Author: Scott McCaffrey

A Northern Virginia native, Scott McCaffrey has four decades of reporting, editing and newsroom experience in the local area plus Florida, South Carolina and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia. He spent 26 years as editor of the Sun Gazette newspaper chain. For Local News Now, he covers government and civic issues in Arlington, Fairfax County and Falls Church.

News

Falls Church election officials take steps to address security issues

By Scott McCaffrey
Falls Church voting map (courtesy City of Falls Church)

Hoping for the best but being ready for the worst seems to be the focus of Falls Church officials when it comes to Election Day security measures.

“Is Falls Church likely to be a low-risk area? Sure,” city registrar David Bjerke told Electoral Board members on Oct. 1.

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Arlington Electoral Board votes to inform state AG of non-citizen voting claims

By Scott McCaffrey
Voting in Courthouse (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Arlington Electoral Board members on Oct. 1 voted to keep Virginia’s attorney general in the loop related to allegations of non-citizen voting.

The panel in August had voted 3-0 to turn over relevant information both to Attorney General Jason Miyares (R) and Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti (D). But shortly after that vote, Electoral Board secretary Kim Phillip asked to rescind the planned notification of Miyares.

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Arlington housing panel pushes for easier church-to-housing conversions

By Scott McCaffrey
A former church for sale in the Buckingham neighborhood in 2021 (staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

It could be an uphill battle at best, but an Arlington government advisory body wants the state and local governments to loosen restrictions on religious congregations seeking to turn their parcels into affordable housing.

Members of the Housing Commission in September voted to include the proposal on a list of priorities for consideration by the County Board in advance of the 2025 General Assembly session.

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Falls Church council candidates cautious on accessory dwellings

By Scott McCaffrey
Falls Church City Council candidates Laura Downs and John Murphy at candidate forum (via League of Women Voters/Vimeo)

Candidates for the Falls Church City Council seat on the Nov. 5 ballot are playing it cautiously when it comes to bringing accessory-dwelling units (ADUs) to residential neighborhoods in the city.

The devil, both contenders suggest, is in the details. And those details have yet to be fully fleshed out, they say.

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Historic status bid stalls amid Melwood site redevelopment plans

By Scott McCaffrey
Melwood's property at 750 23rd Street S. in Aurora Highlands (via Google Maps)

Six months after it was first submitted, a request to bestow historic-district status on an Arlington parcel slated for a major redevelopment continues to await action.

The request, formally submitted in April, came from local residents upset with plans by property owner Melwood to redevelop a 1.96-acre parcel on 23rd Street S. in Aurora Highlands as a mixed-use property and, likely, demolish the former Nelly Custis Elementary School on the site.

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Jimmy Carter turns 100 today. Here’s his electoral history in Arlington.

By Scott McCaffrey
Jimmy Carter (White House photo)

Former President Jimmy Carter, who turns 100 today, compiled a 1-for-2 record with the Arlington electorate.

The former Georgia governor in his successful 1976 bid for the White House defeated Republican Gerald Ford in the county tally, 32,536 to 30,872, according to data from the county government’s elections office.

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