Mark Gross Bestowed VPIS ‘Spirit of Falls Church’ Award
Long-time Falls Church resident Mark Gross’s service to the community was recognized with the “Spirit of Falls Church” Award from the Village Preservation and Improvement Society (VPIS). The award recognizes long term contributions to multiple spheres of the community that has enriched the quality of life in Falls Church. Prior winners of the Award include Barb Cram, Barry Buschow and Lou Olom.
Mark Gross served on the Falls Church Housing Corporation (starting in 1982) and the Housing Appeals Commission, and later the Housing Commission, and the Board of Zoning Appeals. In 1989, he was appointed to the Falls Church Planning Commission where he served for 12 years, including twice as Chair of the Commission. He also served on the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board which provides lifesaving services for people experiencing mental health concerns, substance misuse and/or developmental disabilities. This was helping people in our community gain the support needed to live a healthy, fulfilling life.
Gross served on the VPIS Board of Directors for 24 years from 2001 to 2025, including his role as Vice President of the Society and on different occasions serving as President three times. His enduring focus included ensuring candidate forums for those running for local public office and maintaining the tree canopy. VPIS President Bonnie Murphy noted “Mark Gross has provided his time, energy and intellect to the community for over 43 years and is a very deserving recipient of the Spirit of Falls Church award.”
Creative Cauldron Hosts 250th Anniversary Forum
Falls Church’s Creative Cauldron and the Falls Church Arts co-hosted a novel “Soap Box Conversation” this Monday night as part of the City’s celebration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States as a democracy. A quote by poet and playwright Freiderich Schiller that “art is the daughter of freedom” that, in the words of Bertolt Brecht, holds up a “hammer” to society, underscored the event.
The “Soap Box Conversations” initiative was launched by the Falls Church 250 Committee, as one of a series of activities that encourage civic engagement and provide residents with the opportunity to share their voices. Each person who attended and wished to speak was given three minutes to address the topic and share their views about the topic.
Grocery Outlet Opens 560th Store in Falls Church
The Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. held a ribbon cutting grand opening event last week for its 560th store nationwide, and its first in Virginia, that opened in the City of Falls Church at the site of the former Target mini-store. The company announced that Virginia entrepreneur Prince Wafa will lead the location as the store’s independent operator.
Grocery Outlet Senior Director of Marketing Kyle Noble said, “We are so excited to be expanding Grocery Outlet’s footprint with our first location in Virginia. We couldn’t ask for a better operator than Prince. If you’ve never been to a Grocery Outlet before, we are looking forward to getting to know you and providing you and your family with new options for high-quality, affordable produce, meat and groceries.”
Grocery Outlet has more than 560 stores across the United States. It uses an opportunistic buying model to surprise shoppers with unexpected and rare finds in addition to providing great fresh produce and meats.
Busy Week in Richmond as Legislature Hits ‘Cross-Over’
At the Richmond state legislature, the cross-over of bills passed by one body to be voted on by the other claim yesterday, Feb. 18, and a large number of bills advancing are of interest to this region.
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.
The “Yes in God’s Backyard” movement scored a win this week as the Faith in Housing bill passed the Virginia Senate after gaining initial approval in the House of Delegates. It would eliminate the rezoning step for faith-based organizations and other tax-exempt nonprofits to develop affordable housing on their properties. The legislation might still need final approval in the House next year, however.
In good news for the public’s right to know, legislation which would have reduced the information that the public could obtain about crimes committed in their localities by sealing records related to criminal complaints from public view was defeated in subcommittee by a vote of 7-3 and is dead for the year
After working on Comprehensive legislation to restrict Virginia collaboration with federal immigration enforcement since August of last year, Falls Church area Del. Alfonso Lopez announced, “I’m very proud to announce that all five of the bills my Democratic colleagues and I presented on this topic passed the House. The primary bill I carried, HB 1441, will restrict the collaboration of local or state law enforcement and commandeering of state resources by federal immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant issued by a judge or magistrate. This bill will put a stop to this in Virginia, requiring that these enforcement actions align with standard law enforcement requirements and will ensure that our State and local police remain focused on local public safety.”
Del. Lopez added, “My other two introduced bills in this space, HB 1440 and HB 1442, which restrict immigration enforcement actions in state/public schools, hospitals, commonwealth attorney offices, polling sites, and other protected places, were incorporated into Del. Callsen’s HB 650, which also passed the House last Thursday.
House Bill 5 passed, a top priority to expand paid sick leave protections to workers across the commonwealth. The bill extends Virginia’s existing earned sick leave law to cover employees of private employers and state and local governments, allowing workers to earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
HB5 ensures accrued sick leave is not lost when a worker is transferred or their employer changes, allows employers to offer more generous policies, and permits workers to use earned sick leave to care for their health, support a family member, or address situations involving domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. The bill includes clear enforcement standards and a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.
Other bills that passed one chamber so far include one which would ban non-competes for healthcare workers making under $500,000 a year, one which clarifies a judge’s ability to gather information and order a full custody evaluation report during child custody and visitation proceedings, one which will allow utilities to offer discounted water rates to low-income families, making it easier for families in need to catch up on their bills, passed the House, one which creates a public dashboard maintained by the State Corporation Commission (SCC) to detail involuntary electric utility disconnections across the Commonwealth, and one which allows the SCC to set maximum allowable disconnection fees for utilities, passed the House with strong bipartisan support.
