Around Town

In addition to learning about the country’s history through educational programs or taking in local attractions, Fairfax County residents will be able to celebrate America 250 by partaking in specially crafted alcohol.

The county will unveil a series of unique craft beverages to commemorate the U.S.’s 250th anniversary, starting this Sunday (April 19) with the launch of a pair of new wines developed by Fairfax County’s two wineries.


Countywide

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors could soon receive a staff proposal on potentially consolidating “placemaking groups” that promote either the county as a whole or specific communities in it.

County Executive Bryan Hill said he expects to detail his proposals to elected officials later this spring.


News

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors directed County Executive Bryan Hill last Tuesday (Feb. 3) to consider ways a number of “placemaking” organizations — including Visit Fairfax, Volunteer Fairfax and the Tysons Community Alliance — could be consolidated or restructured to reduce costs and be more operationally strategic.

“While each provides value, fragmentation and duplicative services dilute impact and reduce efficiency,” board members said in the directive to Hill.


Countywide

As he approaches his 18th anniversary as CEO of Visit Fairfax, Barry Biggar has the same item atop his to-do list as when he started on the job: a conference center.

“We needed it 25 years ago, we need it today,” Biggar said during a Jan. 28 presentation to the Fairfax County Planning Commission.


Countywide

The president and CEO of Visit Fairfax believes an expected increase of $6.5 million a year in funding for promoting local tourism can be leveraged to create more than $1 billion annually in new economic activity countywide.

The tourism sector’s impact on the county economy “will get to $5 billion a year,” potentially within the next “three to five years,” Barry Biggar predicted at the Board of Supervisors’ Economic Initiatives Committee yesterday (Tuesday).


News

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum has no intention right now of shipping off a centerpiece of its Chantilly facility to Texas.

The federal budget bill that squeaked through the Republican-led U.S. Senate on Tuesday (July 1) includes a provision directing NASA to transfer the Discovery space shuttle from its longtime home at the Udvar-Hazy Center to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, allocating $85 million toward transportation and construction costs.


Sports

Heads up, local fans of youth ice hockey: USA Hockey’s national championships are coming to town.

The 2025 Chipotle-USA Hockey Girls Tier II 16-under National Championship will play out at two venues in Northern Virginia this week, from April 2-6.


News

Fairfax County has cultivated an economic win by landing a role as host of the American Wine Society’s annual conference.

The gathering of winemakers, restaurants and connoisseurs, which typically draws more than 650 attendees, will be held this fall at the Westfields Marriott Washington Dulles Hotel in Chantilly, according to Visit Fairfax, which anticipates that the event will generate at least $1 million in economic impacts.


News

Barry Biggar, president and CEO of Visit Fairfax, has been honored with the Tower of Dulles award, following in the footsteps of notable figures like Steven F. Udvar-Hazy and senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.

Presented annually by the Committee for Dulles, the award honors individuals or organizations that significantly enhance Dulles International Airport and its surrounding economic corridor.


News

The lead-up to Valentine’s Day has carried an extra note of sweetness for Paradise Springs Winery.

The Clifton winery is wrapping up a three-day stay in France for the fifth annual Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris, where it’s representing Fairfax County as one of just six participating Virginia establishments.


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