Leesburg – Page 3 – Notes n Letters

Parties endorse candidates in “nonpartisan” election

The Nov. 8 election for Leesburg’s mayor and town council is nonpartisan, so voters won’t find the candidates’ party affiliations listed on the official ballots.

But that hasn’t stopped the local Democratic and Republican parties from making endorsements and supplying volunteers to help their favored candidates. Of the three people running for mayor and seven others vying for three seats on the council, all but two have received endorsements from one of the major parties.

Washington Post, Oct. 31, 2016

200 years of criminal records indexed

Although Rachel Steer, John Lambag and Arthur White lived in three different centuries, they have at least one thing in common: At some point in their lives, each ran afoul of the law in Loudoun County.

Records of their offenses have been kept and catalogued by the historic records division of the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court, which recently completed an index documenting more than 10,000 criminal cases from 1757 to 1955 — a project that took about eight years. Office staff members showcased some of the most interesting criminal records Oct. 7 at an open house in the historic courthouse in Leesburg.

Washington Post, Oct. 16, 2016

Inova Loudoun pursues trauma center status

Inova Loudoun Hospital officials announced this month that they will alter procedures and enhance the emergency room at the Lansdowne campus in an attempt to attain designation from the Virginia Department of Health as a Level III trauma center.

If the effort is successful, it would be the first trauma center in Loudoun County.

Full story…

Washington Post, Sept. 25, 2016

Candidates for Leesburg Mayor Face Off

Three candidates for mayor of Leesburg faced off Thursday evening in a public forum that focused on issues such as the revitalization of downtown, taxes and whether the town should consider seeking city status.

Mayor David S. Butler, Vice Mayor Kelly Burk and former town council member Kevin D. Wright expressed differences on some issues in a discussion that revealed how each would govern if elected.

Full story…

Washington Post, Sept. 18, 2016

Loudoun towns remember 9/11

Three Loudoun County towns are commemorating the 15th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, with ceremonies that will honor those who died in the terrorist attacks that day, including the first responders who sacrificed their lives trying to save others.

Leesburg, Lovettsville and Purcellville have scheduled events Sunday marking the anniversary.

Washington Post, September 9, 2016

Help for domestic violence victims

Derek Summers Jr. wants victims of domestic violence to know there are people who can help them. They just need to know where to go for assistance.

Shortly after the violent death of Christina Fisher of Leesburg in April, Summers joined with friends and family members to form the Citizens Committee Against Domestic Violence. The group had a community meet-and-greet expo Aug. 27 in Leesburg, for people to learn about resources available for domestic violence victims. The plan is to make the expo an annual event.

More…

Washington Post, Sept. 4, 2016

Exit Plan: Leesburg’s Escape Room

The intrigue plays out several days a week in a studio apartment in downtown Leesburg, accessible only through a small parking lot and up a steep flight of stairs. It is a “safe house” for a spy — a Russian agent now cooperating with the U.S. government.

Across the hall, several wayward students are hatching a plot to escape detention from a classroom with furnishings straight from the 1980s.

The safe house and the classroom — in a suite of rooms above MacDowell Brew Kitchen — are not real. Nor are the scenes that unfold there. They are the “escape rooms” run by Exit Plan, a locally owned business that creates puzzle-filled adventure games for groups of people to solve.

Washington Post, August 28, 2016

Q & A with Leesburg’s New Police Chief

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA — Capt. Gregory Brown at the Eastern Loudoun Sheriff’s Station

Leesburg officials announced last month that Gregory Brown will become the town’s new chief of police, effective Oct. 3. He will replace Joseph R. Price, who retired as police chief in March after 16 years.

Washington Post, August 7, 2016

Museum gets one more chance

The Loudoun Museum has been given one last chance to get its financial house in order.

The Board of Supervisors on July 21 approved an agreement with the museum that will provide $156,000 in funding to keep it operating through June, by a 7-1-1 vote. Ron A. Meyer (R-Broad Run) opposed the plan, and Tony R. Buffington Jr. (R-Blue Ridge) was absent.

The agreement spells out quarterly milestones the museum must meet to receive the funds, and requires each member of the museum’s board of trustees to contribute or raise at least $3,000 annually.

Washington Post, July 31, 2016

New mural for Leesburg garage

With the help of some local high school students, Leesburg artist Kevin Dunn is adding a splash of color to one of the drab gray walls of Leesburg’s downtown parking garage.

Last weekend, several art students from Tuscarora and Heritage high schools joined Dunn in painting a bicycle-themed mural he designed to serve as a backdrop to some bike racks inside the garage. Dunn and other proponents of bringing art to public places hope the project will revive interest in creating a larger mural on an exterior wall of the garage.

Full story…

Washington Post, June 19, 2016