The Annandale parade is set for Oct. 23

During previous parades, members of the Annandale High School marching band wore Halloween costumes. [File photos]

After skipping a year due to the COVID pandemic, the Annandale Parade will be back in 2021. The parade will be Oct. 23,  starting at 10 a.m., the Annandale Chamber of Commerce announced.

Lane closures expected on Route 236 due to bridge project

The Duke Street overpass over I-395. [VDOT]

Work underway on the Duke Street bridge over Interstate 395 will result in lane closures during the next few months, the Virginia Department of Transportation warns. 

VDOT contractors are replacing the concrete bridge deck and beams, upgrading the westbound sidewalk to a shared-use path, and widening the eastbound sidewalk. The project is expected to be completed in winter 2023-24.    

Recent crimes: robbery, burglary, brandishing

The Fairfax County Police Department reports the following crimes in recent days in the Mason Police District: 

A woman was in the 3800 block of S. George Mason Drive in Bailey’s Crossroads at about 6:40 a.m. on July 18 when a man got into a verbal dispute and waved a gun at her. Said Selemani, 37, of Falls Church, was located nearby and was charged with brandishing. 

Police chief vows to increase foot patrols in Culmore

Police Chief Kevin Davis speaks at the Bailey’s Community Center. At the right is session moderator Michael Shochet, FCPD chaplain coordinator.

Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis plans to bring a new approach to improve safety in Culmore and other high-crime areas. He will direct officers to spend time every day on foot patrol to establish personal relationships between the police and residents. 

Davis made the announcement at a Meet the Chief event July 23 at Bailey’s Community Center hosted by the Communities of Trust Committee. He also talked about the need to train officers better on the use of force, to recruit a more diverse police force, and to bring mental health professionals on service calls involving a person in crisis. 

Annandale to get a second mochi donut shop

Mochi donuts. [Photos of food from Mochinut’s Facebook page.]

The EastGate Shopping Center on John Marr Drive in Annandale is getting a second mochi donut shop. 

Mochinut is going into the storefront at 4367 John Marr Drive. Dragon Mochi Donut opened in June in the food hall attached to the K Market international grocery store.

St. Ambrose demolition to start in August

An illustration of the new St. Ambrose church.

Demolition of St. Ambrose Catholic Church’s main church building is expected to start in August. It will be replaced by a new church on the same footprint. 

The new church, at 3901 Woodburn Road, Annandale, is expected to be completed in winter 2022-23. 

MS-13 member sentenced for charges related to the 2019 murder of Falls Church HS student

Rodriguez-Flores

MS-13 member Kevin Alexis Rodriguez-Flores, 20, of Annandale, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise and conspiracy to destroy and conceal evidence related to the murder of another gang member, the Department of Justice reports.

The victim was Jacson Pineda Chicas, a student at Falls Church High School. On March 18, 2019, Rodriguez-Flores and other MS-13 members stabbed Chicas at a house in Hyattsville, Md., then dumped the body in Stafford County, Va., where it was set on fire. According to an autopsy, the victim had 144 wounds.