All Fairfax County Public Schools employees will get a bump in their paychecks, starting next year, after the school board unanimously approved 2% raises last week.
The additional pay was made possible by the budget that the Virginia General Assembly belatedly adopted in early September, which provided money to raise teacher salaries across the state. But school board members and FCPS workers argue that overall state funding for education falls far short of what they need.
On their own, the first developments approved by Fairfax County since it overhauled its plan to revitalize downtown McLean seem modest.
One is a corporate headquarters expansion, while the other is a seven-story, mostly residential building, promising 130 new units of housing but not exactly rivaling the scale of the high-rises going up in Tysons.
Laura Schwartz is a licensed Realtor in VA and D.C. with McEnearney Associates in Vienna. You can follow Laura on Instagram at @LauraSchwartzRealtor or her Facebook page. Laura can be reached at 703-283-6120 or Laura@GuidingYourMove.com.
I saw this viral video on Instagram about a family who swaps candy for a toy for a kid which apparently people had strong feelings about. In our house, there’s of course a “Dad Tax” on 100 grand bars that the kids bring home, but there’s always a bunch of stuff that either I hate for them or they don’t like. One of my kids doesn’t even like most of the candy unless it’s going to stick to his teeth and guarantee a cavity (thank goodness for good dental insurance). If you’re like us, and Halloween candy can last a year in your pantry, why not do something good with it instead?
The best place to eat in Northern Virginia right now is an upscale restaurant tucked away in an office building outside Merrifield that also houses the U.S. headquarters of defense contractor BAE Systems.
At least that’s the designation bestowed upon 2941 by Northern Virginia Magazine’s food critics, whose ranking of the 50 best restaurants in the region for 2023 hit newsstands on Friday (Oct. 27) as part of its November issue.
An upcoming cafe is bringing coffee from its historical birthplace to the Town of Vienna.
Qamaria Coffee, a Michigan-based company, will open its first cafe on the East Coast next year at 124 Maple Avenue West in Vienna Shopping Center, filling a 1,900-square-foot space that has been vacant since Viva Sol Juice Company closed on Dec. 31, 2021.
As Metro considers ways to address a looming $750 million shortfall and stave off changes to its operations, officials are requesting jurisdictions, including Virginia, review their options to help address the funding deficit that threatens thousands of jobs and various services.
Metro hopes policymakers in the commonwealth will consider adjusting the state law that sets a 3% cap on the growth of Virginia’s annual payment to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. Dedicating more funding to Metro and overlooking the demands of other transportation projects, however, concerns some lawmakers and transportation leaders.
Centreville Shooting Started Over Parking — “Two men are in the hospital suffering from gunshot wounds after an argument about a parking space in Centreville, Virginia, police say. Residents say the incident started when a car with a group of men inside pulled into a parking spot outside a townhouse community on Golden Oak Road Thursday night. [NBC4]
Route 7 Improvements Made in Culmore — “In a follow-up to a meeting on pedestrian safety for Leesburg Pike in Culmore in August 2022, transportation officials presented an update at a community meeting Oct. 25 on what has been done and what’s in the pipeline…In one major improvement, the speed limit along Leesburg Pike between the City of Falls Church and the City of Alexandra has been reduced from 40 to 35 mph” [Annandale Today]
McLean got a step closer this week to realizing its wish for a new, improved and more inclusive playground at McLean Central Park (1468 Dolley Madison Blvd).
The Fairfax County Park Authority Board approved a $20,000 Mastenbrook Grant Wednesday (Oct. 25) to help fund the project, which has significantly expanded in scope thanks to the advocacy and fundraising efforts of local parents.
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.
Have you been here YET?
Another Fairfax County office building will soon morph into a live/work development, where units are designed to serve as a home, a workplace or both.
A proposed repurposing of the 10-story office building at 2000 Corporate Ridge in Tysons got approved Tuesday (Oct. 24) by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors after a straightforward public hearing where the only community member who signed up to speak couldn’t be reached.
