utilities | FFXnow

Dominion substations approved to support Dulles-area data centers

Published July 16, 2025 at 3:45PM

Site of proposed Park Center Road power substation (via Dominion Energy)

Despite objections to one of the projects from nearby residents, the Fairfax County Planning Commission at its July 9 meeting approved Dominion Energy’s requests for two new electrical substations to support future data centers in the Dulles area.

A 300-megawatt Towerview substation will be wedged between Sully Road (Route 28) and Park Center Road in the Floris neighborhood, just east of Dulles International Airport. Dominion will lease the site from the owner of the Dulles Gateway data center, which is being constructed immediately to its south.

News

W&OD Trail temporarily closed in Dunn Loring for electrical project

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 8, 2025 at 11:45AM | Updated July 9, 2025 at 9:41AM

Washington & Old Dominion Trail detour for Clark-Idylwood reconductor project phase 2 (via Dominion Energy)

Pedestrians and cyclists who frequent the Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail will need to find an alternative route through the Dunn Loring area this week.

The trail closed yesterday (Monday) between Gallows Road in Dunn Loring and Shreve Road in Idylwood to give crews room to install a new electric transmission line as part of Dominion Energy’s Clark-Idylwood reconductor project. The closure will remain in place on Friday (July 11).

News

Lake Anne residents ‘suffering’ after cooling system fails during heat wave

By Angela Woolsey

Published June 26, 2025 at 8:30AM

The Vantage Hill Condominiums in Reston (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Reston residents are becoming increasingly frustrated by the cooling system that serves properties around Lake Anne, saying equipment issues and unresponsive management have forced them to endure intense heat this summer without relief.

Residents who shared their experiences with FFXnow say temperatures in their homes have climbed up to 85 degrees or higher this week after one of the chillers that Reston RELAC uses to cool water from Lake Anne shut down last Friday (June 20).

News

Contractor could take over cooling utility for Lake Anne residents in Reston

By Angela Woolsey

Published April 2, 2025 at 11:15AM

RELAC serves residential properties and a few businesses around Lake Anne (via Fairfax County Hunter Mill District Office)

RELAC will live to cool down residents and businesses near Lake Anne in Reston for at least one more summer.

Reston RELAC President Mark Waddell informed customers on Monday (March 31) that he’s in discussions to transfer ownership of the chilled-water cooling system to a contractor in Maryland, enabling operations to continue after a previously planned hand-off fell through.

News

Future of air-conditioning system for Reston’s Lake Anne once again in doubt

By Angela Woolsey

Published March 26, 2025 at 1:15PM

Townhouses along Lake Anne in Reston (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Hundreds of residents around Lake Anne in Reston are facing new uncertainty over how they will cool down their homes as the weather heats up.

SpringRELAC, a resident-run nonprofit, announced yesterday (Tuesday) that its authority to operate the central air-conditioning system that provides chilled water from the man-made lake to surrounding properties hasn’t been renewed for the 2025 season.

News

NEW: Tree clear-cutting along W&OD Trail alarms local officials and residents

By Angela Woolsey

Published February 27, 2025 at 9:00AM

A tree stump left by Dominion Energy near the Washington & Old Dominion Trail (courtesy NOVA Parks)

Some tree trimmings and removals were expected when Dominion Energy initated a project last year to replace electrical lines in the Vienna section of the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail, but the extent of the clearings has taken local residents, elected officials and even the agency that owns the trail by surprise.

Starting in November, the utility began cutting down trees and vegetation along a 4-mile stretch of the trail from Vienna to Dunn Loring at a much more “aggressive” scale than it has in the past, according to Paul Gilbert, executive director of the Northern Virginia Regional Parks Authority (NOVA Parks).

Countywide

Here are the new Virginia laws taking effect on Jan. 1, 2025

By Scott McCaffrey

Published December 31, 2024 at 9:45AM

The Virginia State Capitol building (file photo)

New Year’s Day will bring a number of new laws and regulations into effect across Virginia.

While legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed by the governor typically has an effective date of the start of the state government’s fiscal year on July 1, some measures are delayed until Jan. 1 each year.

News

W&OD Trail temporarily closed in Vienna area for Dominion Energy project

By Angela Woolsey

Published November 13, 2024 at 1:15PM

The Washington & Old Dominion Trail is temporarily closed at Cedar Lane in Dunn Loring (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A nearly 3-mile stretch of the Washington & Old Dominion Trail has been out of commission this week, but pedestrians and bicyclists should be able to return soon.

Dominion Energy closed the trail from Mill Street NE in Vienna to Sandburg Street in Dunn Loring on Monday, Nov. 11 as part of its ongoing project to replace electric power lines between the Clark and Idylwood substations.

News

Larger water tank approved for Idylwood neighborhood despite concerns

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 25, 2024 at 9:00AM

The proposed Poplar Heights water tank (via Fairfax Water)

Poplar Heights is officially getting a new water storage tank with a capacity of 1.25 million gallons, despite continued objections from many residents of the single-family Idylwood neighborhood.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Tuesday (Oct. 22) — with Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn absent — to approve Fairfax Water’s request for a special exception allowing the facility to replace an existing standpipe tank at 7407 Tower Street that can hold 700,000 gallons of water.

News

Fairfax County School Board jumps regulatory hurdles to OK solar panels for nine schools

By James Jarvis

Published July 17, 2024 at 10:30AM | Updated July 18, 2024 at 9:56AM

A solar panel demonstration project outside Luther Jackson Middle School (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

In a bid to cut energy costs by tens of thousands of dollars, the Fairfax County School Board finalized a deal with a local solar developer last month to outfit nine elementary schools across the county with 250-kilowatt (kW) solar panels.

The solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) comes years after the school board approved a series of much larger solar projects that were halted after Dominion Energy introduced new interconnection rules that substantially increased project costs, rendering the projects economically unfeasible.