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.

Schools

APS science teacher selected as Albert Einstein fellow at Library of Congress

By Scott McCaffrey
Man in a dark pinstripe suit delivers a speech at a podium, with a banner that reads 'Every Student Counts' beside him.
Daniel Bernhardt speaks to School Board members (screenshot via APS)

An Arlington educator was honored by county school leaders this week after being selected to participate in a prestigious federal fellowship program.

Daniel Bernhardt, who teaches science at Swanson Middle School, has been selected as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow and appointed teacher in residence at the Library of Congress for the 2026-27 school year.

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News

Larger gun-free zones around polling places arrive in Arlington without a hitch

By Scott McCaffrey
Voter standing at a red polling booth placing a ballot inside a slot in a bright room with tables in the background, indicating a polling station.
Arlington voter at Yorktown High School on Aug. 4, 2026 (staff photo by Ryan Cole)

The primaries earlier this month took place with a new Virginia law in effect: a wider radius around polling places where it’s illegal to carry a gun.

The expansion of the radius from 40 feet to 100 feet went smoothly in Arlington, election officials say.

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News

Arlington officials finalize voting calendar for fall elections

By Scott McCaffrey
Voters arrive at a polling place on April 21, 2026 (staff photo by Dan Egitto)

The voting schedule for the Nov. 3 general election is set in Arlington.

Early voting will begin on Friday, Sept. 18 at the Ellen M. Bozman Government Center, and will continue through Oct. 31. Starting Saturday, Oct. 17, satellite voting will take place at the Walter Reed and Langston-Brown community centers.

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News

Falls Church history panel may again seek to change the city’s flag

By Scott McCaffrey
Older man in a blazer stands outdoors near flagpoles with the City of Falls Church, Virginia flag and an Arbor Day Foundation flag behind him on a sunny day in a parking lot.
The Falls Church city flag, as seen at an event in 2023 (via City of Falls Church/Facebook)

The Falls Church Historical Commission is hoping to create buzz around the concept of a new city flag.

Commission members last year recommended that city leaders consider a change to the current flag, which shows the city seal featuring the historic Falls Church, from which the city takes its name.

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News

New Arlington apartments are getting smaller, bucking nationwide trends

By Scott McCaffrey
Cozy living room with a mustard-yellow sofa, glass coffee table, and wall-mounted bookshelves filled with books.
Small apartment (via Lisa Anna/Unsplash)

Arlington apartment rents remain among the most expensive in the nation, but the units themselves are on the smaller end, according to new data.

The average unit in apartment buildings constructed in Arlington between 2016 and 2025 is 815 square feet. That’s down 8% from the previous decade, when the typical new apartment was 859 square feet.

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News

Arlington home prices approached record highs in July

By Scott McCaffrey
Real estate for sale sign (photo illustration by ARLnow)

This past month was one of the priciest on record for Arlington’s housing market.

The average sales price of all homes that went to closing countywide last month was $1,012,720, second only to the record $1,061,497 in April. Increases were recorded in all three market segments:

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News

In 1969, the ‘silent majority’ propelled Arlington GOP to rare political landslide

By Scott McCaffrey
Black-and-white front-page of Northern Virginia Sun announcing Virginia elected Republican Holton; near-sweep locally by GOP, with a large photo of A. Linwood Holton and smaller portraits.
Northern Virginia Sun coverage of 1969 election results (via Charlie Clark Center for Local History)

This reporting was supported by the ARLnow Press Club. Join to support in-depth local journalism — and get an exclusive early morning email with a preview of that day’s planned news coverage.

The death of an Arlington civic leader earlier this year closed the history books on one of the most interesting political campaigns in county history.

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News

Falls Church leaders begin vetting affordable housing proposals

By Scott McCaffrey
Virginia Village properties on S. Maple Avenue, Shirley Street and Gibson Street (via City of Falls Church)

The Falls Church committee tasked with evaluating affordable housing proposals for Virginia Village got down to business last week.

The seven-member Virginia Village Proposals Evaluation Committee met Aug. 6, the same day proposals were due from prospective partners seeking to be part of the redevelopment project.

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Schools

APS apologizes for tuition errors in Arlington Community Learning catalog

By Scott McCaffrey
Smiling woman with glasses in a classroom foreground; banner at top reads Arlington Community Learning, Fall 2026 Catalog.
Arlington Community Learning fall catalog cover (via Arlington Public Schools)

The print catalog for the fall Arlington Community Learning program lists the wrong price for several classes, school officials have confirmed.

The errors impact prices for county seniors and non-residents, which in some cases were flipped in the 20-page catalog:

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News

Arlington Democrats hit the phones for tight Texas Senate race

By Scott McCaffrey
Man in a cowboy hat on a phone call at a desk, with a MacBook and papers in hand.
Arjoon Srikanth was in Texas attire as he spoke with prospective voters (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

Arlington Democrats traveled deep in the heart of Texas, by telephone, adding their efforts to the contentious U.S. Senate race there.

A dozen volunteers on Aug. 6 spent 90 minutes making calls to prospective Texas voters, gauging their views on the issues and working to convince them to support Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico.

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Around Town

How the Arlington County Fair launched as a community project 50 years ago

By Scott McCaffrey
Woman laughing on a red amusement ride with two children beside her, sunny day at a fairground.
Rides long have been a part of the Arlington County Fair (via 2013 fair guide)

The Arlington County Fair, which returns for its 50th installment later this week, began life in 1977 as a grassroots community effort.

“Our fair is unique — it will reflect Arlington’s pluralistic nature,” fair chair O. Ware Page, Jr. told The Washington Post as the inaugural fair prepared to draw a hoped-for 100,000 visitors to Thomas Jefferson Community Center.

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News

Proposal calls for more concentrated upgrades to Arlington bike corridors

By Scott McCaffrey
An Arlington bicyclist (via Arlington County)

A new analysis calls for a more concentrated approach to upgrading Arlington’s bicycling facilities.

Reid Unison, a transportation service planner at Amtrak, analyzed bike usage data in Arlington as part of a master’s degree project. His findings supported improvements to a limited number of key bicycle corridors, rather than a more scattershot approach.

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