News

Tax rates on real estate and meals won’t increase, but the car tax rate might, as Falls Church City Council members work to finalize a $134.3 million budget package.

Council members voted 7-0 Monday night (April 13) to advertise a real estate tax rate of $1.185 per $100 assessed valuation, unchanged from the current rate. That becomes the highest rate that could be adopted when the budget package comes to a final vote on May 11, although a lower rate could be set.


News

Falls Church’s newest City Council member is suggesting an increase in the city’s meals tax to ease budget pressures.

“I think it should be something we’re considering,” Arthur Agin said at an April 6 Council work session that stretched well past midnight, focused largely on budget issues.


Around Town

A paint-your-own-pottery studio in Falls Church has received a freshly glazed look under new ownership.

Jessi Cash, who has worked at Clay Cafe Studios since 2019, took over the reins from retired owner Gayla Hassett in January. Since then, Cash has brought 101 N. Maple Avenue a fresh coat of peachy paint and replaced its old farmhouse-style tables, among other aesthetic changes.


News

Falls Church City Council members are questioning a proposal to reduce the city’s budget for road paving.

City staff currently propose spending $700,000 on paving operations for the fiscal year beginning July 1. That’s down from $1.4 million in the current fiscal year, when Council members pumped additional funding into the paving budget to catch up as road conditions deteriorated.


News

Falls Church City Council members are hoping to have a new city manager ready to go just when their current one retires in just over five months.

Council members at a March 25 government-operations committee meeting outlined general plans and a hoped-for timetable in finding a successor to Wyatt Shields.


Around Town

A local Thai restaurant chain with lunch specials and astrology-themed cocktails is celebrating its Falls Church debut this weekend.

After nearly a year of preparations, My Home Thai Bistro plans to host a grand opening this Saturday for its new restaurant at 1009 W. Broad Street. The new eatery aims to bring “a modern take on Thai cuisine with a refined yet welcoming atmosphere,” co-owner Anuchit “Andrew” Suthus-na-Ayuttaya told ARLnow.


News

Plans to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday with a July 3 “civic jam” celebration are solidifying in Falls Church.

Rather than attempt to compete with national celebrations the following day, the Falls Church event will focus on citizen involvement.


News

Higher fees for property owners pair with rising real estate assessments in the Falls Church budget proposal unveiled by City Manager Wyatt Shields Monday night.

Falls Church homeowners would pay an average $611 more — an increase of 5% — in real estate taxes under the $134.3 million fiscal year 2027 budget.


News

Falls Church and business leaders celebrated the reopening of a renovated police substation at the Eden Center yesterday (Wednesday).

“This really represents a recommitment,” Mayor Letty Hardi said at the ceremony. “We are really excited. Public safety works best when it is rooted in the community.”


News

The Falls Church city registrar is advising against using the Postal Service to send mail-in ballots in Virginia’s statewide redistricting referendum.

Especially when it gets close to the April 21 vote, city registrar David Bjerke warned that mailing ballots back to the city’s election office too close to the deadline could result in their invalidation.


Around Town

Falls Church is top dog in Virginia when it comes to devotion to adopting canines and showering them with purchases, according to one metric.

The Little City was crowned the No. 1 most “dog-loving” city in the commonwealth and No. 5 in the nation in a new ranking from PetSmart.


News

Falls Church has formally opened its doors to e-scooters. Now it just needs to find some takers.

City Council members voted 7-0 on Monday night for a one-year pilot program, hoping to entice companies to deploy up to 100 e-scooters and e-bicycles within the community’s 2.2 square miles.


View More Stories