The Spotsylvania School Board voted 5-2 to add drug testing for new school hires to its legislative wish list. The Fredericksburg Free Press reports the list also asks for salary increases, a funding-formula change, and more mental health staff.
Stafford supervisors are set to discuss ending incentives for data centers. The Fredericksburg Free Press reports the board is also slated to talk about ending nondisclosure agreements with the technology companies.
Stafford County offices, departments, facilities, and all courts will be closed Monday, Oct. 12, for Columbus Day, the county said. Both R-Board landfills stay open, as do outdoor parks from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fire and rescue, the sheriff’s office, and the magistrate stay on their emergency lines.
Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a time for commemorating our ancestors. Rather than a period of mourning, it is an occasion for celebrating with family—both living and dead—and honoring the cycle of life. Learn about La Catrina and her joyful view of life and mortality. Enjoy family-friendly activities throughout the day, including dance performances, coloring activities, and paper marigold and mask making. Visitors are invited to leave photos and mementos of their loved ones on the ofrenda (altar) or commemorate them by writing their names on a butterfly to attach to the memorial arch.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
One of Northern Virginia’s scariest haunted trails opens THIS WEEKEND!
Haunt: Dark Encounters returns to the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton on Saturday, October 3, taking guests deep into the woods for an immersive Halloween experience built around the mysterious disappearance of five friends in 1996.
The Fredericksburg Planning Commission has asked staff to study residential parking minimums. The Fredericksburg Free Press reports the question is whether fewer required spaces would make new housing easier to build.
A former Fairfax County principal is accused of using school credit cards for nearly $8,000 in travel and events unrelated to his job, police told WJLA.
The station identified him as Darin Thompson, former principal of Hayfield Secondary School.
Stafford County Sheriff’s Office posted its Oct. 2 daily incident report. Deputies said Andrew Bunch, 36, of Springfield, was charged with public intoxication after an impaired-person call on Malvern Lakes Circle. The same report listed a fraudulent-check complaint on Courthouse Road.
The Oct. 2 daily incident report said that at 5:32 p.m. Oct. 1, Deputy L. Smith responded to an intoxicated person report in the area of Malvern Lakes Circle. Upon making contact, the suspect displayed signs of impairment, including a strong odor of alcohol coming from their breath, slurred speech, and an unsteady balance. The suspect was subsequently arrested. The suspect was identified as Andrew Bunch, 36, of Springfield. Bunch was charged with public intoxication and held at Rappahannock Regional Jail until sober.
Route 1 drivers crossing the Falmouth Bridge between Fredericksburg and Stafford County should expect brief daytime delays next week while the Virginia Department of Transportation inspects the span, the agency said Friday.
The inspection runs Monday, Oct. 5, through Friday, Oct. 9, with alternating lane closures on Route 1 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., weather permitting, according to the release. VDOT said the 1943 bridge carries an average of 40,000 vehicles a day and that a major rehabilitation is in the design phase. The release does not say how long each closure will last, which direction closes first, or a construction start date or cost. It points readers to the Falmouth Bridge rehabilitation project page and to 511 Virginia for updates.
Trelawny Infusion is opening a restaurant at 1108–1110 Caroline Street in downtown Fredericksburg. The company says Taste of Trelawny has evolved into Trelawny Infusion, and its site lists the Caroline Street storefront as the new restaurant.
Coldwell Banker Commercial Elite said on Jan. 5, 2026, that Trelawny Infusion had signed a lease for the two-address storefront. Donny Self of Coldwell Banker Commercial Elite represented the landlord. Patti Murphy of Long & Foster represented Trelawny Infusion. The announcement did not give an opening date.
The Stafford Education Foundation, Amazon, and Stafford County Public Schools marked the first year of a teaching-grant partnership on Oct. 1, naming 24 projects. Sandra Osborn, the division’s chief communications officer, sent the announcement Thursday evening.
Teachers filed more than 90 applications, about $500,000 in proposed work. The release says the 24 projects should reach nearly 13,000 students. It does not say how much of Amazon’s three-year teaching-grant pool went to this first class. A Sept. 28 media alert said the partners would announce $100,000. The release instead cites the May figure: $360,000 for teaching grants over three years, inside a $560,000 Amazon investment that also includes $200,000 for food-access kiosks with the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank. The release’s food line reads “expand access to food access.”
A Bison Celebration is part of the Smithsonian Institution’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. The Bison Celebration will be a full day event that brings together organizations, scholars, scientists and filmmakers to celebrate the past, present, and future of North America’s largest land mammal. Through captivating films and thought-provoking panel discussions, the museum will explore the bison’s vital role in restoring grassland ecosystems and its deep spiritual connection to Tribal nations.
