STAFFORD, Va. — Stafford County invites individuals interested in learning more about how their local government operates to attend the August session of the Citizens Academy. The academy is held a twice each year. It consists of a series of classes taught by County employees designed to familiarize them with the services provided by the Stafford County Government.

The academy will run once a week in August on Thursday evenings from 6 – 9 p.m., August 9-30, 2012. The program focuses on educating residents, business owners and interested individuals who work in Stafford on how the operations of their daily county government contribute to building a better community. Topics will include an introduction to local government, as well as information on various departments and programs, the budget, and history and tourism. Students will also get a tour of the County’s public safety building.


NORTH STAFFORD, Va. — Not every student begins the school year with the school supplies they need to make the grade. Together we can help make a greater difference in the lives of our students. Stafford County Public Schools and Apple Federal Credit Union coordinate a school supply drive every summer to help students in need get ready for the upcoming school year.

The school system partners with Stafford County Social Services so the backpacks and school supplies are received by specific individuals identified as having financial need. All school supplies collected will be distributed to Stafford County students in need at the beginning of the school year.


NORTH STAFFORD, Va. — New turn lanes have opened at the intersection of  Va. 610 (Garrisonville Road) and Va. 684 (Mine Road) in Stafford County, allowing more vehicles to circulate through the area on each traffic signal cycle.

On Va. 610 westbound, a second left turn lane was built to accommodate additional traffic turning onto Mine Road.


PotomacLocal.com has not only reached but exceeded 60,000 page views in a single month for the first time since its launch in June 2010.

A website with a hyperlocal focus on the community it serves, PotomacLocal.com was viewed 63,416 times in July by 23,366 unique visitors who trusted PotomacLocal.com as their source for breaking news and events in Dumfries, Stafford, and Woodbridge. The previous high for the website set in May, 2012 was 50,291 page views by 20,285 unique visitors.


The Virginia Department of Transportation will close the I-95 High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes overnight starting on Wednesday, August 1 and Thursday, August 2, from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m., and again on Friday, August 3 from 11 p.m. to 9 a.m., for traffic shifts.

Wednesday night August 1, and Thursday night, August 2, the I-95 HOV lanes will be closed from Exit 152, Dumfries Road (Route 234) to Exit 169, Franconia Road /Keene Mill Road (Route 644) from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. On Friday night, August 3, this closure will be in place from 11 p.m. to 9 a.m.


We are very excited to report that our youth swim team, the Southbridge Fighting Seals, won their first divisional championship.

Under the leadership of their first-year head coach, the seals were able to beat out Urbanna and defending champions Lake Manassas to capture the Purple Division Championships. It was truly a team effort with all of our swimmers putting forth their best effort.


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