Friday Download, 8/23: A return to school and to summer weather
Fairfax County’s top news of the week, plus the weekend forecast and local events
Happy Friday, Fairfax County.
This new Machine feature now has a name: The Friday Download. It’ll offer a quick scan each week of county news you might have missed, plus a guide to the weekend’s forecast and events.
How do you like it? What else do you want to see? Leave a comment below.
The latest from The Machine
Fairfax’s congressional reps rallied behind the new Harris-Walz ticket this week at the DNC. “There’s much greater optimism about making sure we win Virginia again,” Rep. Don Beyer said in a phone call from Chicago.
[Follow The Machine on Instagram and on Twitter]
Local news I read this week
Business and development 📈
Restaurant owners organize to push back as county considers meals tax (WTOP)
With new business advisory council, Board of Supervisors seeks forward-looking approach to growth (FFXnow)
Criminal justice and public safety 🚓
Man awaiting trial for Reston double-murder dies in jail (FFXnow)
Fairfax to add 50 speed cameras after pilot program slows traffic in school zones (Fox 5)
Chantilly man charged with murder after Gold’s Gym shooting in Reston (FFXnow)
Culture ✌️
Food reviewer Keith Lee brought his 16.5 million TikTok followers to Okonomi Asian Grill in Fairfax, inspiring a crush of orders overnight (WaPo)
After 55 years as ‘George Washington’s head gardener,’ Mount Vernon horticulturist set to retire (WTOP)
Education 🏫
Excitement, nerves as Alexandria and Fairfax students return to school (WaPo)
Fairfax students’ middling new scores on standardized tests aren’t what they seem, School Board member Kyle McDaniel said (WaPo/Twitter)
Health 🩺
Housing and homelessness 🏠
Transportation 🚍
Fairfax officials seeking feedback on bicycle, trail efforts (Gazette Leader)
Weekend weather (from the National Weather Service)
It’s going to be warmer again — but just about perfect.
Friday: Sunny, with highs in the mid-80s dipping to lows around 60 at night. ☀️
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with highs in the mid-80s and lows in the low 60s. 🌤️
Sunday: Sunny, with highs in the upper 80s and lows in the mid-60s. ☀️
Things to do
Buy your next pile of books at library sales in Alexandria (Friday and Saturday) or Herndon (Saturday) 📖
Run around to Wolf Trap to see Blues Traveler (Friday) or Indigo Girls and Melissa Etheridge (Saturday and Sunday) 🎵
Adopt a dog or a cat (or both) at the Fairfax County Animal Shelter’s annual Clear the Shelters event (Friday through Sunday) 🐈
If you get a dog, treat your new friend to a Dog Paddle in Reston (Saturdays through Sept. 7) 🐕
Play mini-golf, take a garden tour, paint your face and go out on a boat at Lake Accotink Park Celebration Day (Saturday) 🎠
Catch maybe, reportedly, the world’s best Bruce Springsteen cover band for free in Herndon (Saturday) 🎸
See how Shipgarten in Tysons transitions from a family festival/petting zoo in the afternoon to fantasy trivia at night (Sunday) 🧙
Go back to Lake Accotink for a very different vibe: a yoga, stargazing and bonfire night (Sunday)
My plans
Busy like Beyer. I’ll be at the National Book Festival and celebrating a good friend’s birthday in D.C. on Saturday, and then I’m driving to Richmond on Sunday for vintage-store shopping and an ice-cream-making class.
A core Machine belief, beyond all the news stuff: We need more good ice cream shops around here.
Love the Friday download, so many great local stories in one place, quick and convenient.