Uriah Kiser, Author at Potomac Local News

Va. 234 & U.S. 29 to Remain Open until Battlefield Bypass Built, Supervisors Rule

Published September 18, 2013 at 7:33AM | Updated September 19, 2013 at 9:24AM

A sign warning drivers of a horse crossing is posted along busy Va. 234 inside Manassas National Battlefield Park. [Uriah Kiser / Potomac Local News]

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va .– Two major thoroughfares inside Manassas National Battlefield Park, Va. 234 and U.S. 29, will not close until a bypass road around the hallowed ground is built.

That was a resolution first passed by Prince William County officials in the middle portion of the past decade and reaffirmed Tuesday afternoon by the sitting Board of County Supervisors in 6-2 vote.

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NOVA Woodbridge Campus Opens Largest Academic Building in 23 Years

By Uriah Kiser

Published September 13, 2013 at 1:52PM

Northern Virginia Community College Woodbridge Campus

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WOODBRIDGE,Va. — As sunlight from the large windows pour into his classroom in the newest building on campus, Zack Jackson teaches students how to draw.

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‘Devastating’ World Trade Center Steel Memorial Honors 22 Killed in Terror Attacks

By Uriah Kiser

Published September 12, 2013 at 10:10AM | Updated September 12, 2013 at 4:20PM

An airplane flies over a new World Trade Center steel memorial in Prince William County. [Photo: Mary Davidson]

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PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — Four steel beams from the ill-fated World Trade Center in New York City finally have a resting place in Prince William County.

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Local Business Rallies Support for Bi-County Parkway

By Uriah Kiser

Published September 11, 2013 at 10:17AM

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — The idea of a Bi-County Parkway in Prince William and Loudoun counties sits well with 107 businesses and organizations.

They, with the help of the Prince William Chamber of Commerce that has been outspoken in their support of a new highway linking Dumfries to Dulles Airport, sent a letter to state officials stating the roadway will bring improved mobility in an ever-growing region, and help attract high-paying jobs to a tech park in Manassas.

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World Trade Center Steel Erected, Dedication Ceremony Planned for Sept. 11

By Uriah Kiser

Published September 5, 2013 at 11:17AM | Updated September 5, 2013 at 8:11PM

Crews erect steel from the destroyed World Trade Center for a permanent memorial at the Prince William County Government Center in Woodbridge. [Uriah Kiser / Potomac Local News]

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — William Vaughn saw horror unfold on Sept. 11, 2001. He and his wife were staying in the Marriott Hotel at the World Trade Center and were going through their morning routine of drinking coffee and exercise when a plane hit the North Tower.

They both escaped that fateful morning without injury and watched as the second plane hit the South Tower, and gasped as the building later collapsed onto the hotel they had slept the night before.

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Politicians, Residents Vow Keep Up Bi-County Parkway Fight

By Uriah Kiser

Published September 4, 2013 at 1:59PM | Updated September 4, 2013 at 2:54PM

Protesters held signs opposing the construction of the Bi-County Parkway, which would run through a portion of the Manassas National Battlefield Park. [Uriah Kiser / Potomac Local News]

MANASSAS, Va. –– Opponents of the Bi-County Parkway Wednesday told lawmakers they won’t back down when it comes to stopping a proposed highway near Manassas National Battlefield Park.

More than 100 protesters holding signs that stated “follow the money” and “developer road” gathered outside the Sudley United Methodist Church in the Manassas Battlefield, and were cheered on during a press conference by a handful of like-minded Republican politicians all working to send a message to Gov. Robert F. McDonnell and Transportation Secretary Sean Connughton: Slow down the decision-making process and consider other options for the Bi-County Parkway.

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Summer Break Ends, Students Return to Class

By Uriah Kiser

Published September 3, 2013 at 4:37PM | Updated September 3, 2013 at 8:07PM

Potomac Senior High School Principal Michael Wright, 53, directs a student to her next class on the first day of school. [Photo: Uriah Kiser / Potomac Local News]

Back to School 2013

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I-95 Bypass in Stafford Would End in Orange, Where Major Development Eyed

By Uriah Kiser

Published August 20, 2013 at 11:44AM

U.S. 17 in southern Stafford County. [Photo: Uriah Kiser / Potomac Local News]

STAFFORD COUNTY, Va. — Plans for a Fredericksburg bypass show drivers would be able to exit Interstate 95 in Stafford County, cross the Rappahannock River, and end up in Orange County.

Once off I-95, drivers would connect with the new bypass via U.S. 17 near the Celebrate Virginia complex in Stafford County, head south on a planned Berea Parkway, cross the Rappahannock into the Culpeper County, and then exit the bypass at a terminus near Va. 20 in Orange County.

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NVTA Funding Could Mean Wider U.S. 1 in Dumfries Finished 10 Years Ahead of Schedule

By Uriah Kiser

Published August 19, 2013 at 7:30AM

U.S. 1 north in Dumfries. [Photo: Uriah Kiser / Potomac Local News]

DUMFRIES, Va. — Dumfries officials want U.S. 1 — the heavily used 4-lane highway that bisects the town — to run on the straight and narrow.

A plan, long on the books to be completed by 2030, would widen U.S. 1 to six lanes so the north and south portions of the highway would run on the same span on Fraley Blvd. where the U.S. 1 north traffic runs now. It also means Main Street in front of Town Hall would no longer carry U.S. 1 south traffic.

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Sailboat Named after Sandy Hook Shooting Victims Christened in Woodbridge

By Uriah Kiser

Published August 18, 2013 at 8:15AM | Updated August 19, 2013 at 8:28AM

Following the christening of the Benjamin Chase, a new boat for Sea Scout Ship 100 of Gainesville named after two Cub Scouts killed at the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, the victim’s mothers tossed rose petals into the Potomac River in honor of the victims. [Mary Davidson / Potomac Local News]

WOODBIRDGE, Va. — The memories of two small boys killed eight months ago at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut will continue to sail on the waters of the Potomac River.

A Catalina 22 sailboat bearing the name “Benjamin Chase,” named after Benjamin Wheeler, 6, and Chase Kowalski, 7, both killed in a mass shooting inside their elementary school in Newtown, Conn. that took the lives of 26 people in December, now sails the Potomac River.