During the October 28, 2024, Manassas City Council meeting, Patrick Small, the city’s economic development director, provided a long-awaited update on the upcoming downtown hotel project.
The project, which aims to bring a Hilton Tapestry hotel to a prime location in downtown Manassas, is expected to bolster local business, attract tourism, and add significant tax revenue despite ongoing challenges related to parking solutions.
Volunteers from the community, along with staff and volunteers from Prince William County Parks and Recreation, KABOOM! and Amazon Web Services InCommunities pose for a group photo to celebrate the completion of the playground build at Fairmont Park. [Photo by Tavan Smith]The newly designed and built playground at Fairmont Park is now open, and it now holds more meaning than ever.
Prince William County Parks and Recreation partnered with Amazon Web Services InCommunites, a sector of the cloud-based service that helps local communities, and KABOOM!, a national nonprofit dedicated to ending playspace inequity, to make the new Fairmont Park playground possible.
The playground was designed by 30 children from Prince William County who shared drawings of their dream space. Demolition on the existing playground started in early October, and the playground was just recently completed following a week-long effort by volunteers to construct the new space.
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares announced late Sunday the commonwealth will file an emergency appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court in a last-ditch effort to block the return of more than 1,500 noncitizens to voter rolls.
The appeal follows a unanimous panel ruling Sunday from the Fourth Circuit of Appeals rejecting Virginia’s request to stop an order from a lower court to reinstate noncitizens removed from voter rolls within 90 days of an election.
Police have launched an investigation into a shooting in Lake Ridge, where a 56-year-old man and his dog were killed early Monday morning. Officers were called to a home on the 2500 block of Paxton St. at 2:39 a.m. on October 28 after a family friend alerted police about a shooting in the residence.
Upon arrival, officers encountered Christopher Tyler Rose, 29, who was detained without incident. The investigation reveals that Rose allegedly shot his father, Brian Christopher Rose, during an altercation. Rose also reportedly killed the family’s one-year-old Labrador Retriever. Both father and dog were pronounced dead at the scene. Police report that no one else was inside the home at the time.
Prince William County police are investigating a murder-for-hire case following the February 2 shooting death of 23-year-old Egypt Zapporah Carter, who was found fatally shot inside her car near Bronson Ct. and Brickwood Dr. in Dale City. Police have arrested Drew Courtney Buchanan, 27, on charges of second-degree murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle, and firearm use in the commission of a felony. Buchanan was arrested on October 15 in Manassas and is being held without bond.
An arrest warrant has been issued for a second suspect, Denzel Scott Wade, 30, who was allegedly present at the shooting scene. Police are actively searching for Wade and urge anyone with information on his whereabouts to contact them.
Update 1:30 p.m. from Prince William police:
Buchanan
Murder Investigation *ARREST | SUSPECT WANTED – During the ongoing investigation into the murder of a 23-year-old woman killed in a shooting that occurred in the area of Bronson Ct. and Brickwood Dr. in Woodbridge (22193) on February 2, detectives have arrested one man and obtained an arrest warrant for another man involved in the encounter. The victim was found fatally shot while inside her vehicle when officers arrived on the scene around 2:07AM. The investigation revealed a murder-for-hire was arranged to kill the victim. Detectives further learned the suspect currently in custody, identified as Drew Courtney BUCHANAN, carried out the act in murdering the victim. On October 15, BUCHANAN, was located in the Manassas area and arrested without incident. An additional suspect, identified as Denzel Scott WADE, was determined to have been present with BUCHANAN at the time of shooting and is currently being sought by police on an active arrest warrant. Additional charges against other involved parties are pending in this investigation. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the wanted suspect or who can otherwise aid in the investigation is asked to contact the police. More information will be released when available. The investigation continues.
Wade
Arrested in October 15:
Drew Courtney BUCHANAN, 27, of 15701 Tassleford Ln, #303, in Woodbridge
Charged with 2nd degree murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle, and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony
Court Date: Pending | Bond: Held WITHOUT Bond
Wanted:
Denzel Scott WADE, 30, of the 2900 block of Penbury Ct in Woodbridge
Described as a black male, 5’11”, 170lbs with black hair and brown eyes
Wanted for conspiracy to commit a felony
Identified:
The deceased was identified as Egypt Zapporah CARTER, 23, of Burlington, NC
Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact Prince William County police at 703-792-6500 or submit a tip online at pwcva.gov/policetip.
[Photo by Los Muertos Crew via Pexels]Prince William County is launching a new web portal on Thursday, SolarAPP+ (Solar Automated Permit Processing Plus) to streamline the residential solar permitting process.
"By allowing approved contractors to utilize same-day automated permitting, the SolarAPP+ initiative is poised to revolutionize the residential solar permitting landscape in the county," Mandi Spina, the director of the Department of Development Services, said.
Approved contractors through the county will be able to submit their projects through the SolarAPP+ system, which checks for county-required criteria to ensure compliance. This system can issue permits on the same day.
Despite Democrat Eugene Vindman raising more than five times as much as his Republican opponent Derrick Anderson, the race for Virginia’s 7th District remains tight.
A new poll shows Anderson lags Vindman by only 2%, a statistical tie according to one of the poll’s partners.
Trump whistleblower and Virginia congressional candidate Eugene Vindman refuses to answer questions about his business dealings in Ukraine, which started after he took more than a dozen taxpayer-funded trips to the war-torn nation.
