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Public Hearing Scheduled in Burke to Discuss Potential VRE Fare Increase

Increased operation costs are forcing the Virginia Railway Express to consider a 4 percent fare increase.

News Brief: Matthew Trial Date Postponed

At a March 4 hearing in Albemarle County Circuit Court, Judge Cheryl Higgins granted the man charged with abducting and murdering Hannah Graham a continuance.

Mount Vernon: Man Shot in Brockham Drive Home

Fairfax County Police are investigating the relationship between a 49-year-old man who was shot in a residence in the 8300 block of Brockham Drive and a possible suspect.

Fairfax County School Board Approves $2.67 Billion ‘No Cuts’ Budget

Calls for general salary raises and additional $40 million for teachers, lowering elementary class sizes.

Members of the Fairfax County School Board have taken the next step in realizing Superintendent Dr. Karen Garza’s vision of no additional cuts in the Fiscal Year 2017 school system operating budget. T

Missing Civil War Marker Plaques Find a Home at Fairfax Station Railroad Museum

When Fairfax Station native Lee Hubbard was stationed with the U.S. Army in Baltimore, he would come home every weekend, sometimes more often than that. On a visit in the spring of 1959, Hubbard and his brother Bob went to check out something some local children had been talking about.

Burke, Fairfax Station and Springfield: ‘Crazy’ Lines on Election Day Morning

Ipads, communication keep things moving quickly.

At 5:45 a.m., Colleen Dewing was queued up for a lifetime first: voting. The West Springfield High School senior needed to fulfill her civic duty early in order to take a shift right away at the senior class’ annual bake sale outside the school.

Art of Driving Scholarship Expands Eligibility Outside Fairfax County

After the first few years being open only to Lake Braddock Secondary School Students, the Art of Driving college scholarship in honor of Lake Braddock student Ashley Thompson expanded to all Fairfax County High Schools.

Burke Florist Unfazed by Valentine’s Day Rush

Flowers ‘n’ Ferns is well prepared for its 33rd rose rodeo.

Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend, but when it comes to Valentine’s Day, fresh flowers are a must-have. For area florists like Karen Fountain, the second-generation manager of Flowers ‘n’ Ferns in Burke, the romantic holiday is often the highest grossing single day of the year.

Face Paint, Pony Show at Burke Centre Festival This Weekend

Festival enters its 37th year.

Burke Centre Festival coordinator Jeannie Winslow is downright calm when estimating attendance this year. “Police guestimate we had 10,000 over the whole weekend last year,” she said. “Maybe we’ll get a few thousand more.”

Area Roundups

House Fire Leads to Death Investigation in Lorton

Fairfax County: Gillespie Wins GOP Straw Poll for Governor at Robinson

More than 300 voters attended a Fairfax County Republican Committee straw poll and candidate forum on March 25, according to FCRC executive director Eric Johnson. The event was held at Robinson Secondary School.

Mount Vernon: 95 Express Lanes Schedule Adjusted for July 4

Around the Fourth of July, patriotic celebration throughout the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area comes with heavy gridlock. To help alleviate some of the traffic into, out of and around the region for the holiday weekend, the 95 Express Lanes schedule will be adjusted, according to an Express Lanes spokesperson:

Citizens Coalition Petitions DOJ, Calls for Investigation of Fairfax County Police.

Nicholas Beltrante is trying to put even more pressure on the Fairfax County Police Department. The Mount Vernon resident and executive director for the Virginia Citizens Coalition for Police Accountability (CCPA) recently filed a petition with the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights division to investigate the FCPD.

Kitchen Fire Damages Center

Fire damages Huntington Community Center.

Lee District Candidates Meet at John Marshall Library

League of Women Voters hosts forum.

They may not be old enough to vote, but twin sisters Madelyn and Miranda Khoury paid as much attention to the presentations as anyone in the audience at an Oct. 5 Meet the Candidates event hosted by the League of Women Voters of Fairfax.

Divided Fairfax County School Board Passes Salary Increase for 2016, to $32,000 from $20,000.

Just over a month after the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted to give the next board a $20,000-a-year pay raise, the School Board followed suit. In a 5-4 vote (three abstentions) at the April 9 meeting, the board approved raising the member salary from $20,000 to $32,000, with an additional $2,000 annually for the board chair.

Mount Vernon: Primary Voting Information

While November’s elections are still months away, voters have the opportunity to select Democratic representatives for several races in the party’s primary on June 9.

Fairfax County: Primary Voting