More homes near Dulles Airport proposed

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority officials have raised alarms about a comprehensive plan amendment under consideration by the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors that would allow new homes near runways at Washington Dulles International Airport.

At recent meetings of the board’s Transportation and Land Use Committee, airport officials expressed serious concerns about an option in the Silver Line comprehensive plan amendment — known as Alternative A — that would change the designation of two parcels currently zoned for nonresidential uses to “urban mixed use.” If approved, the change would allow retail businesses, offices and homes in those areas.

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Washington Post, Nov. 20, 2016

A glimpse into an astronaut’s life

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Forget packing for a jaunt to the beach. Kids visiting the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly are setting their sights on a much more ambitious destination: Mars.

At the Astronaut Academy, the latest offering in the TechQuest program at the Northern Virginia offshoot of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, children are using an alternate-reality game to get an idea of what it’s like to be an astronaut.

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Washington Post, October 4, 2015

Priorities for Dulles area

Dulles area residents want more roads to ease traffic and connect neighborhoods; biking and walking trails; access to government services; and options for shopping, entertainment and recreation — all while trees, streams and open space are protected.

Those were residents’ central messages in input gathered through Loudoun County’s Dulles Community Outreach Project. The final report, which the county’s planning staff presented to the Board of Supervisors Wednesday, included a list of 28 “consensus recommendations,” many of which involved transportation improvements and community amenities.

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Washington Post, September 20, 2015

Sully Historic Site celebrates anniversary

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Exactly 40 years after the Sully Historic Site in Chantilly reopened after a major restoration, Fairfax County officials and visitors gathered to celebrate.

As children played centuries-old games on the lawn, tossing beanbags and rolling hoops, Supervisor Michael R. Frey (R-Sully) headlined a series of speakers who acknowledged those who rescued the historic house from demolition and restored it to its original appearance.

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Washington Post, September 10, 2015

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A jet descends above a 19th century one-room schoolhouse at the Sully Historic Site.