Fairfax County government leaders are debating changes to property tax bills amid tensions with soaring home values.
During a regular meeting tomorrow (Tuesday), the Board of Supervisors will likely advertise a property tax rate of $1.14 per $100 of assessed value. That is the same as last year’s rate, but bills are still expected to go up, due to soaring real estate assessments.
Woman Dies in Crash on I-495 — Virginia State Police are investigating a fatal crash on I-495 near the Eisenhower Avenue Connector in the Rose Hill area. The crash occurred at 9:27 p.m. on Saturday (March 5) when a sedan hit a disabled vehicle, causing it to catch fire. The driver of the disabled vehicle died at the scene, while the sedan driver suffered minor injuries and was arrested on multiple charges, including driving under the influence. [Virginia State Police, InsideNova]
Trial for McLean Murder Suspect Begins — “Fairfax County police quickly announced that what unfolded inside the large, yellow home in McLean in 2017 appeared to be a tragic murder-suicide…But after a 16-month investigation, police offered a stunning turnabout: what initially appeared to be a murder-suicide was allegedly a double killing. They claimed the scene had been carefully staged by the real perpetrator.” [The Washington Post]
Fairfax County Public Schools has asked a federal court to let its current Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology admissions process stay in place while a legal battle over the new system continues.
U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton issued an order last Friday (Feb. 25) invalidating the school system’s overhaul, calling the elimination of a standardized test and other changes intended to increase student diversity at the magnet school discriminatory against Asian Americans.
The weekend is almost here. Before truck convoys potentially disrupt traffic in the D.C. area or you head to bed for some much-needed sleep, let’s revisit the past week of news in Fairfax County.
Here are the 10 most-read stories on FFXnow this week:
(Updated at 5:55 p.m.) This spring will bring a wealth of new dining options to Tysons Galleria.
The mall’s Urbanspace food hall will officially relaunch on March 22 after going into a kind of hibernation mode during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, a news release announced yesterday (Thursday).
A Nordstrom worker at Tysons Corner Center was allegedly scammed into providing thousands of dollars worth of gift cards by someone who claimed to work for the retailer’s IT department.
The Fairfax County Police Department began investigating the incident, which occurred on Feb. 7 and 8, after a man had the store employee make purchases, perform returns onto Nordstrom gift cards, and add money to the cards, a police affidavit said.
The Fairfax County Department of Transportation intends to pursue funding next year to expand a budding program to improve street safety for pedestrians, bicyclists, and other forms of active, or non-motorized, transportation.
The money would be used to hire a program manager and implement priorities, such as speed reduction measures and improved road design standards, FCDOT Active Transportation Engineer Lauren Delmare told the county Board of Supervisors at its transportation committee meeting on Tuesday (March 1).
McLean Central Park’s tennis and pickleball courts are here to stay.
The Fairfax County Park Authority presented a revised development concept for the 28-acre park (1468 Dolley Madison Boulevard) on Wednesday (March 2) that moved away from previous plans to eliminate one of the three courts to make room for a dog park.
Metro Gets More ARPA Funding — “Another $120 million in federal pandemic relief money is being released to Metro to keep the transit system running and its front-line workers on the job, congressional leaders announced Thursday.” [The Washington Post]
Multiple I-66 Closures Start Today — Construction on a new I-66 East access ramp will reduce the highway to a single travel lane approaching Cedar Lane in the Dunn Loring area during overnight hours, starting at 10 p.m. today (Friday) through Wednesday (March 9). Construction will also close the I-66 West ramp to Nutley Street in Vienna from 10 p.m. tonight until 5 a.m. Monday (March 7). [VDOT, Town of Vienna/Twitter]
A George Mason University professor was stabbed to death in his Oakton home near Vienna Wednesday night, Police Chief Kevin Davis said at a press conference today (Thursday).
Michael Buschmann, 59, was found dead in the house in the 9800 block of Palace Green Way after police received several calls reporting his 26-year-old son Axel Buschmann walking around shirtless, covered in blood, and holding a knife.
