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

Cherrydale parking problems could get help from county leaders

By Scott McCaffrey
Vehicle believed to be illegally parked in Cherrydale (photo courtesy local resident)

County leaders are promising to help Cherrydale residents address concerns about spillover parking and abandoned vehicles near Langston Blvd.

They’re also encouraging residents to consider creating more residential parking zones to help with the issues.

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News

More crime concerns in Green Valley drive calls for county support

By Scott McCaffrey
Scene of shooting in Green Valley in December 2023 (courtesy Matthew Young)

Green Valley leaders are once again asking for more county support in addressing issues with crime in the neighborhood.

Yordanos Woldai, first vice president and public-safety chair of the Green Valley Civic Association, called for more police and government efforts to address alleged drug dealing, gambling, noise, loitering and even shootings.

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News

Human Rights Commission discusses new ‘limited scope’ after clashes with County Board

By Scott McCaffrey
June 2025 meeting of Arlington Human Rights Commission (screenshot via Arlington County)

Arlington’s newly reconstituted Human Rights Commission got to work last week with a discussion of new limits on its ability to pursue accountability for county leaders.

After the Arlington County Board fired all members of the commission last August following several confrontations between the two groups, commission Chair Jimmy McBirney used a Thursday meeting to acknowledge the entity’s “limited jurisdiction and limited scope.”

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News

County Board roundup: Support pledged for first-responders and after-school program

By Scott McCaffrey
House fire in the Woodmont neighborhood (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

County officials say a modest state grant will go a long way to supporting local first-responders after traumatic incidents.

Board members at their Saturday (June 14) meeting accepted a $30,000 Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services grant that will provide more training for those who help police, fire, sheriff and other public-safety personnel after incidents like January’s aircraft collision near Reagan National Airport.

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News

Two-bedroom apartment rentals now top $3,000/mo across Arlington

By Scott McCaffrey
The Commodore apartments in Courthouse, November 2024 (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

It now costs a median $36,000 per year to rent a two-bedroom apartment across Arlington County.

The median rental price in May stood at $2,488 for one-bedroom units and $3,006 for two bedrooms, according to figures reported by Apartment List.

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Schools

Local LGBTQ+ advocates challenge state policy on reporting students’ genders

By Scott McCaffrey
Arlington is nonbinary button (photo courtesy D. Taylor Reich)

An advocacy group is calling on Arlington school officials to push back on a new state policy on reporting students as either male or female.

On May 12, the Virginia Department of Education’s policy on records collection removed an option to designate some students as “other” rather than male or female.

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News

County negotiations on development projects need more transparency, group argues

By Scott McCaffrey
Civic Federation leaders Nicholas Giacobbe and John Ford (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

The Arlington County Civic Federation wants county leaders to be more transparent when negotiating with developers on community benefits.

In a comprehensive resolution on planning and zoning issues, delegates overwhelmingly voted last week to ask for a “clear, written, transparent process” for determining what benefits the county seeks when developers pursue rezoning and land-use changes.

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News

DEVELOPING: Huge ‘No Kings’ crowds protest in Arlington ahead of military parade

By Katie Taranto, Dan Egitto and Scott McCaffrey
'No Kings' protesters along Langston Blvd (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Anti-Trump protesters mobilized in force across Arlington today (Saturday) as part of nationwide “No Kings Day” demonstrations ahead of the military parade in D.C.

Waving signs, banners and American flags, they cheered from overpasses and chanted outside the Clarendon Metro station. An estimated 5,000 people lined long stretches of Langston Blvd from Rosslyn to Falls Church, in an attempt to form an enormous, 5.2-mile “human chain.”

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Schools

Durán: APS’s on-time-graduation rate could reach a record 95% for 2025

By Scott McCaffrey
2025 Arlington Public Schools graduation data (via APS)

Arlington school officials expect to record the highest on-time-graduation rate since data began being reported nearly two decades ago, based on preliminary data shared June 12 with the community.

Superintendent Francisco Durán estimated that Class of 2025’s on-time graduation will reach 95% when final figures are tabulated and reported in the fall.

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Schools

School Board selects new W-L principal despite criticism from school staff

By Scott McCaffrey
Washington-Liberty High School principal Alexander Duncan III (screenshot via Arlington Public Schools)

The Arlington School Board appointed a new principal at Washington-Liberty High School last night (Thursday) in a controversial vote.

The unanimous decision to select Alexander Duncan III — currently the executive principal of Alexandria City High School, Virginia’s largest public high school — came despite efforts to keep interim principal Christian Willmore.

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News

Local home prices still rising on per-square-foot basis despite economic uncertainty

By Scott McCaffrey
Home for sale locally (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

Real-estate sales data for May paint a mixed picture but show no signs of impending doom for the Arlington and Falls Church markets.

The average sales price per square foot for both jurisdictions was up year-over-year, according to new figures, although May’s rate was running below the year-to-date average in each case.

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