley Madison Blvd).


Countywide

With ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence-based tools becoming increasingly mainstream, Fairfax County Public Schools officials have started discussing potential guidelines to govern how the technology is used in the classroom.

The Fairfax County School Board broached the topic at work session forum on Nov. 28, led by outgoing board chair and Dranesville District representative Elaine Tholen and Sully District representative Stella Pekarsky.


Around Town

The Red Bird has landed in Vienna.

The hot chicken chain’s first Northern Virginia franchise is in the midst of a soft opening at 282 Cedar Lane in the Cedar Park Shopping Center, where it has replaced the McDonald’s that closed in 2022. The location is currently open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., according to Instagram posts.


Countywide

At the halfway point of his administration, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin unveiled a budget proposal that calls for significant income tax cuts, increases in state sales and use tax — and a push to get rid of the car tax, which the Republican called “the single most hated tax” in Virginia.

“The car tax belongs in the trash can and not in your mailbox,” he said.


Countywide

Report Recommends Options for Closing Metro Funding Gap — “The report, issued Tuesday by a working group of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, suggests boosting local jurisdictions’ collective subsidies to Metro by as much as $462 million, plus various additional compromise measures.” Suggestions include fare increases and “targeted service reductions” that could be less drastic than the partial Silver Line closure proposed by WMATA. [Washington Business Journal]

Three Arrested for Theft and Fraud at Tysons Clothing Store — “The Tysons Urban Team (TUT) detectives arrested a crew believed to be responsible for multiple fraudulent transactions and recovered property belonging to U.S. Postal Service (USPS). At 2:14 p.m. on December 15, detectives responded to the Diesel store in the McLean area for a suspicious person call. A store employee recognized several suspects from a fraudulent purchase that was made a few weeks prior.” [FCPD]


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