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Fairfax board eyes lower-than-proposed real estate tax hike amid budget constraints
Real estate taxes will likely go up for Fairfax County homeowners in the coming year, but perhaps not by as much as they could. The Board of Supervisors plans to approve a 3-cent tax rate increase, down from the four cents that was advertised. That will reduce the average tax bill hike from about $524 to just over $450. While additional funding is proposed for affordable housing, public libraries and parks, the county’s fiscal year 2025 budget won’t satisfy Fairfax County Public Schools’ full funding requests or include the pay levels sought by county employees.
Shadow of Trump looms large in viciously fought GOP primary battle in Virginia’s 5th District
Less than two months before the June 18 primary elections, Rep. Bob Good, R-Campbell County, the incumbent, continues to enjoy the backing of local party leadership, despite ongoing attempts by state Sen. John McGuire, R-Goochland County, to make the Republican nomination contest in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District a referendum on which candidate is the most loyal supporter of former President Donald Trump. McGuire alleges that Good is “working against Trump … and against our party” any chance he gets. … But Rick Buchanan, the chairman of the district’s GOP committee, said that he doesn’t believe that even a formal endorsement of McGuire by the presumptive Republican presidential nominee — should he offer one — would move the needle much in favor of the ambitious McGuire.
Police in riot gear, protesters clash at VCU; school says gathering violated policies
Police and pro-Palestine protesters clashed Monday night after officers tried to clear a makeshift encampment on the lawn outside the James Branch Cabell Library on VCU’s Monroe Park campus, pitching tents in what they called a “liberation zone" and demanding an immediate end to Israel’s offensive in Gaza. The chaotic scene, which began at around 8:30 p.m., saw protesters build a barricade with shipping pallets and hurl water bottles and other objects at the police. Officers, some in riot gear, charged the line of demonstrators and deployed chemical agents in an effort to disperse the crowd. Police made numerous arrests and began disassembling the tents, blankets and tarps at the scene.
Refreshed lawsuit aims to derail Charlottesville apartment project
In a second attempt to prevent construction of a seven-story apartment complex on Jefferson Park Avenue in Charlottesville, nine homeowners in the surrounding neighborhood are hoping a judge will side with them in a lawsuit. They claim that City Council “acted in an unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious manner,” when it approved a special use permit allowing a developer to construct a 119-unit complex on the 2000 block of Jefferson Park Avenue. ... The group’s first attempt at using the court to derail the student housing project was shot down when the city of Charlottesville, the defendant in the case, filed a demurrer, a pretrial defense challenge to the suit’s legal grounds.
‘Frisky little songbird’ needs protection from sea level rise, environmental group tells feds
An environmental organization is asking the federal government to list the saltmarsh sparrow, a bird living on wetlands on the east coast, including Virginia, for protection under the Endangered Species Act due to expected losses from sea level rise and human development. The Center for Biological Diversity’s petition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the saltmarsh sparrow population dwindled from 212,000 in 1998 to 60,000 in 2012. That number was expected to be 28,215 in 2020, according to projections from the 2012 survey.
Wallace and Bortell: In today’s labor market, employers need to rethink internships
As the summer months approach, thousands of high school and college students are preparing to join internship programs across the Richmond region. In light of the continued tight labor market, internship programs have become an increasingly important method of introducing students to hands-on learning opportunities.
Maryland, Virginia senators blast move to add long-distance flights at Reagan airport
A quartet of senators from the greater Washington area tore into a potential provision that would add a number of long-distance flight slots at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport as part of the upcoming reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) panned the plan released by congressional negotiators early Monday that would add 10 slots at National Airport, or five round-trip flights, arguing the airport is already bursting at the seams.
Inland port improvements close to finish
With recent expansions nearly complete, and a new Southwest Virginia port under consideration, it’s been a busy year for the commonwealth’s inland ports. The industrial market from Hampton Roads to Richmond has expanded in terms of industrial space available, says Devon Anders, president of the Harrisonburg-based InterChange Group and chair of the Virginia Maritime Association’s Valley Logistics Chapter. Millions of feet of warehouse space being built near the Virginia Inland Port will allow the Port of Virginia to better compete against other East Coast ports, he says.
Congress to add flights at Washington National
Key members of Congress announced an agreement Monday on a $105 billion bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration for five years ahead of a May 10 deadline. The 1,000-page bill would raise hiring targets for air traffic control and would codify in law a rule the Biden administration introduced this month requiring airlines to offer refunds for canceled or significantly delayed flights, among other consumer-focused provisions. The legislation also would add flights to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, despite opposition from U.S. senators from Virginia and Maryland who said in a letter Monday the move would hurt safety efforts.
Amazon’s footprint in Hampton Roads grows
In the past year, Amazon.com continued its march across the commonwealth, announcing plans to build a 650,000-square-foot fulfillment center and a 219,000-square-foot delivery station in Virginia Beach, which are collectively expected to produce more than 1,000 jobs. About 60% the size of the Pentagon, Virginia’s second largest building belongs to Amazon — a 3.8 million-square-foot robotics fulfillment center in Suffolk ...