Nicholas Benton

Communities across the country—and especially in high-cost regions like Northern Virginia—are increasingly confronting a difficult tension: the urgent push to expand affordable housing and the equally persistent resistance from residents wary of change in their neighborhoods. Often framed as a clash between policy goals and public sentiment, the divide is more complex than a simple

Yes, it looks like Falls Church residents will be provided a very small bit of tax relief with the budget that should be approved next Monday night. A half penny on the real estate tax rate will offer about $50 of relief in a year when assessments are still booming, meaning the average residential taxpayer is still going to be hit with tax bills hundreds higher next fiscal year (the first bill due in December). Overall, though, it must be noted the City’s tax rate has been dropped from $1.355 per $100 of assessed valuation to $1.18 in recent years, even while a new state of the art high school was built and major improvements made to City Hall, the Mary Riley Styles Public Library and other City schools.

In an uncommonly candid and personal response to a query by this newspaper on the collateral consequence of what the redistricting referendum was designed to cause, namely, the moving of the boundaries of his 8th Congressional district out of the City of Falls Church, in an exclusive remark to this newspaper U.S. Rep. Don Beyer

It was a tight squeeze in the Dogwood Room at City Hall Monday night for a Falls Church City Council work session on the proposed development of affordable housing at the 4-acre Virginia Village site on S. Maple. Guests Monday included the Planning Commission, Housing Commission, Economic Development Authority and more, including very attentive audience

Three Essential Causes for Human Survival: Water, Housing and Energy Fresh water, affordable housing and abundant energy remain the defining challenges for humanity’s future. Through the course of my adult life, there have been three “big picture” causes that I still feel are essential to the continued life of human beings on this planet. They

Falls Church, VA — Falls Church City Public Schools (FCCPS) is welcoming back a familiar leader. The Falls Church City School Board approved Valerie Hardy as the division’s new Executive Principal during its June 9 meeting. Hardy will officially begin her new role on July 1, overseeing school principals and instructional leaders across the highly

On June 8, Falls Church’s State Legislator Marcus Simon presented Virginia House of Delegate resolutions honoring the work of five City of Falls Church residents at the City Council meeting here. All the resolutions were agreed to by the House. The life of Edward A. Trott Jr. (28 years of service) was celebrated in House

Folks had better be well prepared to grab away the football, and I don’t mean from Y.A. Tiddle or Charlie Brown’s Lucy. Nobody can be sure what is going on inside the president’s brain right now. It is a truly bizarre situation for us all. There are those who speculate that Trump’s erratic behavior is

Following the historic 6-1 vote to move forward with the process leading to the construction of new affordable housing on the City of Falls Church’s 4.5 acre Virginia Village parcel in the center of the city, the City officially issued a request for proposals (RFP) to potential developers this week, ahead of schedule. The process

As we celebrate our first 250 years, here are some thoughts on what the next 250 years for the U.S. may bring: The next 250 years will likely transform the U.S. from an aging, politically fractured nation into a post-scarcity, technologically integrated superpower. 1. Demographic Transformation – The U.S. demographic landscape will be entirely reshaped.