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

Alcohol sales on fairgrounds, Army Navy Drive bike lane top County Board agenda

By Scott McCaffrey
Scene from the 2024 Arlington County Fair (staff photo by James Jarvis)

A possible beer garden at the Arlington County Fair and a proposed protected bike lane on Army Navy Drive are up for County Board consideration this weekend.

Other topics scheduled for consideration this Saturday include traffic signal upgrades on S. Carlin Springs Road and Richmond Highway, a pair of sports courts in Crystal City and $100,000 in arts grants.

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News

Falls Church leaders zero in on smaller-than-expected tax cut

By Scott McCaffrey
Falls Church's finance director Kiran Bawa and City Manager Wyatt Shields (screenshot via City of Falls Church)

Falls Church property owners are probably getting a tax cut, though it’s not as high as initially proposed.

City Council has tentatively settled on a rate of $1.20 per $100 assessed valuation, down from $1.21 in the current fiscal year.

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News

County Board considers better bike lanes and new stop light on S. Walter Reed Drive

By Scott McCaffrey
S. Walter Reed Drive looking toward Grace Hopper Center construction (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

Protected bike lanes, a new stop light and improved bus stops along S. Walter Reed Drive are included in a proposed $7 million county contract.

The transportation improvement contract, slated for County Board consideration on Saturday, is for part of the “Complete Streets” project on Walter Reed between 5th Street S. and Columbia Pike.

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News

Arlington Historical Museum reopens with updated exhibits and expanded access

By Scott McCaffrey
Jeanine Brundage and Karen Darner explore Arlington Historical Museum exhibition (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

Crowds descended on the Arlington Historical Museum on Saturday as the facility reopened after months of renovations.

Hundreds of people filtered through the six-hour open house, appreciating the new facelift to the museum’s physical presence and exhibitions. The building at 1805 S. Arlington Ridge Road had been closed since the summer of 2024 to allow for the restoration of 47 original windows.

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News

County Board candidate places ‘tracking chips’ in signs over theft allegations

By Dan Egitto and Scott McCaffrey
Campaign signage in median, May 2025 (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

An Arlington County Board candidate claims to have begun placing “tracking chips” in his campaign signs after he says many of them were stolen.

James DeVita, who is challenging incumbent Takis Karantonis in the Democratic primary, spent over $10,000 on campaign signs in March alone, according to campaign finance records.

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Schools

Most APS students and staff feel safe in schools, new data shows

By Scott McCaffrey
James Miller and Oakridge Elementary assistant principal Adrion Walker address school-safety issues (screenshot via Arlington Public Schools)

The vast majority of Arlington Public Schools students and faculty feel safe at school, new data suggests.

A recent survey found that 88% of respondents in grades 4-5 and 85% in grades 6-12 said they felt safe, Aaron Queen, the school system’s director of safety, security and emergency management, said at a School Board meeting last week.

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News

New rush-hour bus route would connect Shirlington to Alexandria and Metro Center

By Scott McCaffrey
Metrobus service in Arlington (file photo)

A new bus route could provide Shirlington-area residents and workers with rush-hour service between D.C.’s Metro Center and the Alexandria/Fairfax line.

The new line, which would run via Beauregard Street, Mark Center, Southern Towers and the Shirlington Bus Station, is among 15 projects totaling $39.5 million that the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission is currently considering.

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News

Plans for 309-unit development in Clarendon head to County Board

By Scott McCaffrey
Renderings of the planned redevelopment at 3033 Wilson Blvd (via Arlington County)

Plans to rebuild a Clarendon office building as an eight-story, 309-unit multifamily building are about to reach the Arlington County Board.

Developer Carr Properties aims to raze a nearly 40-year-old office building at 3033 Wilson Blvd and replace it with a development called Clarendon Square.

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Schools

Arlington School Board delays budget adoption, plans for price hikes from tariffs

By Scott McCaffrey
Virginia State Capitol in Richmond (staff photo)

The Arlington School Board has pushed back a final budget vote to give officials time to finish crunching numbers.

The vote on the budget is now scheduled to happen on Thursday, May 15 as leaders determine the effects of recent funding decisions at the state level.

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News

Marking 50 years since the fall of Saigon, Falls Church honors Vietnamese Americans

By Scott McCaffrey
Local Vietnamese-American leaders at City Council recognition (screenshot via City of Falls Church)

The Falls Church City Council marked the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon last week with a celebration of the city’s Vietnamese-American community.

“Thank you for being part of Falls Church,” Mayor Letty Hardi said at Monday’s Council meeting, attended by several dozen community representatives.

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Schools

Head of teachers union plans to step down if elected to Arlington School Board

By Scott McCaffrey
June Prakash (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

The president of the Arlington Education Association says she will give up the position if elected to the School Board.

“Would I step down if elected? Yes, I would,” June Prakash said when questioned on her plans by Arlington NAACP education chair Tia Alfred at the civil-rights organization’s online candidate forum earlier this week.

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News

Races for Arlington School Board, County Board and state delegate get underway

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

Campaigns in Arlington’s Democratic primary and School Board caucus are kicking into gear, with three competitive races at the local level.

Candidates Monique “Moe” Bryant and June Prakash are competing for one open seat on the Arlington School Board.

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