March 8 – 14, 2007
State Del. Vincent Callahan Announces Plans to Retire
State Del. Vincent Callahan, Republican from McLean, with four decades of service the second-longest serving member of the Virginia House of Delegates, announced that he will retire this week. While the retirement will cost Northern Virginians Callahan’s current clout on a variety of important committees, Democrats are hopeful they can fill his seat in a push to win majority control of the House this November. In keeping with a strong demograhic shift toward Democratic preferences in the region, Democrat U.S. Senate candidate Jim Webb carried all the precincts in the district last November. Currently, two Democrats are vying for their party’s nomination to fill Callahan’s seat: attorney Richard “Rip” Sullivan and community activist Margaret “Margie” Vanderhye. No Republicans have announced their intent to run.
Developer Says Tysons Consultant Wants 30 Stories
A major regional developer has reported that an urban development consultant retained by Fairfax County has urged him to draw up conceptual plans for buildings 30 stories or higher for an area near the intersection of Routes 7 and 123 in the center of Tysons Corner. The consultant’s suggestion is that the buildings be for mixed use, about 60 percent residential and 40 percent commercial and retail, according to the News-Press’ source.
First “Deliberation Day” Town Meeting Set March 17
Three major City of Falls Church civic organizations – the Citizens for a Better City (CBC), the Village Preservation and Improvement Society (VPIS) and the League of Women Voters (LWV) – have joined forces to organize and promote participation in a first-annual “Deliberation Day” slated for Saturday morning, March 17, from 8:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the cafetorium in the Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School. Participation is free and open to all City residents of high school age and up. Due to space limitations, those interested in attending are asked to register in advance at www.DFCCVA.org or by calling Ellen Gross, (703) 533-8197. A discussion guide, “Falls Church City: What Are We Becoming,” will be provided to all participants.
News-Press Begins 17th Year With TV Campaign
Beginning its 17th year of continuous weekly publication this week, the Falls Church News-Press began a TV ad campaign throughout the D.C. region on Tuesday, utilizing CNN Cable TV and CNN Headline News to extend the influence and recognition of the newspaper, its contents, as well as of the Falls Church area. The brief spot makes three points: 1. the value of targeted advertising, 2. the ideal demographics of the Falls Church area and 3. the unique content of the News-Press, including national and special interest columnists and weekly reports that make it a paper that people want to read. With a circulation of 30,500, the News-Press is by far the largest circulating newspaper in the greater Falls Church area that encompasses about 100,000 people. It also has a considerable circulation outside the area, including in Washington, D.C.
Sen. Webb: No Invasion of Iran Without Congressional OK First
Virginia’s freshman U.S. Senator James Webb introduced legislation Tuesday aimed at prohibiting the Bush administration from launching military action against Iran without advance approval from the U.S. Congress. Noting that the U.S. has moved two aircraft carrier groups into the Persian Gulf, Webb commented, “This presidency has shot from the hip too many times for us to be able to trust it to act on its own.”
