The future of the former Mary Washington Hospital dominated a Sept. 4 community meeting as residents questioned developers about traffic, parking, density, and long-term impacts of converting the landmark building into apartments.

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From the moment the curtain rises at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts, it’s clear The Sound of Music is something special. The production delivers one of Riverside’s finest performances in years, a show that captures the heart, lifts the spirit, and fills the theater with music audiences can’t stop humming.

Sarah Mae Andersen carries the show as Maria Rainer, leading with warmth, humor, and conviction. She anchors the story with a magnetic stage presence that makes you believe in Maria’s journey from the abbey to the Von Trapp home. Opposite her, Tim Rogan is a commanding Captain Georg von Trapp, projecting both the authority of a military man and the tenderness of a devoted father. Together, their chemistry grounds the show.


The city Planning Commission voted 7–0 on August 27 to recommend a special use permit to convert the 1956 Medical Arts Building at 2301 Fall Hill Ave. into 30 apartments, raising the site’s density from 8 units per acre by right to about 29 units per acre using a city incentive for smaller homes (most at ≤600 sq. ft.), according to a staff presentation and commission discussion.

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For Fredericksburg Nationals fans, the energy inside the ballpark isn’t just about the game on the field — it’s also about the voice and personality that keep the crowd laughing, cheering, and on their feet. That’s where Abby Lybarger comes in.

Lybarger, 22 years old, serves as the on-field emcee for the FredNats. She’s the one running contests between innings, hyping up the fans, and making sure even the slowest stretches of baseball are packed with fun. Lyberger, her cameraman, and her team constantly move around the stadium during every game, traveling up and down the stairs, finding fans to talk to, and setting up activities like Potato Sack Races in between innings.


Veterans pressed Senator Mark Warner and Congressman Eugene Vindman this week about the new Department of Veterans Affairs clinic in Spotsylvania County, saying the long wait for services is unacceptable.

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A strangulation arrest involving bodily injury led the Fredericksburg Police blotter this week. Officers charged 25-year-old Felicia Lee Rivera of Fredericksburg with the offense.

Other arrests included charges of assault and battery, possession of a controlled substance, public intoxication, and inhaling drugs. Those arrested ranged in age from 20 to 56 and came from Fredericksburg, Stafford, and Spotsylvania.


The inside of Goolrick’s pharmacy on Caroline Street is gutted down to the bare layers of brick and wallboard, some of which reveal antique wallpaper from another time.

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FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Riverside Center for the Performing Arts is two weeks into its run of The Sound of Music, and ticket sales are already tracking alongside one of its biggest recent hits, Jersey Boys.

More than 6,000 tickets have been sold with eight weeks remaining. Jersey Boys drew more than 11,000 during its run in 2024.


FREDERICKSBURG, Va. – Parents packed a hastily called Fredericksburg School Board meeting Wednesday night to share stories of buses running hours late, confusing routes, and families left in the dark.

Several parents reported that the district’s new tracking app indicated children had been “dropped off” even while they were still waiting at bus stops. Others described unsafe stops on busy streets and long waits at schools while drivers tried to juggle double runs.


FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — The city’s Planning Commission will hold a public hearing tonight on a proposal to convert the old Medical Arts Building on Fall Hill Avenue into 30 apartments, part of a wave of redevelopment around the former Mary Washington Hospital campus.

The applicant, Medical Arts Building FXBG LLC, is seeking a special use permit to allow higher residential density at 2301 Fall Hill Avenue. The three-story office building, constructed in 1956, was recently listed in the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing structure in the Fall Hill Avenue Medical Historic District.


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