Fairfax County, Va. –– What does the Mt. Vernon District need to be a more likeable, livable, safer place to live?
That question will be posed to residents who attend one of two community meetings that will focus on police and crime prevention, fire and rescue improvements, access to courts, medical care and other community services.
The first meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. Monday, at Walt Whitman Middle School at 2500 Parkers Lane in Alexandria.
That’s where Supervisor Gerald W. Hyland, and members of the Public Safety Visioning Task Force, will take questions and listen to opinions about what services need to be improved in the Mt. Vernon District.
“The Task Force’s goal is to collect your ideas on these matters so as to provide direction to the County leaders for future planning,” according to press release from Fairfax County officials.
The second meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. Monday Nov. 8, at South County Secondary School at 8501 Silverbrook Lane in Lorton.
Those who plan to attend can visit the taskforce’s Web page or call 703-780-7518 for more information.
The drive across some of Virginia’s highways will become faster as part of a speed limit increase mandated by Gov. Robert F. McDonnell.
After several safety reviews, and after portions of Interstates 295 and 85 saw their speed limits raised from 65 to 70 mph earlier this year, 680 additional miles of highways will see their speeds increased to 70 mph by Dec. 31, the Virginia Department of Transportation announced today.
While none of the highways in the Potomac Communities will see an increase, the speed limit on I-95 between Ashland and just south of Fredericksburg will see an increase, as well as I-66 between the I-81 interchange in Strasburg and U.S. 15 in Prince William County. Read More
Stafford County, Va. –– A woman was treated at a local hospital after she was attacked inside her Stafford County home, authorities said.
Stafford sheriff’s deputies were called to a home on Muscleman Road just before 3 p.m. Tuesday, off U.S. 17 in the southern portion of the county, after a woman said she was attacked by a man who was standing in her living room.
The woman was in her attic when she heard what sounded like “cats playing and knocking things over” in her living room, said Stafford sheriff’s spokesman Bill Kennedy.
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By Marty van Duyne
For PotomacLocal.com
Stafford County, Va. –– Some held tightly to the harness of the dog by their side and some walked with crutches or canes. Still others rolled through the door in a wheelchair and some briskly walked into the University of Mary Washington Stafford Campus unassisted.
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Fairfax County, Va. –– Divers returned to the Occoquan River this morning for the fifth time this week to search for the body of a missing boater from Lorton.
Julia Shew, 64, went missing Saturday off Sandy Run Regional Park in Fairfax County. Officials say she was an avid boater who often rowed on the Occoquan.
On Tuesday, divers, bloodhounds and a police helicopter were all used in a search for Shew, but there has been no sign of the woman.
Police say they believe Shew’s body will be found in the area.
“We have no reason to believe that she was abducted or anything else,” said Fairfax County police spokesman Bud Walker. “Our focus remains on the water.”
Shew disappeared while training for a annual boat regatta that was held Sunday.
Stafford, Va. –– Stafford County officials want to make building a business a bit easier, and are looking for your feedback.
A new 16-question customer survey aimed at those who frequent the county’s economic development office asks respondents to rate their satisfaction levels with such departments like public works, utilities, zoning approvals, their overall satisfaction with county staff members and asks them to compare their experience working with Stafford County officials to those in other area jurisdictions.
“This survey will help us determine which areas in our development process need improvement,” said Stafford County Board Chairman Mark Dudenhefer. “The feedback that we receive will help us provide more efficient and user-friendly customer services.”
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Triangle, Va. –– Investigators want to know if the shooting at the Pentagon on Tuesday morning is related to the shooting at the National Museum of the Marine Corps over the weekend.
Five to seven gunshots were fired at the Pentagon this morning at 4:55 a.m., damaging windows on the third and fourth floors of the south side of the building, according Pentagon spokesman Steven Calvary.
Police late Tuesday morning closed Interstate 395 and combed the highway for additional slugs but nothing was found.
Now investigators, comprised of federal, state and local agencies, are working to determine if the shootings could be related to shots that were fired at the Marine Corps museum in Triangle.
Though Calvary said Tuesday afternoon there was no immediate evidence to link the two shootings, authorities say they are investigating any possible connection between the two incidents.
Woodbridge, Va. –– Ongoing work at a Woodbridge railroad crossing means it could take longer for fire and rescue crews to get to the Featherstone Shores neighborhood.
Traffic on busy Featherstone Road has been reduced to one lane across the rail road crossing, which is the gate way to the collection of single family homes that sit on the Belmont Bay.
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North Stafford, Va. –– The man charged in connection to a robbery at a North Stafford gas station was looking to rob again, and is connected to a New York City street gang, authorities said.
Roberto Roque, 24, was arrested Oct. 12 in connection to the robbery at the Sunoco station on Va. 610 on Sept. 25, Stafford sheriff’s spokesman Bill Kennedy said Tuesday.
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Update 6 p.m.
The body of 64-year-old Julia Shew still has not been found.
Police have been searching the Occoquan River since she failed to check in with a park attendant Saturday night, at Sandy Run Regional Park in southern Fairfax County.
Police on Tuesday scaled back their search, using a Marine Patrol Unit with divers in the water and a helicopter, said Fairfax County police spokesman Bud Walker.
They also used bloodhounds on the shoreline.
Police suspended their search at 6 p.m., but say they will return to the area to look for the woman at 7 a.m. Wednesday. Read More
