Shields Vows No Action on Virginia Village Without Input
At Monday’s Falls Church City Council meeting, City Manager Wyatt Shields assured the Council that nothing of substance will happen in terms of decisions about the future of the 20 1940s-era quadplexes on S. Maple St. known as the Virginia Village until after New Year.
At the next Council meeting on Dec. 8, the Council will hear the contents of a “memorandum of understanding” from the F.C. Economic Development Authority (EDA), which is the formal owner of nine of the 20 quadplexes.
It will be starting in January 2026 that a “roadmap” for the future of the Virginia Village will begin to be developed, Shields said, “and there will be ample time for community input.”
“We will start with the community, and then bring in others” as the plans develop, he said.
Beyer Heads Bi-Partisan Effort To Tame Anger in House
A bipartisan group of U.S. congressmen is trying to address growing frustration over increasingly spiteful divisions in Congress. Democratic U.S. Rep. Don Beyer of Northern Virginia and Don Bacon (R-Nebraska) are teaming up on legislation that would raise the threshold from a simple majority to a 60-percent majority to punish a House member with censure, disapproval or removal of committees. The resolution had 31 co-sponsors, including six Republicans and 24 Democrats, as of Monday evening.
Beyer, who has served in the House since 2015, lamented “the tension, the anger, the refusal to work together,” but he said that growing frustration in the chamber made him optimistic a change in the rules could get a vote as soon as next year.
F.C. City Offices Closed This Thursday & Friday
The City of Falls Church’s government offices and services will be closed for Thanksgiving, including City Hall and the Mary Riley Styles Public Library, on Thanksgiving Day and the day after, Friday, Nov. 28, but the Community Center will be open Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.
F.C. Festive Seasonal Events Kick Off Saturday & Tuesday
This Saturday, Nov. 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. a Very Victorian Christmas at the Cherry Hill Farmhouse involves a free visit to see how Christmas was celebrated in the 1860s.
In collaboration with the Victorian Society of Falls Church, costumed interpreters will welcome guests to gather for some holiday cheer. The festivities include decorations, music, stories, and children’s activities. No registration required.
On Tuesday, Dec. 2 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., the annual Winter Wonderland in The Little City will again be held at the Market Square in Founders Row at 930 W. Broad St.
The free event will feature musical performances by Creative Cauldron and the Meridian H.S. Choral group, hot cocoa, festive treats. There will be free parking in the Founders Row parking garage.
New Pew Poll: Younger Prefer to Read News
According to a new poll by the Pew Research Center, younger age groups now prefer to get their news by reading it. Among adults under age 30, the largest share prefers to get news by reading (45 percent), while 31 percent say they prefer watching it and 23 percent prefer listening to it.
F.C. Semi-Pro Soccer Team Qualifies for U.S. Open Cup
The Falls Church-based Virginia Dream FC is back in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup for the 2026 edition. In the fourth and final qualifying round of the U.S. Open Cup, the Dream played away at MSI Pro (Maryland). It took 90 minutes of regular time plus 30 more minutes of overtime, but The Little City team brought home the victory.
At the end of 90 minutes, the score was tied 0-0 but as the first half of overtime was coming to an end Diarra Zoumana netted the first goal of the match. Williams Yami added the second goal on a breakaway in the 115th minute for a 2-0 win.
Va. Arts Commission Opens FY26 Grant Applications
The Virginia Commission on the Arts opened its Fiscal Year 2026 Capacity Building Grant applications on November 1. Applicants must be Virginia 501 (c) 3 arts organizations with prior-year income of $20,000-$750,000.
The grant funds of up to $1,500 (non-matching and rolling review) are to go towards targeted consulting and professional development. Applications are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis until all funds are awarded.
‘Little Beast’ Pizza Soon to Open in Whole Foods Building
A family-friendly pizza restaurant in Falls Church is shooting to open in a few months, following some delays. After announcing plans in December 2024 to open at 119 E. Broad Street, Little Beast Cafe and Bistro, known for its storybook-style decor and Detroit-style pizza, has reset its timeline to open early next year, according to owner Aaron Gordon.
Construction is ongoing at the forthcoming location on the ground floor of the Broad and Washington apartment building.
The outfit’s other location in D.C. offers both Detroit-style and brick oven pizzas. Little Beast also offers salads and Italian-style appetizers.
Epstein Files Issue Recalls Epstein-Backed Candidate Here
The focus on release of the Epstein Files has caused some locals to recall that in 2014, an independent U.S. congressional candidate for the 8th District seat then, just vacated by Rep. Jim Moran, was reported at the time to have had direct ties to the late convicted child abuser and close friend of Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein.
The one-time Congressional candidate, Gwendolyn Beck, reportedly flew on notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s private jets, and was photographed partying with him and Prince Andrew. Two British newspapers reported on the revelations, focusing on the prince’s association but also mentioning Beck.
The Guardian reported that flight logs indicated that Andrew flew on Epstein’s private jet with Beck in 1999, around the time Beck said she managed about $65 million of the billionaire’s investment funds for Morgan Stanley. Beck flew with Epstein on his jet multiple times in the late nineties, logs show, including with former Treasury secretary and Harvard president Larry Summers.
Beck got 5,420 votes in that election, won by the current U.S. Rep. Donald Beyer, a Democrat, with 128,102 votes, followed by Republican challenger Micah Edmond with 63,810.
Gay Salon Artist Freed From El Salvador Prison Still Active
According to an exclusive account in the Bay Area Reporter, months after his release from an El Salvador megaprison known for reported human rights abuses, a gay Venezuelan makeup artist is having trouble finding work because of how notoriety found him. Andry Jose Hernández Romero, 32, had been sent to the prison by the Trump administration earlier this year.
He told the paper he is currently with his family in Venezuela. After opening up about his experiences at El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, he stated, “Some beauty salons refuse to hire me because they associate me with criminality or say I belong to the Venezuelan government.” But he stated he “will continue fighting for human rights and for the entire LGBT community. If it happens to one, it happens to all.”
