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Morning Notes

By FFXnow.com
Cherry blossoms have opened in Vienna (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Supreme Court Tosses County Zoning Update — “The Virginia Supreme Court has voided a massive zoning modernization plan approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2021 because the board’s approval occurred during a virtual meeting. The court’s ruling, issued Thursday, could call into question scores of routine decisions made by local governing bodies during the first 15 months of the COVID-19 pandemic.” [Inside NoVA]

D.C. Cherry Blossoms Reach Peak Bloom — “The National Park Service announced that Washington’s cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin reached peak bloom Thursday. Peak bloom occurs when 70 percent of cherry tree buds are flowering…The National Cherry Blossom Festival started Monday in coordination with the flowering of the cherry blossoms.” [The Washington Post]

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BREAKING: Fairfax County police officer who shot Timothy McCree Johnson in Tysons fired

By Angela Woolsey
Body camera footage shows first responders providing medical aid to Timothy McCree Johnson after he was shot by police on Feb. 22 outside Tysons Corner Center (via FCPD)

(Updated at 6:15 p.m.) The Fairfax County police officer who allegedly fired the gunshot that killed Timothy McCree Johnson outside Tysons Corner Center last month will be fired, Chief Kevin Davis announced this afternoon (Thursday).

Davis didn’t identify the officer removed from duty, but the Washington Post reports that Sgt. Wesley Shifflett, a seven-year veteran of the Fairfax County Police Department, is believed to have fired the fatal shots.

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Countywide

Fairfax County initiates turn calming study, following Portland and New York City’s example

By Vernon Miles
Afternoon rush-hour traffic clogs up Dolley Madison Boulevard at the Ingleside Avenue intersection in McLean (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County could be taking some notes from New York City and Portland as it tries to turn back the surge of recent pedestrian fatalities.

The Board of Supervisors directed the Fairfax County Department of Transportation on Tuesday (March 21) to review turn-calming measures from other jurisdictions, discuss options with the Virginia Department of Transportation, and come back to the board’s transportation committee with an analysis of how that can be implemented.

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News

Construction nears on condo building that led push to revitalize downtown McLean

By Angela Woolsey
A ceremonial groundbreaking was held yesterday for the residential development by property owner Winthrop Investment Group (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The residential building coming to 6707 Old Dominion Drive will be modest — at least compared to the high-rises going up in Tysons to the south — but it has already altered the future of downtown McLean.

Contractor Trinity Group Construction anticipates beginning work next week on the nine-story, 44-unit project, which will replace the parking lot behind a three-story office building whose current tenants include Chipotle and Fresh Baguette.

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Countywide

Photos: FCPD helicopters land bigger home with new aviation center

By Angela Woolsey
A helicopter is staged at the Fairfax County Police Department's new David M. Rohrer Aviation Center (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 12:10 p.m.) Fairfax County’s police helicopters have a new base of operations.

The emergency choppers and their crews will now be housed at the Fairfax County Police Department’s new David M. Rohrer Aviation Center, which was welcomed with a grand opening celebration yesterday (Wednesday).

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Countywide

Morning Notes

By Angela Woolsey
A net goes up at Capital One Park, a new baseball stadium set to open in Tysons on March 31 (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Family of Man Killed by Police Sees Footage — Ahead of a public release at 1 p.m. today (Thursday), the “family of Timothy McCree Johnson, an unarmed Black man fatally shot by Fairfax County police outside Tysons Corner Center last month, watched body-camera footage of his killing. Their lawyer asserted afterward that the video showed Johnson had posed no threat to law enforcement.” [The Washington Post]

McLean Woman Convicted of Killing Daughters — A Fairfax County jury convicted 37-year-old Veronica Youngblood yesterday (Wednesday) “of killing her two daughters — Sharon Castro, 15, and Brooklynn Youngblood, 5 — on Aug. 5, 2018. The mother admitted to officials that she fatally shot her children, but she pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.” [The Washington Post]

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Botanical makeover for Vienna’s main streets delayed to uproot cost concerns

By Angela Woolsey
A Fairfax Connector bus stop and trees line the sidewalk on Maple Avenue (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Town of Vienna wants to bring more color to Maple Avenue and Church Street with a landscaping refresh, but new greenery won’t be in the ground until August at the earliest.

Department of Parks and Recreation staff approached the Vienna Town Council on Monday (March 20) to request $600,000 for a landscaping contractor that will help design and install new planters along the town’s main commercial streets.

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Countywide

Shootings by FCPD officers spiked last year, but public use-of-force complaints were low, report says

By Acacia James
A Fairfax County police car (file photo)

Fairfax County’s independent police auditor has published its annual report, showing an increase in police shootings but a decrease in use-of-force complaints last year.

The county’s Board of Supervisors established the Office of the Independent Police Auditor (OIPA) in 2016 to increase trust between residents and the police department “by providing accountability, fairness, and transparency in the complaint system and investigative process,” the report stated.

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