Fredericksburg

Goolrick’s, the downtown Fredericksburg landmark home to what it calls America’s longest-running soda fountain, reopens Friday, Aug. 7, after a four-year restoration of the 1808 building at 901 Caroline Street. Jarrell Properties Inc. will host a ribbon-cutting before doors open at 11 a.m., with the first 50 guests in line receiving free merchandise. Regular hours will be 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The lunch counter returns with restored original tin ceilings, hand-laid tile, and classic menu items such as chicken salad, egg salad, and grilled cheese sandwiches, plus hand-mixed sodas, milkshakes, and malts. Executive Chef D’Andre Sykes, who previously worked at Michelin-starred Elske in Chicago and other notable restaurants, will lead the kitchen.

“The City of Fredericksburg Department of Public Works and Utilities will begin working on areas of its citywide sanitary sewer cleaning and inspection program on July 27, 2026,” the City of Fredericksburg reported. The preventive work will remove grease, roots, sediment and other debris while identifying aging infrastructure, starting in the Mayfield neighborhood and continuing west, with southern-end operations expected to run through the end of October 2026.

Residents may experience temporary gurgling noises, sewer odors or water movement in fixtures and could see vacuum trucks or short traffic delays near manholes, but sewer service will remain available; the City asks the public to keep toilet lids closed and contact Public Works at 540-372-1023 with any concerns.

The City of Fredericksburg is continuing its energy-efficiency efforts by converting overhead streetlights to LED fixtures, the City of Fredericksburg reported. Earlier projects converted 95 lights in the Mayfield neighborhood in fall 2024 and 82 lights in the Central Park area in late summer 2025; those two phases will generate $15,800 in yearly electricity savings after a roughly 21-month payback period, while LEDs last longer and cut greenhouse gas emissions compared with high-intensity-discharge bulbs.

City Council has approved $70,000 for FY 2026 (about 257 lights, to finish by the end of 2026) and $150,000 for FY 2027 (about 1,021 lights, expected by mid-summer 2027). By mid-2027 all streetlights on city-maintained roads should be LED, advancing the council’s goal of carbon-free municipal operations by 2035. Residents can contact the Department of Public Works at 540-372-1023 or visit FredericksburgVA.gov with questions.

What began as a competitive bracket battle is evolving into a cross-state partnership.

Mayor Kerry Devine and Fredericksburg Main Street Executive Director Chris Allen will travel to DeLand, Florida, July 23-25 to meet with Mayor Christopher Cloudman and Main Street Director Stephanie Garcia Mullins.