Features

Haunt: Dark Encounters opens Saturday at the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton, sending guests into the woods after five friends who vanished in 1996. Carla Welborn, the center’s marketing director, told Potomac Local News the trail is in its 13th year and runs Oct. 3 through Oct. 30 on Fridays, Saturdays and select Sundays at 9518 Workhouse Way.

The release lists tickets at $25 to $35 and recommends ages 13 and older, but Welborn’s cover note says $39 plus discounts, and the email’s pricing sheet offers $10 off Oct. 3, 9, 10 and 11 with code 10OFFHAUNT and $5 off Oct. 16, 18 and 25 with code 5OFFHAUNT. The release does not name the Sundays or the public hours. A sensory-friendly hour is set for Saturday, Oct. 17, from 6 to 7 p.m. Families reserve at [email protected]. The center sits on the former Lorton Prison grounds.


Opinion

By Ben Purves, pastor, Occoquan Bible Church, Woodbridge

Ben Purves, pastor of Occoquan Bible Church in Woodbridge, submitted this open letter from Virginia pastors urging voters to reject proposed amendments 1 and 2 to the Virginia Constitution. He wrote Wednesday that the letter, posted at virginiapastors.org, had reached 250 signatures, including pastors at churches in Woodbridge, Manassas, Dumfries, and Gainesville.


Announcement

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.


Event

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.


Manassas

Michelle Davis-Younger’s last Manassas City Council meeting is in the books.

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Newslinks

Good Shepherd Housing Foundation’s third annual Make Home Possible golf tournament is Friday at Old Hickory in Woodbridge, and a Caroline County native who became Virginia’s first Black female judge was the keynote at a Local Heroes banquet in Bowling Green.

Make Home Possible golf tournament — Friday, Oct. 2, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Old Hickory Golf Course, 11921 Chanceford Drive, Woodbridge. According to the Potomac Local events calendar, Good Shepherd Housing Foundation’s third annual tournament is a day of golf, contests, and raffles, with proceeds meant to help the foundation keep affordable homes in Prince William County.


Prince William

The Prince William County Planning Commission voted 8-0 Sept. 16, 2026 to recommend a special-use permit for Chick-fil-A at Virginia Gateway in Gainesville, after the only speaker on the case tied his support to crosswalks and a safer way in and out of the lot.

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Prince William

A Prince William County woman is concerned after WJLA reported that a rapist sentenced to life plus 236 years could be paroled today.

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Prince William

The Prince William County Planning Commission voted 8-0 on Sept. 16 to recommend rezoning a wooded 4.25-acre parcel on Richmond Highway for 56 stacked condominiums.

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Manassas

Manassas City Police said two men died and a third was in stable condition after a shooting Wednesday morning at United Rentals, 9415 Wellington Road. The joint release with Virginia State Police named the dead as Ricky Lamot, 48, and Christopher Serrano, 33. Police said Marvin Grant, 37, of Charlotte, N.C., an employee, fled in a silver Toyota Camry before officers arrived at 7:14 a.m. Virginia State Police said Grant died after a self-inflicted gunshot wound during a stop on Interstate 81 in Augusta County.

The afternoon release contradicts Chief Douglas W. Keen’s morning briefing, which said all three workers were in critical condition and that Grant was still being sought after leaving Northern Virginia. The release does not name the hospitals Keen gave. The morning alert described a gray Camry or Corolla. The release says the car was silver. Motive was not given. Tips go to Detective Speights at 703-257-8041, Detective Dranko at 703-257-8046, or Crime Solvers at 703-330-0330.


Announcement

The museum’s annual Native Art Market features award-winning and innovative Indigenous artists from across the Western Hemisphere. This event invites lovers of art and craftsmanship to meet Indigenous artists and learn about the traditional arts and contemporary Indigenous creativity. Visitors will have the opportunity to purchase traditional and contemporary handcrafted artworks, including beadwork, jewelry, paintings, photography, pottery, and sculpture.