Manassas
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Patriot High School Principal David Van Gelder told families and staff Saturday that one of the Nokesville school’s students was killed Friday night in the shooting at First Friday in Old Town Manassas.
“It is with profound sadness that I share that one of our students lost her life during the tragic shooting that occurred Friday evening at the First Friday event in Old Town Manassas,” Van Gelder wrote. “We are working with her family to provide any needed support, and my thoughts and deepest condolences are with all those who knew and cared for her.”
Manassas City Council member Tom Osina says he wants to succeed Mayor Michelle Davis-Younger — first as the council’s interim pick, then as the Democratic nominee whenever voters get a say.
Watch or listen to the full Potomac Local News Podcast conversation with Osina below. The interview is the source for what follows.
Friends, neighbors and other residents gathered Saturday night at the Manassas train station to remember a 16-year-old girl killed a day earlier during First Friday in Old Town.
The informal vigil was organized by community members, not the city. Organizers had asked people to bring a candle, a flower, a photo or a memory. By nightfall, bouquets, prayer candles and a balloon lined the platform under the depot canopy, a few steps from the railroad tracks where police say the shooting unfolded Friday night.
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Tasheem Rashad Douglas, 21, is in custody and charged with second-degree murder in the killing of a 16-year-old girl during First Friday in Old Town Manassas, police said.
Manassas police also charged him with having a gun while committing a felony and having a gun as a convicted felon. He is being held at a local hospital.
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The Federal Aviation Administration on Monday issued Washington Manassas Airport its Part 139 Airport Operating Certificate, the last federal approval the field needed before it can host scheduled passenger airlines.
City and airport officials called it a historic step. It is not the start of commercial service.
Manassas will advertise and hold a public hearing on the Mathis Avenue streetscape after four residents asked for one on the last day they could.
Planning and Community Development Director and Assistant City Manager Matthew Arcieri said Wednesday that former City Council member Lynn Forkell Greene’s request triggered the meeting. Greene is running again this fall as an independent for one of three open council seats on the Nov. 3 ballot.
School Board member Sara Brescia told her colleagues Tuesday that three of them used a private Aug. 3 meeting to talk about moving her elementary-age children out of Baldwin Elementary School. Then the board approved the minutes of that meeting, which never mention the children.
Brescia asked that one sentence be added to the official record. The board did not add it. After a messy voice vote — yeses, nos and an abstention, with no full list of who voted which way — Chair Jill Spall said the original minutes passed.
The Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee has publicly backed a slate of candidates that includes two Manassas City School Board hopefuls whose records have drawn scrutiny, but neither the committee nor the candidates responded to detailed questions about those issues.
A graphic circulated by the committee under the heading “Our Democratic Ticket” lists Murina V. Dove and Marcus Still among its endorsed candidates for the Manassas City School Board, alongside incumbent Lisa Stevens. Early voting begins September 18 and the general election is November 3. The race is officially nonpartisan.
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Historic Downtown Manassas has a new retail destination. Gathered on Center, a co-op at 9082 Center Street, brings together multiple creative small businesses under one roof.
The shop is led by entrepreneurs Terri Johnson, Karissa Terry, and Jasmine Oglesby. Shoppers will find an evolving mix of locally curated goods, gifts, and experiences. Among the offerings is permanent jewelry from Bejeweled Era.