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Tag: scott gelman

  • Fairfax Co. students launch nonprofit to help kids with school resources, summer camp activities – WTOP News

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    Langley High School students Sophie Li and Lily Zhang launched The Rising Star Fund, a nonprofit that aims to support students at Title I schools across Fairfax County.

    The Rising Star Fund held a summer camp at Garfield Elementary last summer.(Courtesy The Rising Star Fund)

    As sophomores at Langley High School, Sophie Li and Lily Zhang began to notice significant inequities within their Fairfax County neighborhoods — disparities that inspired them to launch a nonprofit supporting students at the county’s Title I schools.

    They wanted to make a difference in their community, with a focus on helping underserved students who may not have access to programs or experiences they have been exposed to.

    Now seniors, the pair launched The Rising Star Fund two years ago, a nonprofit that aims to support students at Title I schools across Fairfax County. Those are school communities with large percentages of low-income students that are eligible for free or reduced price meals.

    Since then, the group of nine students who attend different schools in the area has helped fund summer camps, after-school programs and new school equipment.

    “We saw that there were really big disparities in access from these Title I schools just a few miles away compared to wealthier schools in McLean, like Langley High School and McLean High School,” Li said. “And we were hoping to really bridge that gap.”

    To accomplish that, the group started to fundraise through bake sales, lemonade stands and other community events. They’ve raised over $10,000 to buy document cameras and projectors for Dogwood Elementary and revive after-school programs at Garfield Elementary.

    While high schoolers couldn’t always volunteer during the after school offerings, the nonprofit did raise money to pay the teachers who oversaw the clubs, so they didn’t have to offer their time without being paid.

    “Every single kid deserves a chance,” Sophia Ji said. “We are so privileged to be where we are right now, and also have these opportunities, and even have the opportunity to go to a college and afford that kind of thing. We want to give all these kids a similar kind of chance, something that they can just enjoy.”

    After learning that students at Garfield Elementary didn’t have access to nearby affordable summer camps because of budget cuts, the nonprofit came together to plan their own.

    They hosted a weeklong STEAM program for 15 kids last summer. The group planned activities, such as making slime, toothpaste and tie dye.

    Before the activities, there was a daily science lesson.

    One of the school’s classrooms was used as a venue, and the campus provided snacks and lunches. Some kids were so eager to attend that their parents walked them to the school each day, because they didn’t have access to a car, senior Grace Chun said.

    “Throughout the summer camp, we did try and educate them for science,” Zhang said. “But I think what had a lasting impact on all of us were the children that we met.”

    Chun had an internship to be a teacher’s assistant around the same time the nonprofit started working at a Title I school: “And I think that made it very clear to me how I wanted to help others.”

    While the students leading the nonprofit are all seniors, they’re hoping to bring the concept with them to their college campuses this fall. And each summer, they’re planning to come together again, with the hope of expanding access to summer camps for kids who otherwise wouldn’t be able to attend one.

    “I know that there are a bunch of other people our age who are interested in helping underprivileged students,” Zhang said.

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • Is DC still ‘Chocolate City?’ Here’s what Census data tells us – WTOP News

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    D.C.’s Black population holds steady as new immigration, gentrification and economic growth reshape the city into one of the nation’s most diverse.

    Throughout February, WTOP is celebrating Black History Month. Join us on air and online as we bring you the stories, people and places that make up our diverse community.

    D.C. is no longer the “Chocolate City” it once was. Experts say a diversifying economy, new waves of immigration and shifting housing patterns have transformed the District into one of the most diverse cities in the U.S.

    After the 1930s, D.C. was very segregated, according to Michael Bader, an associate professor of sociology at Johns Hopkins University. There was a “distinct line” down 16th Street, separating an almost exclusively white population to the west side from the almost entirely Black population to the east.

    But that began to chang in the 1980s, when Bader said D.C. became a new immigrant destination. He attributed the shift in part to changes in federal immigration laws in the 1960s.

    And in the decades since, D.C.’s population has continued to evolve. While the city’s Black population has remained about the same, Latino and Asian populations have grown.

    “It’s become one of the most diverse metropolitan areas in the country,” Bader said. “D.C. itself is one of the most diverse cities in the country.”

    From 2021 to 2024, the population of people identifying as Black or African American stayed about the same, according to a WTOP analysis of census data. In July 2021, 305,972 residents identified as Black or African American only. In July 2024, that number was 304,452, representing less than half the city’s population.

    However, Hamilton Lombard, a Virginia-based demographer, said D.C.’s Black population hasn’t declined, “It’s just that it hasn’t grown. The rest of the city’s population has grown, and within that, you have a lot more people who say, ‘I’m Black and something else,’ who in the past used to just say they’re Black. It can look like there’s been a substantial decline when I think arguably it’s been fairly stable.”

    Because of gentrification along the 16th Street corridor, neighborhoods such as Shaw, U Street and Petworth, once almost exclusively Black, have become more integrated, Bader said. In some places, he said there are census tracts “that are predominantly white.”

    In many cases, Bader said, middle class Black D.C. residents are leaving the city for the same reasons anyone else does.

    “A lot of Black middle class folks move to Prince George’s County or Montgomery County for the same reasons that white folks did,” Bader said. “There’s more space. The schools tended to be better or have better reputations.”

    Home prices have motivated some people to buy houses in the D.C. region’s suburbs. Lombard said Fairfax County in Virginia and Montgomery County in Maryland have “seen the share of the population that’s Black rise over the last decade or two.”

    With the emergence of Amazon HQ2 in Northern Virginia and presence of the National Institutes of Health in Maryland, the D.C. region has diversified its economy, which has made it more attractive to people looking to move.

    The divide that once existed along 16th Street broke down because of gentrification and new people moving into the area, Bader said. An emphasis on developing Chinatown and Penn Quarter also helped the city’s growth, he said.

    “We often think about gentrification as the sole cause for Black folks moving to the suburbs,” Bader said. “And that’s not the only reason. It’s something I hear a lot that I think is important to realize, that middle class Black folks are moving to the suburbs, many of them for the same reasons that all racial groups move there.”

    Lombard, meanwhile, is monitoring how attractive D.C. is for young adults. The city’s plans to convert office spaces into residential buildings could prevent young people from leaving and encourage others to move closer, he said.

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • How crews are patching up potholes before asphalt plants reopen – WTOP News

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    Potholes are a fact of life in the D.C. area. In fact, anywhere you have snow and roads, you’re bound to find potholes, especially as temperatures fluctuate above and below freezing.

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    How crews are patching up potholes before asphalt plants reopen

    Potholes are a fact of life in the D.C. area. In fact, anywhere you have snow and roads, you’re bound to find potholes, especially as temperatures fluctuate above and below freezing.

    As water freezes and seeps into cracks in pavement, it expands and can be broken up “with all the cars traveling over it,” Alex Liggitt, the communications manager for the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Northern Virginia District, said.

    The melting snow on the roads refreezes at night and weakens the pavement. Traffic then breaks it up, eventually resulting in a pothole.

    The problem, Liggitt told WTOP, is that it’s too cold right now to make asphalt to permanently smooth over roadways.

    The next possible solution for VDOT and other transportation departments in the D.C. region is a “cold patch.” It’s similar to asphalt but does not need to be hot when put onto roads.

    Road crews go out to potholes, fill them with the cold patch and “they use a big, big, big tamp that just kind of pounds that down,” Liggitt said.

    While it’s not as smooth as regular asphalt, it’s a good temporary fix. Best of all, it’s quick for the road crews to do.

    Liggitt said VDOT makes every attempt to do their road repairs when traffic is light, but drivers still need to remain vigilant and look out for repair crews on the road.

    “The one thing that we’re asking folks is if you do come across those mobile pothole operations, make sure you’re slowing down, you’re paying attention, phone down, you get around them. Allow them a lot of extra space out there, because they are out on the roads trying to fix the road while you are there,” Liggitt said.

    To report a pothole on your drive in Virginia call 800-367-7623 and in D.C. call 311. For any potholes in Maryland, you can fill out an online form on the Maryland Department of Transportation’s website.

    WTOP’s Scott Gelman contributed to this report.

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Thomas Robertson

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  • New design, entrance and LED system: Capital One Arena renovation advances to much more visible phase – WTOP News

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    The project to transform Capital One Arena has entered a much more visible phase, as work on the exterior of the building is prompting temporary changes to allow for the overhaul to progress.

    Renovation work currently taking place at the Capital One Arena in downtown Washington, D.C. (WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    The project to transform Capital One Arena has entered a much more visible phase, as work on the exterior of the building is prompting temporary changes to allow for the overhaul to progress.

    This month, overhead protection has been installed near the entrance to the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro station on 7th and F streets, and crews are preparing to put up exterior scaffolding.

    There are detour signs lining the streets and construction equipment all around the outside of the building.

    The next phase will eventually allow for more concessions, bathrooms and space for fans to gather. It’ll also pave the way for fans to have smoother experiences getting in and out of events, Monumental Sports & Entertainment leaders said Thursday.

    The shift is the latest in the $800 million renovation project that’s scheduled to finish by 2027. D.C. taxpayers are funding a portion of the work, as part of an agreement Mayor Muriel Bowser made in 2024 with the management company to help keep the Washington Wizards and Capitals playing in the city.

    “We started almost a year ago,” said Jim Van Stone, president of business operations for Monumental Sports and Entertainment. “A lot of the work that we did was really behind everyone’s eyes. It was really the event level, and that was part of an expansion over into the Gallery Place Mall. We’ve created brand new event-level spaces. But really for the fans, which we’re building this for completely, a lot of it was invisible.”

    But as of late 2025, when exterior construction ramped up, that was no longer the case.

    Crews are working to remove the outside shell of the building and replace it. Existing LED boards will be removed.

    In the coming months, eventgoers will notice scaffolding and overhead protection, according to Jordan Silberman, Monumental Sports and Entertainment’s president of venues.

    Now, there will be temporary shifts in entrances and exits, including shutting down the sidewalk on F Street on event nights. Instead of using the sidewalk, the street will be closed and serve as the walkway.

    The temporary changes will pave the way for the fall 2026 opening of a new main entrance, which will be closer to the Metro station.

    The sidewalk on F Street, and 6th and 7th streets, will eventually be made wider, making it easier to avoid crowds on the way in and out.

    The concourses will be wider, and there will be more escalators and elevators, Silberman said.

    “People’s experience starts when they leave their homes, and we don’t want it to be stifled by a long line or tight concourse,” Silberman said.

    Ongoing construction with scaffolding along 7th Street. (WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    In addition to Pepco doing utility work and stormwater work, Silberman said the redesign will help create more concourse space, expanding by 6-8 feet.

    The project will allow for a 10,000-square-foot team store, nearly double the number of concessions and a 40% increase in the number of restrooms.

    The exterior work, though, has to begin first. It’s progressing concurrently along two paths.

    “We’re going to move east along F Street. We’re going to move north along 7th Street concurrently, and then we’re going to chase each other around the building,” said Jeff King, Clark Construction’s vice president.

    The construction is planned to happen during off hours, so “when you’re coming to a game, it doesn’t feel like you’re coming to a construction site,” Silberman said.

    “To make sure that this project happens in three years, we’re going to have to do systematic things in season,” Silberman said.

    The arena will be closed the next two summers to allow for the work, but when it’s done, Van Stone said, “we’re going to do, on average, 250 events a year.”

    Asked whether the project is still on track to finished by the desired deadline of fall 2027, Silberman told WTOP, “That’s the plan. We’re still tracking on plan.”

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • How a Montgomery Co. high schooler’s nonprofit is getting younger kids excited about math – WTOP News

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    Montgomery Blair High School student Rishik Shenolikar turned a small pandemic tutoring effort into Potomac PiRates Inc., a nonprofit helping elementary students overcome math anxiety through games, puzzles and mental‑math activities.

    During the pandemic, Rishik Shenolikar offered to help tutor neighborhood kids in his garage.

    It was a small group of elementary schoolers, and he used a mental math book that intrigued him. He helped the kids with their homework, explaining different tricks and using engaging math puzzles.

    Shenolikar, a junior at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, has enjoyed math ever since he was a kid. He hoped to spread that excitement, and was successful. Some of the younger students wanted to discuss the puzzles with their parents over dinner.

    What started as a kind gesture while in-person schools were closed has evolved into a nonprofit.

    Shenolikar created Potomac PiRates Inc., which aims to help students recognize that math can be a lot more than formulas and equations.

    “It’s such a useful skill,” Shenolikar said. “There’s so many careers that involve math, but it also just helps your brain in so many different ways.”

    The group, which started about two years ago, offers tutoring support to elementary schools and other local organizations. It’s an official partner with the Montgomery County Recreation Center and supports their “Club Adventure” after-school program. They’re also offering math support to students with disabilities.

    The sessions usually involve a lot of games, puzzles and mental math tricks. They aim to empower students to arrive at an answer faster than they would have otherwise. They often get feedback from teachers too.

    “The main point is to help students with math anxiety because I’ve noticed a lot that I enjoy math a lot, but a lot of kids out there just don’t find it that fun,” Shenolikar said.

    Separately, the nonprofit has sent nearly 1,000 math kits to students in underresourced communities. The contents of the kits depends on who they’re going to, but they typically include basic math supplies and a logic puzzle, such as a Rubik’s Cube.

    Recently, they created and shipped 60 kits to a classroom “of very smart kids in Africa who, unfortunately, don’t have the resources to get into math,” Shenolikar said.

    He’s planning to travel to Africa this summer to meet those kids and offer them some tutoring help.

    Shenolikar first paid for the work using money he earned judging debate tournaments. But now, the group of 15 kids has been using funds from a grant it received through the Dodge Family Foundation. Moving forward, they’re hoping to collaborate with small businesses.

    The work, he said, is making a difference.

    “The best sign of our impact … where they start out not liking math, but eventually it grows on them, because they enjoy the games,” Shenolikar said.

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • Plan for Fairfax County casino project passes Virginia Senate, heads to House of Delegates – WTOP News

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    After a 23-14 vote, the measure will now head to the Virginia House of Delegates. A similar proposal passed the Senate last year, but didn’t make it out of a House subcommittee.

    A proposal to bring a casino and entertainment district to Northern Virginia passed the state’s senate Friday, even as some Fairfax County leaders and residents criticized the idea.

    After a 23-14 vote, the measure will now head to the Virginia House of Delegates. A similar proposal passed the Senate last year, but didn’t make it out of a House subcommittee.

    The move is the latest in the yearslong effort to bring a casino to Fairfax County. Lawmakers supporting the measure tout the potential for revenue, while residents and local leaders have worried about traffic and infrastructure needs.

    Citing a 2019 report from Virginia’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee, Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell said the project would generate “more revenue than all the other casinos we’ve authorized in Virginia combined.”

    “That’s just not revenue for Northern Virginia, it’s revenue for the entire state,” Surovell said. “And this has been studied. It was looked at.”

    The casino project would have to be at least 1.5 million square feet, and after a change this week, could be built anywhere in Fairfax County. The 2025 version of the legislation focused on Tysons.

    While the casino has been a focal point of the conversation, Surovell said the plan could also include a concert venue, conference venue, hotel entertainment district and IMAX center for sporting events, “which is typically how projects of that size are designed and constructed.”

    If approved in the House, the plan would be put in front of voters to consider.

    Fairfax County’s Board of Supervisors voted to leave a casino project out of their legislative priorities for the 2026 session, and several Northern Virginia state senators voted against the idea Friday.

    Sen. Barbara Favola, for one, said the plan “is not fully cooked. It is not the right thing to do.”

    “The Board of Supervisors has not even had a robust conversation on this,” Favola said. “They have decided that the planning effort, the effort that the locality would have to put forth regarding public infrastructure, safety questions, transportation and even national security issues, far outweigh the desirability of engaging in this conversation.”

    Sen. Adam Ebbin, meanwhile, said the measure would be “a significant departure from past practice. The host locality, Fairfax County, is not asking for this authority.”

    And, Sen. Jennifer Boysko added, “I go to the grocery store, I am stopped by my constituents. I have gone to the doctor. I have been stopped by my doctor when I was having a sick visit, who said, ‘Please do not bring a casino here. We don’t need it.’”

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • DC mayor warns of imminent tough budget cycle as costs rise, revenue stays modest – WTOP News

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    During a morning session with council members Tuesday, Bowser and other city leaders said while revenue has been modest, costs are soaring.

    D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser this week described the possibility of difficult decisions ahead, as the city works on its spending plan for fiscal year 2027, her last as the District’s leader.

    During a morning session with council members Tuesday, Bowser and other city leaders said while revenue has been modest, costs are soaring.

    Keeping all services and programs in place this year in next year’s budget would require a $1.1 billion revenue increase, City Administrator Kevin Donahue said. However, according to city documents, revenue growth is modest. In fiscal 2027, revenue is projected to increase by $9.6 million.

    And if President Donald Trump signs a measure that passed Congress, preventing D.C. from opting out of the Trump administration’s tax cuts, hundreds of millions more could be at stake.

    “I did budgets during the recession,” Donahue said. “This is as hard as anything that we did in the recession.”

    Costs of all kinds are projected to increase, including agency overtime spending, contributions to WMATA and Medicaid and child care costs. With some cases of one-time funding set to expire, there are $700 million worth of programs funded in the fiscal 2026 plan that aren’t funded in the fiscal 2027 plan.

    Bowser’s budget proposal is expected this spring, and she said it’s hard to know exactly which programs and services may be reduced or cut.

    “The best way to answer is to look at our overall budget just like you would do in your own household budget, and the areas where there’s the largest spending and the most costly types of programs are the ones that could more likely sustain decreases,” Bowser told WTOP.

    During the presentation earlier this week, Bowser and other agency heads highlighted examples of programs that could be vulnerable.

    For one, the city’s child care subsidy program, which offers eligible families support with child care payments, has a deficit of $32 million, according to Antoinette Mitchell, D.C.’s state superintendent of education. It could increase to $42 million without changes.

    There are 7,380 kids in the program and almost 300 providers. One idea could result in paying providers the same rate, instead of three different rates. Using a waiting list, Mitchell said, would enable the city to cap enrollment.

    There are many programs, Bowser said, that are “emblematic of some of the issues that we will go into in this budget formulation — more demand, higher cost equals greater total program cost. And so the question for all budget makers is, what do you do with that when the demand and the cost and the inflation outpace your ability to pay for it?”

    Wayne Turnage, D.C.’s deputy mayor for health and human services, said changes in eligibility for programs offering health care to low income residents have resulted in some savings. But, Donahue said, “a 2% or 3% inflationary pressure in health care, because the base spending is so high, translates to sometimes a $10 or $100 million spending pressure.”

    While Bowser proposes the city’s budget, final approval is up to the D.C. Council.

    In the coming weeks, Bowser said, “My biggest concern is that all policymakers take our decision seriously. It’s not good enough to say, ‘I want more, I want more, I want more,’ without a strategy to pay for it.”

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • DC brings curbside EV charging stations to each ward in push to make them more accessible – WTOP News

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    Curbside electric vehicle charging stations will be available in each ward across D.C., as part of a new pilot program aiming to make the chargers more accessible.

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    DC rolls out curbside EV charging stations

    Curbside electric vehicle charging stations will be available in each ward across D.C., as part of a new pilot program aiming to make the chargers more accessible.

    The first location, near The Festival Center in Adams Morgan, was unveiled Tuesday. Two curbside stations will be added near community centers or local government facilities in the coming months.

    “We are really excited about offering up some curbside charging,” said Sharon Kershbaum, director of D.C.’s Department of Transportation.

    “We know in the denser areas of the city, where people don’t have garages or driveways or alley parking, one of the greatest barriers to pursuing an EV is that they just don’t have convenient, reliable areas where they can charge their car.”

    The company It’s Electric is launching the program with help from a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, Kershbaum said. Pepco is installing the stations.

    The single-port, level two chargers require drivers to bring their own cables. Using the It’s Electric app, the cost is $0.52 per kilowatt-hour for up to four hours. Signage indicates there’s a four hour limit.

    At the Adams Morgan curbside location, the energy for the chargers is coming from The Festival Center, which will receive a portion of the sales.

    “The issue for urban EV drivers is not so much the range, but the accessibility of charging,” said Jon Hyman, an EV owner who lives in Northwest. “Not everyone has a garage, not everyone’s going to be charging at their parking lots, at some office park kind of out of town.”

    The city’s Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners are being consulted in the process of picking the locations of the other charging stations, according to a news release.

    The pilot will help the city create guidelines for a permit program allowing private companies to install and operate EV charging stations in D.C.

    “In general, we always have high demand for curbside space,” Kershbaum said. “There is not enough curbside space to meet all of the cars that we have, and as the city grows, that becomes harder and harder. So it’s always going to be a trade off, and we’re trying to be thoughtful about finding that balance, but that’s an ongoing challenge.”

    Amber Perry, Pepco’s regional president, said it’s “real when we think about range anxiety. These plugins are really going to help this community.”

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • DC starts issuing fines for businesses, residents who haven’t cleared sidewalks – WTOP News

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    Nearly two weeks after a snowstorm, D.C. has resumed issuing fines to residents and businesses that fail to clear sidewalks as inspectors enforce snow removal rules to keep pedestrians safe.

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    DC now issuing fines for uncleared sidewalks

    It’s been nearly two weeks since snow and sleet blanketed the D.C. region, and the city has restarted issuing fines to residents and business owners who haven’t cleared sidewalks and other areas around their properties.

    On Friday afternoon, Kayanda Jones, lead solid waste inspector with D.C.’s Department of Public Works, went door-to-door along a stretch of Rhode Island Avenue in Northeast.

    Holding a stack of flyers, she urged business leaders to do their part to ensure residents and visitors can safely get where they need to go.

    “Some know about it,” Jones said of the expectations for businesses after a winter weather event. “Some do not know about it. Some have an idea of what they think sidewalk shoveling is.”

    Eight hours after a snow event ends, Jones said, businesses are required to start the cleanup process. They have to clear the entire sidewalk and front of the property, all the way to the street.

    Those who make an attempt but still have some snow are reminded of their responsibilities.

    Jones told one corner business it’s responsible for clearing sidewalks all the way to crosswalks at the end of the street. Part of the curb at the crosswalk remained covered Friday.

    “We want to ensure the safety of our residents, also our visitors, for hazardous issues. … We want to ensure that there is free passage of the public space, the sidewalk and around the property, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to be able to use the sidewalk appropriately,” Jones said.

    Businesses that haven’t cleaned up their property can receive a $150 fine. For residents, the fine is $25.

    In a statement, a DPW spokeswoman said the city has been providing information about sidewalk shoveling laws since Jan. 26.

    “Our Solid Waste Education and Enforcement Program team began providing Notice of Violations for failure to shovel the sidewalk within eight hours after the end of a snow event on enforcement on Feb. 5,” the statement read.

    Each inspector is assigned areas to monitor, Jones said, and there are service requests they also respond to.

    David Wooden, also a lead solid waste inspector, said a big part of the job is stressing “the importance of removing the snow, even if it’s just a pathway for people to travel the sidewalks. We’ve all just got to work together, as far as clearing the snow.”

    Arlington and Loudoun counties in Virginia and Maryland’s Montgomery County have similar rules in place for clearing snow.

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    © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • Some DC-area residents are taking dramatic steps to ‘reserve’ their parking spots – WTOP News

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    As part of the clean up process, cities have plowed public roads and families had to clear the “snowcrete” mixture from the areas around their cars. And in the days since, some have used various objects to claim their parking spots, hoping to guarantee they’re available whenever they return home.

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    Some locals are taking dramatic steps to ‘reserve’ parking spots

    It’s been nearly two weeks since the snow and sleet storm came through the D.C. region, causing traffic problems, school closures and delays that are still lingering.

    As part of the cleanup process, cities have plowed public roads and families had to clear the “snowcrete” mixture from the areas around their cars. And in the days since, some have used various objects to claim their parking spots, hoping to guarantee they’re available whenever they return home.

    It’s happening on D.C. streets from Southeast to Northwest, and in Northern Virginia neighborhoods where some residents don’t have assigned spots in parking lots.

    In some cases, people hoping to take the parking spot simply move whatever object is in their way. In others, though, verbal altercations have followed.

    “I just don’t think it’s right,” said Kevin, who lives near Eastern Market. “You can’t save a spot. I can understand your feeling, but it’s just not right. It’s a public street. I’ve been here a long time, and see people do it all the time, and it can cause problems. People can get pretty angry.”

    In Kevin’s neighborhood, spots are reserved with cones and lawn chairs. In one case, the chair had a note — don’t take the space, “because it took my daddy 2 hours to shovel this.”

    However, he said, it’s an approach that’s not always effective. Half of the time, he said, people move the objects out of the way.

    In a D.C. neighborhood near Sibley Memorial Hospital, meanwhile, Catalina Zorc said she understands the need to reserve the spot. There are several chairs on both sides of her street, and in one, there’s a large stuffed banana.

    “I appreciate their need, and they did all the work, so they’re kind of entitled to it,” Zorc said. “But at the same time, other people come and they need to park.”

    Is it legal?

    A D.C. Department of Transportation spokesman said in a statement that under city law, streets and sidewalks have to remain clear for public use.

    “While we understand why residents wish to save spots that they worked hard to clear, now that the snow emergency has been lifted for more than 48 hours, residents are strongly encouraged to remove any items left in the street that may block Snow Team operations and the public right of way,” the statement read.

    Using objects to save parking spots is a common approach that happens in cities across the country, including Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

    Mia Smith-Bynum, who chairs the Department of Family Science at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Health, said people have a “psychological sense of ownership” over a parking spot they may use regularly.

    It’s human instinct, Smith-Bynum said.

    “That normal sense of psychological ownership, if not literal ownership, over the space, it intensifies when you’ve done hours and hours of labor to clear that space,” Smith-Bynum said. “And so it’s not based in anything that is necessarily rational from a legal standpoint, but I do think no matter what space you inhabit on a regular basis or that you develop an attachment to, you’re going to try to claim it.”

    In Northern Virginia, some residents have used step stools, tables and various types of chairs to reserve their spaces within parking lots. The challenge, some said, is spaces aren’t assigned.

    “I understand people wanting to keep the space if they’ve worked hard to clear it,” said Timothy Conboy, who lives in Arlington.

    Brian Hu, who has seen people use chairs and cardboard boxes, said, “It’s not really fair, even though they worked hard to clean the driveway. But it’s not their driveway, it’s the community’s shared driveway.”

    No matter where it’s happening, it’s causing strife among neighbors.

    “There’s a lot of tension,” Kevin said. “You’ve got to realize, if you’re going to move your car, there’s a chance somebody’s going to park there.”

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  • Fairfax Co. church left without prayer space after snow-covered roof collapses – WTOP News

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    A Northern Virginia church is scrambling to find a place for its congregants to pray and gather, after its roof collapsed earlier this week from heavy snow.

    A Northern Virginia church is scrambling to find a place for its congregants to pray and gather after its roof collapsed earlier this week from heavy snow.

    The St. George Tigrai Orthodox Tewahdo Church in Mt. Vernon is surrounded by red and yellow caution tape that first responders placed Monday evening and its parking lot is empty.

    Fairfax County Fire and Rescue said it responded to the area around 5:20 p.m. Monday. They identified it as a “partially collapsed two-story commercial building” and found “roof and floor failure,” according to a post on X.

    Nobody was inside at the time of the collapse, the county said, and there weren’t any injuries.

    Ayalneh Berhe, the church’s finance and administration coordinator, said adding to the issues with the collapsed roof, they’re dealing with the main building’s walls “leaning forward towards the front.”

    Berhe said the space was purchased during the pandemic in 2020, and it’s a place where over 100 Ethiopian congregants gather.

    “We don’t have any place to pray, to do our prayers,” he said. “We are looking at options.”

    It’s unlikely the roof can be repaired, Berhe said, because of the way one side of the building is leaning. Nobody has been allowed to enter the spaces, and building engineers will be tasked with inspecting it.

    Religious materials, computers and instruments are still inside.

    “We don’t have a place to pray, that’s number one,” Berhe said. “Second, we are also thinking, how much will be the damage?”

    An outdoor tent used as a gathering space for the community to have breakfast, coffee or tea after services conclude also collapsed, Berhe said.

    The church has launched a fundraiser to help out with costs from the incident. Anyone seeking details can call or email using the contact information on its website, he said.

    “People are calling us to know the story, what happened,” Berhe said. “And we’ll see. We’ll settle anywhere who provides us space temporarily. Eventually, we want our church to be rebuilt and resume our function there.”

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  • What the DC region is doing with the ‘snowcrete’ it’s hauling off the streets – WTOP News

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    Arlington County crews worked nonstop for days after a major snowstorm, hauling truckloads of snow as sleet and freezing temperatures complicated cleanup efforts across roads, sidewalks and bus stops.

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    How the DC region is handling ‘snowcrete’

    In response to the recent snowstorm, crews in Arlington, Virginia, worked 12-hour shifts for seven straight days before scaling back continuous operations.

    Ever since, they’ve been working to get roads, sidewalks and bus stops clear, according to Jeremy Hassan, bureau chief for Water, Sewers and Streets in Arlington County.

    The county, Hassan told WTOP, is responsible for clearing about 1,000 lane miles in response to winter weather — that includes turn lanes, bike lanes and bridges.

    As part of the cleanup effort, neighborhoods across the D.C. region have been confronted with a choice — haul the snow away, or push it toward the curbs or parking lots, and hope temperatures inch closer to seasonal averages so it eventually melts.

    “Some of our drivers that have been doing this for 10 or 20 years, it’s even unique to them, because it’s not something that you can really train for, prepare for. They were, on the fly, making adjustments to handle it as best you can,” Hassan said.

    In Arlington, crews have been hauling it to a handful of predetermined locations. The list includes parking lots and other facilities, but time management and convenience are considered, because of the number of trips that have to be made.

    In some cases, such as near the county courthouse, hardpack snow is piled up and closing a stretch of the street.

    In other locations, Hassan said, there are snow-melters operating around the clock. It’s the first time in a decade the county has had to use the equipment.

    “Day and night, 24/7, we had to haul over 5,000 truckloads of materials from our commercial corridors,” Hassan said. “And even then, there’s still material out there that we’re trying to prioritize and find that good balance of, what’s enough to get the community out there to be able to enjoy businesses, make their medical appointments, take their family where they need to be; but also try to hope that Mother Nature … helps us kind of takes its part of that as well.”

    Some of the drop-off sites are at full capacity, Hassan said, adding, “Once we’re out there plowing, it gets to a point of where we’ve kind of maximized our efficiency of where we can push things.”

    The storm presented unique challenges, he said, because sleet came after the snow, almost creating “a skating rink on top of six inches of fluffy snow.”

    Plows are effective in pushing material off streets, but their strength is limited once it freezes, Hassan said.

    “So now, when you’re hitting it with that plow, it adds weight, it adds resistance, and they’re trying to push it to the sides,” he said. “Also, it moves in chunks versus fluffy snow, which is more like just sand and material you could push it out to the sides.”

    While the county has prioritized commercial corridors, with a lot of pedestrians and on-street parking, “you’re kind of limited where you push it, because the businesses are trying to push it closer to the street and the sidewalk. We’re pushing it to the street, and that pile just accumulates,” Hassan said.

    “In those areas, the only other option when you get to a certain point is to remove it physically, which calls for drastic hauling operations,” he added.

    The work will continue, Hassan said, until students can safely navigate bus stops, and county drivers find intersections and traffic patterns that are “looking good.”

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  • ‘No repeat of Hayfield’: Fairfax Co. makes changes after probe finds 2 football programs violated state rules – WTOP News

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    Fairfax County Public Schools is making a series of changes in response to an external probe that found two high school football programs in the Northern Virginia suburb violated state rules.

    Fairfax County Public Schools is making a series of changes in response to an external probe that found two high school football programs in the Northern Virginia suburb violated state rules.

    In a letter to families this week, Superintendent Michelle Reid and School Board Chair Sandy Anderson said the Chicago-based law firm Baker McKenzie finished its investigation into allegations regarding student-athlete transfer and eligibility practices across the division. Hayfield Secondary School and Fairfax High School were found to have violated Virginia High School League rules.

    Now, transfer eligibility will be handled at the central office level instead of high school level. The school district is also coming up with a set of standards that will scrutinize new student registrations the same way transfers within the division are reviewed.

    The steps come after 2024 allegations accusing then-Coach Darryl Overton of recruiting violations for allegedly encouraging his former players at Freedom High School in Woodbridge to transfer to Hayfield. Overton was in his first season leading the Fairfax County school, and also worked there as a security specialist.

    Hayfield ultimately withdrew from the postseason after playing just one game.

    And at Fairfax High, Fox 5 DC reported coaches had been accused of paying thousands to recruit a football player.

    Reid, meanwhile, had publicly apologized for the county’s handling of the Hayfield scandal.

    “When a student wants to play on a team or play a sport, whether it’s a team sport or an individual sport, they want to know that it’s a level playing field,” Board member Mateo Dunne told WTOP on Friday. “They want to know that there are rules. They want to know that the refs will judge in a neutral manner. And unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case in recent decades, but going forward, it certainly will be.”

    Dunne said having an external law firm that hasn’t done work for the county in the last 10 years lead the investigation was critical, because it “quickly became apparent that the internal investigation was not credible.”

    In response to the Hayfield situation, the division started using a platform that allows for centralized collection, review and processing of transfers, the district said. It also gave the Office of Student Activities and Athletics authority to investigate questions or concerns about a student’s eligibility.

    Fairfax County is expanding its mandatory training requirements to include all levels of coaches, including unpaid volunteers, in response to training gaps highlighted during the investigation.

    The changes, Reid and Anderson wrote, “do not include personnel actions which are confidential by law and which the Superintendent has taken and will take as appropriate.”

    When Hayfield’s 2024 football season ended, Overton took a job with the St. James Performance Academy as its director of football, the academy announced.

    “Since Hayfield, we have seen consistent, proactive enforcement of athletic rules and regulations,” Dunne said.

    “We’ve seen vigorous oversight across a variety of schools, and that, to me, is heartening, because ultimately, what we want to make sure is that there is no repeat of Hayfield. And we also want to be able to say that we have upheld the integrity of the FCPS athletics program and that we have provided accountability and transparency,” he added.

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  • ‘So wrong’: Fairfax Co. community vigil honors Renee Good, Alex Pretti – WTOP News

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    A large crowd packed a Reston, Virginia, church on Thursday night, singing and holding candles to honor those who have been injured or killed during interactions with federal law enforcement officials.

    A large crowd packed a Reston, Virginia, church on Thursday night, singing and holding candles to honor those who have been injured or killed during interactions with federal law enforcement officials.

    Led by community and religious leaders, the crowd applauded as speakers urged them to speak out. Pictures of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were both killed in Minneapolis, sat in the front of the room at United Christian Parish.

    The gathering came days after Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse at Minneapolis VA Medical Center, was shot several times while filming Border Patrol officers conducting an immigration enforcement operation.

    Good was killed earlier in January while blocking a road with her vehicle.

    Their deaths have led to large-scale demonstrations in Minneapolis and other parts of the country.

    Virginia Rep. James Walkinshaw, who organized the vigil, said the event wasn’t about politics but instead “human beings coming together to acknowledge that lives are being lost needlessly and that the violence needs to come to an end.”

    “It’s so wrong,” said Howard Berman, who attended the vigil. “What’s happening there, happening in Portland, Maine, and happened in California, and will be happening elsewhere.”

    Pastor Vernon Walter, meanwhile, told the crowd he’s “tired, my brothers and sisters, this evening of funerals that should never have happened. I am tired tonight of mothers crying out to a system that does not answer them back. I am tired of power that takes life first and explains itself later.”

    Mary Jackson said she’s been writing on social media “how proud we are of the Minnesotans.”

    “I hope the message sends to those who have some authority in the White House to know that they’re doing the American citizens wrong, and they are actually persecuting people who have lived here for years and strive to make this country the country that it is today,” Jackson said.

    Rev. Linda Calkins suspected “probably everybody in this room knows someone who is afraid to come out and is afraid of being arrested or taken away from their family.”

    Walkinshaw is calling for an independent investigation into what led to Good and Pretti’s deaths, “not conducted by the Department of Homeland Security itself. It should be conducted by an impartial, independent FBI. Unfortunately, we don’t have that. So those investigations need to be conducted by state and local agencies.”

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  • How DC ensures first responders can reach emergencies through snowstorms – WTOP News

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    The work to ensure D.C. first responders are able to reach emergencies started with pretreatment Saturday morning, as part of a process that doesn’t stop.

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    How DC ensures first responders can reach emergencies during snowstorms

    The work to ensure D.C. first responders are able to reach emergencies even during the worst of winter weather started with pretreatment Saturday morning, as part of a process that doesn’t stop.

    Police and fire stations are among the locations that D.C.’s Department of General Services prioritizes. The agency is responsible for 500 facilities across the city.

    Even as the storm arrives, staff will be stationed nearby to continuously plow entrances and parking lots. Snow will be cleared and ice will be applied “throughout the duration of the storm,” said Delano Hunter, the agency’s director.

    “We know there are those inevitable calls, medical emergencies, slips, trips and falls, car accidents, and we don’t want any delay, right?” Hunter said. “If you call 911, you want your first responder there as quick as possible.”

    The agency, Hunter said, has tripled its vendor capacity, “because, as they say, many hands make light work.”

    Meanwhile, D.C. Fire and EMS is expecting to have about 100 extra people working, and they’re planning to work in 36-hour shifts instead of the usual 24.

    While D.C.’s Department of General Services pretreats and clears the roads near fire stations, Deputy Fire Chief Brian Rudy said “most places where we go is already cleared. If not, with the snow chains, we’re able to get into the places where we need to go.”

    The agency has a heavy-duty apparatus, Rudy said, if a piece of equipment gets stuck.

    “If you experience an emergency, call 911, and we’ll be there,” Rudy said.

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  • How Fairfax Co. cleans up 10.8 million square feet of pavement after winter weather – WTOP News

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    Fairfax County crews are gearing up for this weekend’s winter storm with a finely tuned, tiered response plan.

    Last summer, the Department of Public Works and Environmental Services in Fairfax County, Virginia had three months worth of meetings on which areas and facilities to prioritize in the aftermath of a winter weather event.

    The county manages over 10.8 million square feet of pavement across the Northern Virginia suburb, and has to ensure libraries, government centers, shelters and police and fire stations are treated and then cleared.

    Virginia’s Department of Transportation, meanwhile, is responsible for clearing most roads.

    As this weekend’s storm approaches, county officials have had as many as seven meetings each day, coordinating parking at various facilities and discussing ways to execute those plans they first considered months ago.

    “This is the Super Bowl,” said Chase Suddith, an emergency management specialist for the Department of Public Works and Environmental Services’ stormwater management. “This is the most fun part of my job. It’s prepping for all of it, and then it’s executing.”

    The county uses a tiered system to figure out which spaces it should prioritize. Police stations, fire stations, emergency services and the judicial complex are considered “Priority 1” locations. There will always be crews nearby, Suddith said, so they can respond to emergencies.

    Health centers and similar facilities are second, and libraries, community recreation centers and police and fire training academies are third.

    Crews use over 100 plows and work in 12-hour shifts, and chat notifications are nonstop. As Suddith monitors the storm from the Storm Command Center, crew members send images back in real time.

    Orange markers are placed near curbs to ensure officials can determine where they’re located.

    The groups brine the parking lots and sidewalks, and after an inch of snow has accumulated, the plowing begins. When it concludes, the curb to curb work begins.

    After a 9-inch storm, for example, Suddith said the county would aim to have Priority 3 locations cleared from curb to curb about 72 hours after the snow stops.

    Meanwhile, as the storm arrives, Suddith is expecting to get about six hours of sleep each night. And given the circumstances, he’s urging residents to be patient.

    “It is going to be so cold afterward that it is going to be very challenging for us to get to what we normally expect,” Suddith said. “More salt is not better. The salt is not going to be as effective once temperatures get below 20 degrees.”

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  • DC police, community members say final goodbye to officer struck while helping stranded driver – WTOP News

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    Law enforcement officers and community members packed a Maryland church Friday morning for the funeral of D.C. Police officer Terry Bennett, who was hit while helping a stuck driver in December.

    Bennett’s car, covered with flowers and stuffed animals, remains parked in front of the police station, with his photo on the windshield.
    (WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    WTOP/Scott Gelman

    Officials saluted as the procession drove by underneath a large American flag attached to the ladders from two fire trucks.
    (WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    WTOP/Scott Gelman

    Officials saluted as the procession drove by underneath a large American flag attached to the ladders from two fire trucks.
    (WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    WTOP/Scott Gelman

    Washington Officer Death
    U.S. Park Police mounted officers salute as a van carrying the body of Metropolitan Police Department officer Terry Bennett is driven past the Capitol, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Washington.
    (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

    AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

    DC Officer Terry Bennett
    Officer Terry Bennett, of the D.C. Police, has died after succumbing to injuries he sustained December 2025 while helping the driver of a stranded vehicle.
    (Courtesy DC Police Union)

    Courtesy DC Police Union

    Law enforcement officers and community members packed a Maryland church Friday morning for the funeral of D.C. police officer Terry Bennett, who was hit while helping a stuck driver in December.

    At City of Praise Family Ministries in Landover, D.C. Interim Police Chief Jeffery Carroll said Bennett didn’t “just serve this city. He gave his life for it.”

    The service came exactly a month after police said Bennett was hit while helping a stranded motorist on Interstate 695.

    Bennett was helping a driver whose car broke down in the eastbound lanes of I-695 near South Capitol Street. A passing vehicle hit him just after 10 p.m., police said.

    Bennett remained hospitalized after the incident and died in early January.

    “He was resilient and caring,” Carroll said. “He was the kind of officer every chief hopes to have, and the kind of colleague every officer hopes to work with.”

    Bennett was born and raised in D.C. and had worked in the Metropolitan Police Department for eight years. He graduated from Ballou Senior High School in 2011, and was an assistant football coach there.

    Kenny Brown, the school’s head coach, said Friday that the “number two is officially retired.”

    “If anybody knew Terry, like I’ve been telling people, you can’t tell him he wasn’t a founding father of Ballou,” Brown said.

    First District Cmdr. Colin Hall reflected on presenting Bennett with a first district officer of the month award after Bennett had helped close a robbery case.

    “It’s not a surprise he was doing what heroes do,” Hall said. “That’s what he did. He was called to act.”

    Bennett was an organ donor, and during the service, Maya Jai Pinson said she had end-stage kidney failure and received one of Bennett’s kidneys.

    “Officer Bennett didn’t receive a second chance, but he made sure that others would, and because of that plan, I was given a second chance at life,” Pinson said.

    When the service concluded, dozens of police, National Guard members and D.C. Fire and EMS officials lined M Street near the First District station.

    They saluted as the procession drove by underneath a large American flag attached to the ladders from two fire trucks.

    Bennett’s car, covered with flowers and stuffed animals, remains parked in front of the police station, with his photo on the windshield.

    Jerrold Coates, 47, of Northwest D.C., was arrested and charged with second-degree murder while armed in Bennett’s death.

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  • Fairfax Co. approves school boundary changes, set to take effect this fall – WTOP News

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    Hundreds of Fairfax County students will be zoned for new schools this fall, as part of boundary changes the school board in the Northern Virginia suburb approved Thursday night.

    Hundreds of Fairfax County students will be zoned for new schools this fall, as part of boundary changes the school board in the Northern Virginia suburb approved Thursday night.

    The step comes after over a year of public engagement and adjustments to the proposal, which was shaped with help from the K-12 firm Thru Consulting.

    The board approved the plan with an 8-3 vote. The opposing board members were Mateo Dunne, Ryan McElveen and Ilryong Moon.

    “I know that there’s no process that’s perfect, particularly first time out,” Superintendent Michelle Reid told the board. “We can’t let perfect become the enemy of progress. I believe this is a great start.”

    The district embarked on its first comprehensive boundary review in about 40 years. Previously, neighborhoods saw minor adjustments after conversations with school board members or the superintendent, but not at a divisionwide level.

    Now, after an update to a school board policy, school boundaries have to be reviewed every five years moving forward.

    “These adjustments represent a step forward in the overall process to slowly and methodically align boundaries across the division, to equalize enrollment, to deliver equitable access to programming, and to efficiently operate the eighth largest school system in the country,” Board member Kyle McDaniel said.

    The board held one final public hearing Thursday night before its vote, and some community members sat silently with signs before the new boundaries were approved.

    Details of the plan

    In total, the changes will impact 1,697 students, most of them elementary schoolers. Reid’s initial proposal would have changed boundaries for 2,210 kids.

    The changes, which took access to programming, enrollment, capacity, proximity and transportation into consideration, address what the district characterizes as split feeders and attendance islands.

    Split feeders are schools that feed into different middle and high schools, whereas attendance islands are sections of neighborhoods zoned for a school different from most of the same neighborhood.

    The approved plan will eliminate or reduce seven elementary to middle school split feeders, eight elementary to high school split feeders and five school attendance islands.

    “This board took this on when a lot of people advised against it, because we knew it wasn’t going to be easy,” Board member Marcia St. John-Cunning said.

    “We knew it was going to be a heavy lift, and we knew we would not be pleasing everyone, but we recognize the importance of the work collectively and for everyone.”

    What are the impacts?

    The plan has different impacts to various campuses. For one, it addresses overcrowding at Coates Elementary by reassigning kids to other elementary schools.

    A change impacting 201 students at McLean High School eliminates a split feeder and attendance island and decreases the capacity there from 109% to 100%.

    Some students will have the option to remain at their current schools, even if the boundary changes. However, they may not receive transportation if that’s what they choose, a possibility several board members said they’re concerned about.

    Through months of community meetings and public hearings, some parents worried about the impact of the changes, while others felt they didn’t go far enough.

    McElveen said the process hasn’t yielded results commensurate with its cost.

    “What we are doing tonight will have life-changing consequences for children and ripple through their lives in ways we cannot fully anticipate,” McElveen said.

    “We are reshaping communities, determining friendships that may last a lifetime, connections that will sustain them through joy and hardships alike.”

    Reid said several neighborhoods are on a list to be reviewed sooner than the next five years, with recommendations for changes expected by January 2027. A handful of other sites have been highlighted for future review.

    Approved changes

    Elementary school changes:

    • Reassigns 48 students from Rolling Valley Elementary to Saratoga Elementary. The change decreases Rolling Valley’s capacity to 90%.
    • Reassigns 53 kids from Olde Creek to Laurel Ridge, decreasing Olde Creek’s capacity from 92% to 79%. The shift eliminates split feeders and an attendance island.
    • Reassigns fewer than 10 students from Westbriar Elementary to Colvin Run. The move eliminates a split feeder at the middle school level.
    • Reassigns 19 elementary students from Fort Belvoir Primary Elementary and Fort Belvoir Upper Elementary to Washington Mill.
    • Reassigns 35 kids from Riverside to Stratford Landing and 76 from Riverside to Woodlawn. Riverside’s capacity decreases from 93% to 79%.
    • Reassigns 108 kids from Coates to McNair and McNair Upper; 190 from Coates to Herndon; 65 from Coates to Floris. The move eliminates a split feeder.
    • Reassigns 78 kids from Parklawn to Belvedere and 20 from Parklawn to Columbia.
    • Reassigns 107 kids from Fort Hunt to Mount Vernon Woods, eliminating an attendance island.
    • Reassigns 58 kids from Groveton Elementary to Hybla Valley Elementary, eliminating an attendance island.
    • A change that doesn’t impact any current elementary students reassigns a boundary from Hollin Meadows to Stratford Landing.

    Middle school changes:

    • Reassigns 23 students from Katherine Johnson Middle to Rocky Run Middle, decreasing Katherine Johnson’s capacity to 101%.
    • Reassigns 172 middle schoolers from Kilmer to Thoreau, eliminating a split feeder and decreasing Kilmer’s capacity from 118% to 101%.
    • Reassigns 107 kids from Longfellow to Cooper. Eliminates a split feeder and attendance island.
    • Reassigns 27 kids from Glasgow to Poe, decreasing Glasgow’s capacity from 102% to 94%.
    • Reassigns 32 middle schoolers from Sandburg to Whitman.
    • Reassigns fewer than 10 middle schoolers from Franklin to Rocky Run.

    High school changes:

    • Reassigns 45 students from Fairfax High to Chantilly High, decreasing Fairfax High’s capacity to 97%.
    • Reassigns 128 high schoolers from Marshall to Madison, eliminating split feeders and decreasing Marshall’s capacity from 97% to 91%.
    • Reassigns 201 high schoolers from McLean to Langley, eliminating a split feeder and attendance island. Decreases McLean capacity from 109% to 100%.
    • Reassigns 46 kids from Justice to Falls Church, eliminating a split feeder.
    • Reassigns 54 kids from West Potomac to Mount Vernon.

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  • Why Fairfax County’s school system is taking on its first boundary review in decades – WTOP News

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    Fairfax County Public Schools has been working on its first comprehensive boundary review in decades, a step school leaders expect will help ease overcrowding in some places.

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a three-part series focused on Fairfax County Public Schools’ vote on new school boundaries, the district’s first boundary revision in 40 years. Part one focuses on what led school officials to the decision to redraw its boundaries. 

    Fairfax County Public Schools has been working on its first comprehensive boundary review in decades, a step school leaders expect will help ease overcrowding in some places and reduce circumstances that lead to kids at the same elementary schools attending different middle and high schools.

    The process has been ongoing for over a year, and the district hired the group Thru Consulting to lead the effort. In 2024, the school board updated a policy to mandate the superintendent review school boundaries across the county every five years.

    After months of community meetings and public hearings, the school board is scheduled to vote on Superintendent Michelle Reid’s recommendations Thursday.

    “It’s kind of like magnets on a board,” School Board Chair Sandy Anderson told WTOP. “So if you move one group of kids, then you create a problem somewhere else. And that’s kind of been what’s happening overall. What I’m hoping that we could have done with it, what I feel like we did do with this process, is move the minimal number of children possible in order to even out enrollment.”

    Broadly, school boundaries are used to determine which residential addresses are zoned to attend a specific set of schools.

    School Board Member Melanie Meren said while some changes have been made to school boundaries in the Northern Virginia suburb in the past, they weren’t comprehensive. They were administrative in nature, Meren said, suggesting that someone could call the superintendent or a school board member to discuss a boundary change, and “it just created a lot of inconsistency.”

    During the summer of 2025, the school board made another policy change, allowing students in high school the option to remain at their current school, even if the boundary changes. There is flexibility for some elementary and middle school kids, too.

    However, Meren said, students choosing to stay at their current school won’t get transportation, “because there’s a different process for that.”

    The boundary review was necessary, Anderson told WTOP, because there are some Fairfax County schools that are over capacity or have a higher membership next to other schools without those constraints.

    “And there are really budgetary implications that happen when you have a school that is either over or under capacity,” Anderson said, adding the changes will let division leaders determine where there are opportunities to expand programs.

    In making decisions about school boundaries, division leaders, based on school board policy, have to consider access to programming, enrollment and capacity, proximity to school and transportation.

    Currently, 42 schools serve as “split feeders” — elementary schools that feed into multiple middle or high schools and middle schools that feed into multiple high schools. And over 20 schools have “attendance islands,” which the county defines as a geographic area assigned to a school, even though it is not directly connected to that school’s boundary.

    Reid previously said her recommended plan would reduce those scenarios. The original proposal would have impacted about 2,200 kids, but the one the board will vote on impacts about 1,700.

    Nicole Meade, president of the Herndon Middle School PTA, said it’s surprising it’s taken so long for a full boundary review.

    “Forty years seems like a really, really long time, and it’s way overdue,” Meade said.

    Willow Rosenthal, a junior at Justice High School, said she first learned about the review process before winter break. She overheard discussions at the bus stop and spoke to her parents about it.

    “We were all kind of anxious, worried,” Rosenthal said. “We were like, ‘Oh, we really hope we go to the school we’ve been going to for the past couple years now.”

    At a public hearing on Jan. 10, Tamara O’Neil said for the last 18 months, “our families and most importantly, students, have lived with uncertainty and stress caused by this convoluted and disruptive boundary process. Children have worried about where they will attend school. Families have hesitated to make plans, and we are finally relieved that we are almost at the end of this process.”

    Meanwhile, Anderson, the school board chair, said while community members often recommend increasing capacity at schools to meet growing needs, “we can’t build our way out of this problem.”

    In the context of boundary reviews, Meren said demographic details cannot be used as part of the process, and often, people bring up the impact boundary changes can have on property values.

    “The school board and the school system are not responsible for property values,” Meren said. “We don’t look at that data as part of this work.”

    Maryland’s largest school system, Montgomery County Public Schools, is looking at some of its boundaries, too.

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  • Virginia prepares for historic moment as Spanberger takes office in Richmond – WTOP News

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    Virginia Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger will make history once she takes office this weekend, becoming the state’s first female governor.

    Virginia Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger will make history once she takes office this weekend, becoming the state’s first female governor.

    Spanberger defeated Republican Winsome Earle-Sears in November, but the election set the state up for a historic inauguration weekend regardless of the winner.

    Spanberger, who will become the state’s 75th governor, has an inaugural ceremony scheduled for Saturday at noon in Richmond. The event’s theme is “United for Virginia’s Future.”

    “Virginia has known that it was going to have a woman governor for the last several months, but it will be a crowning moment for Virginia politics when that day comes to pass,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a political science professor at the University of Mary Washington.

    In an interview with The Associated Press, Spanberger said she’s still processing the significance of the moment.

    With Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill’s election victories, there will be 14 female governors in the U.S. But, Kelly Dittmar, director of research at Rutgers University’s Center for American Women and Politics, said that women are still underrepresented at the gubernatorial level.

    “It shows progress, because it wasn’t only that those women came out of nowhere, right?” Dittmar said. “These were women who’ve established their political credentials and qualifications and done so in ways that are similar to their male counterparts.”

    In Virginia, Ghazala Hashmi was elected to be the state’s next lieutenant governor, the first Indian American to win statewide office there.

    Having two women top a statewide ticket has become more common, Dittmar said, and what it demonstrates is that “women are in the kind of pools and of potential candidates to be recruited and supported and ultimately nominated to be governor and then, of course, to be successful at the end of the day.”

    Many of the women who have become governors served in state legislatures or Congress, which could be “feeder positions” for gubernatorial or higher offices, Dittmar said.

    “We have seen that the challenge for women to get into the running and ultimately into gubernatorial office also comes from some gatekeeping we’ve seen by parties,” Dittmar said.

    “And so the fact that we again saw parties really backing these women in terms of selection, to some extent, at least at the state level, that was evidence that also, party leaders are starting to see the benefit of more inclusion in office.”

    Generally, most women who run for political office aren’t themselves making a case to be elected because it could be historic, Dittmar said.

    “What we saw with Sherrill and Spanberger, in particular, is that they were focused on, ‘Here are the issues that are most important to the voters in our state. I am fully qualified to do this job,’” Dittmar said.

    “When and where they kind of brought gender into their campaign was more in the specific roles and experiences, the lived experiences they have had as women, particularly as mothers, I think in both cases, talking about how that perspective and lived experience is going to help them to do the job better.”

    However, Dittmar said, there’s been little racial and ethnic diversity among the women who have served, “and so that is something to look forward toward.”

    Spanberger’s latest administration appointments

    Ahead of her inauguration weekend, Spanberger tapped Jenna Conway to be the state superintendent of public instruction.

    Conway is currently chief of early learning and specialized populations at Virginia’s Department of Education, helping make sure every child is prepared for kindergarten. She’s a Charlottesville City Schools graduate.

    Connor Andrews, meanwhile, was named deputy secretary. He worked as a policy analyst under former Gov. Ralph Northam, and has been working as the University of Virginia’s director for state government relations.

    Spanberger named Carrie Chenery the secretary of commerce and trade. Chenery once worked as assistant secretary of agriculture and forestry in the Office of the Governor. She founded Valley Pike Partners, a consulting firm based in the Shenandoah Valley.

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    Scott Gelman

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