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

Arlington Economic Development director warns of ‘constrained resources’ this year

By Scott McCaffrey
Local leaders help cut the ribbon of the new AC Hotel Arlington National Landing in August 2025 (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Arlington’s economic development efforts may need to do more with less over the coming year.

“This is a budget [year] that is very lean. There’s going to be a lot of discussion about that,” acting Arlington Economic Development (AED) director Kate Ange said at the Feb. 10 Economic Development Commission meeting.

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News

Arlington home sales drop 20% year-over-year, following nationwide decline

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

Arlington home sales were down substantially last month, following trends throughout the D.C. area and across the nation.

January typically is one of the softest months of the year in local real estate, but last month was unusually anemic. In Arlington, 97 properties went to closing, down just over 20% from January 2025, according to data reported Feb. 10 by MarketStats by ShowingTime.

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News

Arlington LGBTQ+ committee plans to begin advocating for concrete policies

By Scott McCaffrey
A Pride installation in Gateway Park in Rosslyn (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

The county manager’s LGBTQIA+ Advisory Committee is ready to move beyond the planning stage and start impacting policy decisions.

“We have a really good base” to build on, committee chair Samantha Perez said at the organization’s first meeting of 2026.

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Obituary

JUST IN: Judge William Newman, Arlington’s first Black County Board member, has died

By Scott McCaffrey
Then-Circuit Court Chief Judge William Newman Jr. in his office (2023 photo by Deb Kolt/GazetteLeader)

William Newman Jr., who served as Arlington’s first Black County Board member and as chief judge of the county’s circuit court, has died.

Newman died at his home yesterday (Tuesday), leaving an enduring legacy that some consider one of the most consequential in Arlington’s recent history. As word has spread, tributes have poured in.

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Schools

Keeping special-ed teachers during summer school remains a challenge at APS

By Scott McCaffrey
APS Chief of Staff Brian Stockton speaks at a recent meeting (via APS)

Arlington Public Schools officials are brainstorming ways to encourage special-education teachers to serve as summer school instructors.

A little over half of educators who taught special-ed students at the secondary level during the 2025 summer school program expressed interest in returning for 2026, according to a survey conducted by the school system and reported at the Feb. 5 School Board meeting.

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Schools

School Board chair announces reelection campaign, taking swipes at Trump

By Scott McCaffrey
School Board Chair Bethany Zecher Sutton at 2026 campaign kickoff (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

School Board Chair Bethany Zecher Sutton launched her reelection bid last week with a pledge to fight for students — and against the Trump administration.

“We’re all feeling the impact of this administration’s attacks on our values. We will not back down,” Zecher Sutton said during Wednesday remarks to about 200 people at the monthly Arlington County Democratic Committee meeting.

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News

Beyer faces challenges on his age and possible redistricting shakeup in reelection bid

By Scott McCaffrey
Rep. Don Beyer at 2026 campaign kickoff before Arlington Democrats (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) is taking on challenges about his age and the possibility of a dramatically different constituency as he seeks reelection.

Beyer, who turns 76 in June, addressed the age issue at last week’s meeting of the Arlington County Democratic Committee. He also discussed potential congressional redistricting in a press release on Friday.

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Schools

APS superintendent defends snow day decisions, but acknowledges communication issues

By Scott McCaffrey
Arlington Public Schools employees clearing snow in front of Dorothy Hamm Middle School (via APS)

Arlington Public Schools Superintendent Francisco Durán stands behind decisions to keep classrooms shuttered for more than a week after last month’s snowstorm, but acknowledges shortcomings in the school system’s approach.

Durán said he and other school leaders should have done a better job at keeping the community informed on the reasons behind their decisions.

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News

Proposed congressional maps in Virginia would split Arlington in two

By Scott McCaffrey and Emily Leayman
Voting at Arlington Central Library on Nov. 7, 2023 (staff photo by James Jarvis)

Newly proposed maps would split Arlington into two congressional districts as part of a statewide overhaul heavily favoring Virginia Democrats.

The proposal would keep a southern portion of Arlington in the 8th Congressional District, which currently encompasses all of the county and is represented by Rep. Don Beyer (D). This would extend as far south as York County in the Tidewater region.

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News

Washington Post layoffs culminate decades of thinning coverage in Northern Virginia

By Scott McCaffrey
Washington Post coverage of 1982 Air Florida crash and deadly Metro derailment (via Washington Post)

Mass layoffs at The Washington Post yesterday (Wednesday) dealt a punishing blow to the newspaper’s storied history of local journalism after decades of declining emphasis on Arlington and Northern Virginia.

Reminiscent of the demises of the Washington Star in the early 1980s, Journal Newspapers in the early 2000s and Sun Gazettes in 2023, the job cuts entail a dramatic downscaling of reporting on the D.C. area.

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News

Legislation to restore powers to Falls Church Planning Commission faces uphill battle

By Scott McCaffrey
A Falls Church Planning Commission meeting (via city of Falls Church)

Falls Church officials are awaiting developments in Richmond to determine whether the city’s Planning Commission will get back powers that the General Assembly stripped last year.

However, legislation to restore the old arrangement could face an uphill battle.

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News

Council considers allowing up to 100 e-scooters and e-bikes in Falls Church

By Scott McCaffrey
Seated and standing e-scooters by LINK (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Nearly seven years after a failed first attempt, Falls Church officials are trying again to entice e-scooter and e-bike operators to the city.

Council members are considering a proposal to allow a maximum of 100 total operating certificates for “shared mobility devices”: motorized skateboards, scooters, bicycles and electrically assisted bicycles.

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