What was slated to be a 30-minute combined Falls Church City Council, School Board and Planning Commission closed session to discuss land acquisition tonight turned into an hour-and-a-half marathon at City Hall, delaying the start of the regularly-scheduled Planning Commission meeting and resumption of the City Council’s work session until 9:30 p.m.

Mayor Nader Baroukh reminded the members of the three bodies that the closed session had been placed on the agenda only last Friday because of an undisclosed “development” then. While rumors and speculations swirled around outside the closed doors of the meeting, needless to say, given the presence of the School Board at the closed session, the land acquisition discussion most certainly pertained to the City’s schools.