The Manassas Park Veterans Dinner was held at 6:30 p.m., June 27, 2024, at the Manassas Park Community Center.
The event provided an opportunity for the city to honor those who served and Gold Star Families who have lost loved ones in the service of the U.S. military. City Manager Keith Ngyuen, an Army veteran, led a champagne toast that honored all branches of military service, including the Coast Guard and Space Force, with a champagne toast.
The latest edition of the Potomac Local Podcast will be posted this weekend. It’s a privilege to bring it to you, our paid members, who support our efforts to bring you local community news.
This week, discover resilience and community spirit as we chat with Barbara Biddle, Owner of District Hemp in Manassas and Leesburg.
Planet Fitness will open a new gym at 1455 Stafford Marketplace in North Stafford later this year. The facility will occupy the former Best Buy location, which closed in March 2024.
Jillian Sanchez, Senior Project Manager at GFP Planet Fitness, shared details about this upcoming venture. “We are thrilled to bring a 20,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art fitness facility to the Stafford community. At Planet Fitness, our mission is to provide accessibility to fitness at a low cost and promote the physical well-being of the community,” Sanchez stated in emails obtained by Potomac Local as part of a freedom of information records order.
Stafford County Public Schools: Stafford County Public Schools is again partnering with Giant Food on a program to help support children facing food insecurity. From July 1 through August 1, 2024, Giant Food patrons may choose to “ROUND UP AT THE REGISTER” at the end of their grocery purchase.
Donations made during this period support school food programs. Patrons may also donate through Giant Delivers, Giant Pickup, and through FLEX points that are converted to grocery dollars.
Stafford County Animal Shelter has once again reached capacity and is pleading for adoptions and fosters.
In the month of June, the shelter has “had a record 32 dogs surrendered to our shelter in just 20 days,” according to their Facebook page. In addition to the surrenders, the shelter has had 23 stray dogs, with only 18 being reunited with their owners so far. They posted “57 dogs [are] currently in our care – 41 of them are available for adoption. This situation is unprecedented and simply not maintainable. Despite reaching out to our community countless times in the past few months, we find ourselves in an even worse situation each time we catch a glimpse of relief and the fact is, we are now at a breaking point.”
Stafford County won three National Association of Counties (NACo) 2024 Achievement Awards. The NACo Awards recognize outstanding government programs and services. Stafford won two awards in the Human Services category and one in the Civic Education and Public Information category.
“Having our efforts recognized by NACo is high praise indeed,” said Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chairman Meg Bohmke. “We work daily to achieve excellence on behalf of our residents, but it is certainly nice to have our peers validate our work.”
The Stafford County School Board unanimously approved JG Consulting to search for a new Superintendent of Stafford County schools during its meeting on June 25. The firm will begin the search process later this week, pending execution of the $40,000 contract.
The School Board and JG Consulting will schedule community meetings for the community to provide input regarding the qualities required of the next superintendent. Dates will be announced later this summer.
President Donald Trump will hold a campaign rally in Chesapeake, about 200 miles away, at 3 p.m. on the same day. Youngkin, a potential vice presidential candidate, is expected to join Trump at the rally.
Last year, on July 5, 2024, Youngkin appeared on Fox and Friends at the same diner. During his appearance, he discussed education and hiring more police officers. In an interview with Potomac Local News, Youngkin emphasized the need for departments to support their officers, highlighting a partnership with Petersburg that has reduced police vacancies.
Transurban has announced the 95/395 Express Lanes will have a revised reversal schedule on Thursday, July 4, 2024 to accommodate travelers attending the Independence Day fireworks display.
The lanes will be open northbound all day until 7 p.m. when reversal begins. The Lanes are expected to open southbound by 8:30 p.m.
Fredericksburg Woman Charged with Attempted Stabbing
Deputies canvassed the vicinity and found the suspect in a Nissan Rogue near Garrisonville Road and Wicomico Drive in North Stafford. A high-risk stop was conducted, and the suspect was detained, police said. Deputies noted a strong odor of alcohol and glassy eyes and found open containers of Twisted Tea and a knife matching the description of the weapon used were found in her vehicle, police said.
