Haymarket Gainesville Lifestyle Magazine September 2025

Cheer the Bear

Grizzly football celebrates 25 years

Haymarket Regional Food Pantry continues to serve

Gainesville remembers its most brilliant defender

LiveLiFeHealthiest Your LiveLiFe

LiveLiFeHealthiest Your LiveLiFe

Compassionate. Caring. Nationally recognized.

LiveLiFeHealthiest Your LiveLiFe

Fauquier Health has earned Leapfrog’s Top General Hospital award for outstanding quality and safety—the only hospital in Virginia and one of just 36 in the nation to receive this distinction.

Compassionate. Caring. Nationally recognized.

Compassionate. Caring. Nationally recognized.

This honor acknowledges the efforts of our caregivers to keep our patients safe. We’re proud to be recognized as one of the safest hospitals in America.

Fauquier Health has earned Leapfrog’s Top General Hospital award for outstanding quality and safety—the only hospital in Virginia and one of just 36 in the nation to receive this distinction.

Fauquier Health has earned Leapfrog’s Top General Hospital award for outstanding quality and safety—the only hospital in Virginia and one of just 36 in the nation to receive this distinction.

With trusted care, close to home, we’ll help you live your healthiest life.

This honor acknowledges the efforts of our caregivers to keep our patients safe. We’re proud to be recognized as one of the safest hospitals in America.

This honor acknowledges the efforts of our caregivers to keep our patients safe. We’re proud to be recognized as one of the safest hospitals in America.

With trusted care, close to home, we’ll help you live your healthiest life.

See all we have to offer at FauquierHealth.org

With trusted care, close to home, we’ll help you live your healthiest life.

See all we have to offer at FauquierHealth.org

See all we have to offer at FauquierHealth.org

Bittersweet September

September is a time of transition. It marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall. For me, it has always brought out mixed emotions. If you feel a little forlorn, it is appropriate for the season, but endeavor to enjoy what the early autumn has to offer.

More temperate weather makes it the perfect time for fall festivals. Even October fests are now beginning in September, as are all things Halloween. Check out some horrifically campy plays that help us to laugh at our fears – along with other things to do in our calendar on Page 12.

September means football, along with everything football-adjacent, such as cheerleaders and halftime shows. In our area, great high school football grew out of a strong youth program, namely the Gainesville-Haymarket Youth Football League or Grizzlies. In our cover story, starting on Page 16, the OGs (Original Grizzlies) reflect on 25 years of growing a league into a family.

The Haymarket Regional Food Pantry marks 20 years this month, but it’s not all happy. Food insecurity is more prevalent than ever in Prince William County. Fortunately, the pantry has made some strides in how it feeds residents. Read about it on Page 22.

Sadly, last month, we said goodbye to Gainesville District Supervisor Bob Weir, who passed from colon cancer. Bob had a rough exterior but is remembered as a kind of unicorn – an honest public servant championing what he believed was right. Find out how his friends and colleagues remember him on Page 14.

September can be bittersweet, but that’s what autumn is all about. As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, it makes the light seem even brighter.

– Stacy Shaw CONTRIBUTING EDITOR STACY@WHGLIFESTYLE.COM

HAYMARKET / GAINESVILLE LIFESTYLE

Celebrating Western Prince William County

The Haymarket/Gainesville Lifestyle Magazine is published monthly and distributed to over 15,000 selected addresses. While reasonable care is taken with all material submitted to The Haymarket/Gainesville Lifestyle Magazine, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage to any such material. Opinions expressed in articles are strictly those of the authors. While ensuring that all published information is accurate, the publisher cannot be held responsible for any mistakes or omissions. Reproduction in whole or part of any of the text, illustration, or photograph is strictly forbidden. ©2025 Rappahannock Media LLC.

The Lifestyle magazines are sister publications with Northern Virginia’s Leading News Source, INSIDENOVA.COM

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Dennis Brack dennis@whglifestyle.com

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Stacy Shaw stacy@whglifestyle.com

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Kara Thorpe kara@whglifestyle.com

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From Curiosity to Confidence:

How Wakefield’s Inquiry-Based Learning Shapes Lifelong Thinkers

BY ELISE SCALISE

At Wakefield School, learning doesn’t begin with answers, it begins with questions.

Whether it’s a kindergartener asking why the seasons change, a middle-schooler exploring the ethics of artificial intelligence, or an upper school student designing a self-directed capstone project, curiosity is the driving force behind the Wakefield experience. An inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning fosters confident, capable thinkers prepared not only for college but for life.

Learning to Ask the Right Questions

Inquiry-based learning is more than a teaching method at Wakefield. It’s a philosophy. Rather than relying solely on textbooks or lectures, students engage in open-ended exploration. Teachers serve as facilitators and guides, helping students uncover meaning through observation, experimentation, discussion, and reflection.

In the Lower School, students become explorers of the world around them. A second-grade science unit on habitats might evolve into a collaborative art mural, with students illustrating the animals and environments they’ve researched, from arctic tundras to rainforest canopies. Wakefield’s youngest students are naturally curious. They are encouraged to wonder aloud, investigate their ideas, and express their learning creatively.

Critical Thinking in Action

As students move into Middle School, inquiry takes on a deeper dimension: grappling with ambiguity, forming arguments, and connecting ideas across disciplines. In humanities classes, students explore essential questions like “What makes a society just?” or “How does history shape identity?” In science labs, they engage in hands-on labs to test their own hypotheses to encourage deeper level thinking.

Teachers create learning environments where it’s safe to take intellectual risks, wanting students to know that not having

“At Wakefield, curiosity is not a phase to be outgrown but a skill to be nurtured for college, career, and a meaningful life.”

the ‘right’ answer immediately is part of the process. Struggle leads to insight.

Owning the Learning Journey

By Upper School, Wakefield students are equipped to drive their own learning in meaningful ways. Through the Independent Study program, students work with faculty mentors to design and pursue self-directed, specialized courses of study in areas of personal interest, building skills that prepare them for their next adventures post-grad.

This culminates years of building the habits of inquiry: questioning, evaluating, synthesizing, and reflecting. Students leave Wakefield not only with knowledge, but with

the skills and confidence to apply that knowledge in creative, impactful ways.

Prepared for a Complex World

In a rapidly changing world, the ability to think critically, ask good questions, and adapt to new information is more important than ever. At Wakefield, curiosity is not a phase to be outgrown but a skill to be nurtured for college, career, and a meaningful life.

Wakefield helps students learn how to think deeply. It is not just about memorizing facts, but learning how to approach problems, how to collaborate, and how to communicate ideas. These are skills students use every day at Wakefield and beyond.

to do list

Autumn Can’t Wait

For an up-to-date list of events around the region, visit InsideNoVa.com/calendar

Autumn has come early this year. Whether it offers fall festivals or theater that celebrates the strange and supernatural, we are here for it.

Fall Festivals

Technically, it’s still summer, yet it’s already time to break out your lederhosen. October fests have become a misnomer as they now start in September.

OKTOBERFEST (2 Silos)

NOVA LIVE 9901 DISCOVERY BLVD., MANASSAS SEPT. 19-21

Raise your steins and celebrate the season. Oktoberfest returns to Nova Live/2 Silos with three days of authentic German fare, cold craft beer, family-friendly fun, and festive vibes all around. From sausage and pretzels to stein-holding contests and traditional tunes, there’s something for everyone.

OCTOBER FEST (Historic Manassas)

HISTORIC DOWNTOWN MANASSAS SATURDAY, SEPT. 20, 10 A.M. - 5 P.M.

Dig up your lederhosen and dirndls. Come to Historic Manassas for a day of festive German cheer with music, food, performances, competitions and vendors. Pack up the whole family and raise a glass to good times. Free admission and parking.

YOUTH FOR TOMORROW COUNTRY FAIR

YOUTH FOR TOMORROW CAMPUS 11835 HAZEL CIRCLE DRIVE, BRISTOW

SATURDAY, OCT. 4, 10 A.M. - 5 P.M.

Plan to attend Youth For Tomorrow’s 40th Annual Country Fair and Auctions for a day packed with fall family fun. Kids will enjoy multiple activities such extreme moon bounces, a petting zoo, pony and hay rides, games, food and live entertainment. Enter the live auction to win big prices, like luxury vacations. Funds support Youth for Tomorrow.

Staged Spectacles

Explore the “dark arts” – theater, that is. Get out your fishnets stockings and dark eyeliner. You can start celebrating the weird and wondrous early as well.

‘EVERY BRILLIANT THING’ (Actors Theatre)

ARTFACTORY

9419 BATTLE ST., MANASSAS

SEPTEMBER 5-6, 7:30 P.M., SEPT. 7, 2 P.M.

Join the Actors Theatre for a heart wrenching and hilarious play. Performed by a single actor, “Every Brilliant Thing” is a celebration of life that will leave you laughing, crying and cherishing the brilliance all around you.

‘LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS’ Broadway version

GREGORY THEATRE, HYLTON PERFORMING ARTS CENTER 10960 GEORGE MASON CIRCLE

SEPTEMBER 19-28

“Little Shop of Horrors” is a darkly comedic rock musical about a down-on-his-luck flower shop worker who stumbles upon a mysterious plant that will change his life forever. The musical blends horror, humor with a catchy score, quirky charm and thrilling tension.

‘ROCKY HORROR SHOW’ (Actor’s Theatre)

ARTFACTORY’S WIND RIVER THEATER 9419 BATTLE ST., MANASSAS OCTOBER. 3-4, 7:30 AND 10:30 P.M.

Let’s do the Time Warp again. “The Rocky Horror Show” is the wildly entertaining cult-classic musical that has thrilled audiences for decades. Follow innocent Brad and Janet as they stumble into the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter—a mad scientist with a flair for fishnets and a penchant for creating life. This is a live performance with audience participation. Costumes encouraged.

Scan for details and tickets:

Light of Hope

BY SÉBASTIEN KRAFT

Elena Schlossberg’s voice quavered as she waded through years worth of memories.

“On a personal level, Bob was my friend. There’s not enough Bobs in the world.”

Robert “Bob” Weir, the Republican Gainesville District supervisor, died July 19 from colon cancer at the age of 62.

Those who knew him best say his legacy and community impact, both prior to and during his tenure on the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, will endure indefinitely.

Schlossberg, executive director of the Coalition to Protect Prince William County, recalled Weir’s successful efforts to curb the effects of a Haymarket transmission line in tandem with the coalition from 2014 to 2018.

“So many things Bob did he didn't want to get credit for,” Schlossberg said. “Bob was on vacation in North Carolina, sitting on the beach probably having a Mick Ultra, and he wrote the remand. Then we sent it to an attorney who had helped us early on with some environmental stuff … the bulk of it was Bob, and that was what we submitted to the [State Corporation Commission], and that is what brought the Haymarket transmission line [issue] back alive to ultimately be partially buried.”

“Bob’s approach to life was there was no panic,” Schlossberg added. “There was just, ‘Now here’s an obstacle – how do you find your way through it?’”

Before joining the board, Weir served on the Haymarket Town Council. Fellow councilmember Joe Pasanello called Weir’s passing “devastating.”

“The people of Haymarket, Gainesville and Prince William County have lost a truly dedicated leader, whose compassion was masked by the gruff exterior,” Pasanello said. “There is a void in the county that will be hard to fill given Bob’s land use and legislative expertise. He loved what he did and working on behalf of his constituents.”

“Bob and I sat together on the council dais for three years,” Pasanello said. “Those years were special. While we didn’t always agree, he loved the debate and well-researched positions and logic. Bob did his homework and then some. Bob always put disagreements aside at the end of the day to break bread or relax over a cold one.”

He added, “What I will miss most is

Late Gainesville supervisor hailed as thoughtful public servant

just talking about life, current events and history. Bob knew his stuff and appreciated others who were curious and skeptical.”

Weir replaced Pete Candland on the county board in February 2023 following a special election that resulted from Candland’s resignation over a conflict of interest related to the PW Digital Gateway data center project – an issue that became crucial to Weir’s efforts on the board.

Weir was unopposed in that year’s general election for a four-year term. Many residents supported Weir regardless of political affiliation, because they felt he best represented their interest as county residents.

Bill Wright, a prominent anti-data center activist and resident of Gainesville’s Heritage Hunt community, first met Weir in November 2021 at the latter’s Digital Gateway presentation to Heritage Hunt residents.

“His legacy will be scrutiny of government, which was not happening a great deal before he came on the board of supervisors,” Wright said. “I think a lot of things were kind of given a pass – very rudimentary review of some of these projects that had significant impacts.”

Wright, former treasurer of the Gainesville Democrats, said Weir blurred political lines. “He embraced a good idea, wherever

it came from – it didn’t matter the source, so he was completely nonpartisan in that regard, which was refreshing.”

Frank Washington, a native of the Thoroughfare community, recognized Weir’s assistance with the preservation of the community’s historic cemeteries.

“He was like a piece of hope, a light of hope,” Washington said. “In a system that is always just taking and taking, he always tried to give back unselfishly – never expected anything in return.”

A graduate of the University of Virginia, Weir spent most of his life in Virginia. He and his wife of 34 years, Diane, had three children, Sam, Michael and Megan.

Schlossberg said that behind the scenes Weir was a devoted family man. While she and Weir often engaged in long phone conversations, for him, family always came first.

“When Bob’s wife came home, Diane, we could be in the middle of a conversation, and every single time he’d say ‘Uh, gotta go, click.’ Like Diane was walking in the door and he was off the phone and all attention was on Diane.” L

Sébastien Kraft covers Prince William County government and politics for InsideNoVa. Reach him at skraft@insidenova.com.

BY

Cheer the Bear

Gainesville-Haymarket Youth Football League reflects on 25 years

BY KIPP HANLEY

PHOTOS BY LUKE CHRISTOPHER

Since its inception 25 years ago, the Gainesville-Haymarket Youth Football League has celebrated many successes. But while his teams have achieved numerous victories, league commissioner Jeff Fehrman said there’s only one true barometer of success.

“If at the end of the season a kid wants to play again, we’ve done our job,” said Fehrman. “Wins will come…but I try to remind coaches – whether if this is the kid’s only year of playing football or he plays for 10 – you want it to be memorable for the right reasons.”

Known as the Grizzlies, the Gainesville-Haymarket Youth Football League has blossomed into quite a family tree since its inception in 1999. And no matter how much that tree grows, it has stayed rooted to the community.

The league serves boys and girls ages 7-14. It offers tackle football in the fall, flag and 7-on-7 football in the spring, and cheerleading during both seasons.

The league also has social events during the offseason, including block

parties, pizza parties and outings at Splash down [Waterpark], said Grizzlies coach Steven Warren. “Those small things build leaders.”

Players’ parents often become involved in league management, as was the case with Fehrman and former coach and board mem ber Dean Mathews.

“I go to these [interleague] meetings and talk to these commissioners, and it’s hard for them to find coaches; it’s hard for them to find volunteers,” Fehrman said. “We just don’t have that.”

Mathews explained the adults form strong friendships through the league.

“My best friends in Northern Virginia –since I moved down here 34 years ago – are either from work or from Grizzly football,” Mathews said. “It’s an unbelievable thing about Grizzly football, that it creates lifelong relationships … for the kids and the adults.”

The growth of the league has mirrored the growth of the area. As the populations of those communities swelled in the late 1990s and early 2000s, so did the need for more recreational space.

Mathews’ son, Nick, a former standout wide receiver for Patriot High School, saw firsthand the growth of the league. Once Nick started high school, he spent his offseason officiating games between the younger players and conducted drills there with his teammates in the summers.

“Devin Patterson [son of coach Matt Patterson] and I were probably the first ones to get

Cheer

BY STACY SHAW

This fall, 110 Grizzly girls will take up their pom-poms. The Gainesville Haymarket Youth Football League's Grizzly Cheer program, founded in 2011, typically organizes three to four squads, but is currently fielding six, explained Grizzly Cheer Director Stephanie Davis.

“This is my fifth season running Grizzly Cheer so I felt more confident increasing the total number of girls. I would have parents reach out after registration had filled up,” Davis said.

The program serves kindergarten through eighth

grade. Squads cheer on the sideline and perform halftime performances.

“Our more senior squads incorporate routines and stunts that will be a huge help transitioning to middle and high school cheer,” Davis said.

Grizzly cheer is both its own tight-knit community and a part of the larger Grizzly family

“We have many girls return year after year. It’s so fun to see them grow from tiny kindergarteners to middle schoolers,” said Davis. “Many of the girls have siblings that play football as well. Grizzly is really one huge family.”

out and run on it,” Nick said of the turf fields.

Devin was just one of many who cut grass, helped build the snack bar or volunteered selling snacks at games. “It was a true community effort that made this possible,” he said.

Over the last several years, the league has continued to improve with permanent lights installed at the Grizzly Sports Complex in 2022 and a pair of scoreboards last fall.

Going into the 2025 tackle football season, 22 teams will suit up, and the league continues to attract new players. In a preseason orientation in August, Fehrman estimated more than two-thirds of the audience were first-timers.

The next evening, parents perched behind the chain-link fence to watch their kids try out for the league’s “draft.”

But not all players were brand new to the sport. Anthony Cordero chose the Grizzlies for his son, 7-year-old Bane, who had been playing flag football in Manassas.

“It’s amazing what they are doing for them,” said Cordero, who also remarked how nice the facilities were.

Hudson, 7, from their Fauquier County league because of the Grizzlies’ emphasis on safety and fundamentals.

usually follow. Some players only play recreationally, but many continue with the

sport. A few, like Nick Mathews, even make

After playing for Patriot, Nick played for Division 1 Marshall University, in Huntington, W.Va. He is now an assistant quarterbacks coach for the University of Memphis.

To this day, his favorite season in football

was his eighth-grade year, when his Grizzlies squad won the national title at the 95-pound weight class. It wasn’t just the winning that made the year special, but the time he spent with his teammates.

“It’s a game,” Nick said. “The fact that you can go out there and play with your friends and enjoy it. Especially now, in the higher levels you get. … In my world now, it’s a business. You got to remind yourself…that it’s still a game. It’s supposed to be fun.” L

Kipp Hanley is an award-winning journalist with experience covering government, education, sports and the military. He resides in Woodbridge with his daughter.

A Big

The Haymarket Regional Food Pantry is turning 20 this year, but executive director Eileen Smith says she wishes it weren’t.

“I would love for no one to have to come here anymore,” Smith said. “Part of me is very, very proud of what we’ve done here, what we’ve been capable of, and the half million people that we have helped. The other part of me is sad that we’re still here.”

Since being founded in a church closet in 2005, the all-volunteer pantry has provided food to more than 500,000 people across western Prince William County. It has expanded multiple times – from St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, to the Haymarket Town

Feeding a Generation

Haymarket Regional Food Pantry celebrates bittersweet anniversary

BY JAMES JARVIS

Hall, to its current space on Limestone Drive in Gainesville – and launched dozens of partnerships to serve families more effectively. But as the organization prepares for its 20th anniversary this September, it does so at a time of unprecedented demand.

According to the Capital Area Food Bank’s 2024 Hunger Report, food insecurity across the Northern Virginia region has risen even as broader economic indicators like unemployment and inflation have improved. And Prince William has the worst food insecurity in the region at 43%, meaning more than four in 10 households regularly struggle to afford nutritious food. That’s up 7% from last year.

“It’s terrible out here,” Smith said.

At the pantry, the trend is visible in the numbers. In 2023, the pantry served over 60,000 people – more than double its typical caseload. Volunteers were

overwhelmed. Expenses ballooned. The team knew something had to change.

“We can’t do 60,000 people again,” Smith said.

After a discussion with the Capital Area Food Bank, in January 2024, the board decided to provide services only to people living in western Prince William, not the greater region.

“We shrunk it down to what we consider our neighbors,” said board member Mary Lou Robinson. “And that’s our mission statement. We are here to serve our neighbors who have food insecurity. That’s it.”

Even with the smaller footprint, the pantry served more than 40,000 individuals and distributed over 552,000 pounds of food last year. Smith says the number of people walking through the door continues to climb each month. They now serve 3,000 to 3,500 people a month.

Staff and volunteers say they’re seeing more families who are underemployed

– working multiple jobs but still unable to afford basic needs.

“Just to live in this county, you have to make about $142,000 to [support] two parents and two children under the age of 8,” said Smith, explaining that childcare costs weigh heavily on families.

The pantry’s clientele is also increasingly diverse. “Prince William County is majority minority,” Smith noted. “Our demographics reflect that.”

The pantry recently added a device that can translate Ukrainian, Spanish, Arabic and other languages. Thankfully, some of their volunteers are also multilingual.

As the community has changed, so has the pantry’s approach. Ten years ago, it primarily offered shelf-stable goods such as canned vegetables and boxed pasta. Today, thanks to partnerships with Wegmans, the Capital Area Food Bank, Oak Spring Garden Foundation and Fauquier Educational Farm, the pantry maintains 52 food categories –ranging from canned meats to fresh produce – and surveys clients each year to better meet their needs.

“We never had fresh vegetables,” Smith said. “We’ve actually changed the nutrition of some of our people, because we do have

some people who’ve been coming here for the 20 years we’ve been open, honestly.”

Volunteer Cindy McCormick, who retired in 2017 after 28 years as a Fairfax County school bus driver, helps oversee inventory and food drives, working alongside teams who sort, pack and distribute food daily.

“I personally think all the clients that walk through the door are generally appreciative of everything,” she said. “It’s always, ‘Thank you so much. I’m so glad you were here for us.’”

One family stands out in her mind: a woman with four children of her own, including a newborn with several health issues, who adopted her sister’s four children after their mother fell ill.

“I make sure that when she comes in, she has large boxes of cereal, large cans of vegetables… It’s a large house. And she’s very, very appreciative,” McCormick said.

Despite rising costs and limited government support, the pantry remains fully volunteer-run, with more than 25,000 hours logged annually. Unlike some food banks, it does not require citizenship status, income verification or proof of employment, only proof of address.

Still, funding remains tight. In 2024, the nonprofit operated on a budget of

HAYMARKET REGIONAL FOOD PANTRY NEED TO KNOW INFO

Address:

Website: haymarketfoodpantry.org Phone:

Items accepted for donation

Nonperishable food items

Personal care and hygiene items

Disposable diapers and wipes

Home cleaning products

Ways to get involved

Volunteer

Organize a food drive

Organize a fund raiser

Become a sponsor or partner

$486,000. Its largest expenses – food purchases and facility rent – are only partly offset by recurring donations. Unlike similar organizations in neighboring counties, the nonprofit receives no direct government funding.

“Last year was the first year where we actually spent just about as much as came in,” Smith said. “The year before, we spent over $800,000 on food.”

McCormick reminds people that the need is great all year long and donations are always appreciated. “People eat 365 days a year, not just the holidays. And we’re here for them, every week.” L

James Jarvis teaches journalism at Georgetown University. His work has appeared in ARLnow, InsideNoVa, The 51st and Washington City Paper, and has been recognized by the Virginia Press Association.

H&G’s

TOP 10

The five highest-priced homes that sold in each of the two ZIP codes between mid-July and mid-August. Photos and home data from Realtor.com.

20155 Gainesville

7633 GREAT DOVER ST.

$1,295,000

Sold: Aug. 6

5 bedrooms

4½ bathrooms

5,172 square feet

13831 BARRYMORE COURT

$1,100,000

Sold: July 24

4 bedrooms

4 bathrooms

4,894 square feet

13922 BARRYMORE COURT

$1,035,000

Sold: Aug. 5

4 bedrooms

4½ bathrooms

5,550 square feet

6513 DEBHILL LANE

$1,030,000

Sold: July 10

4 bedrooms

4½ bathrooms

5,176 square feet

8429 LINK HILLS LOOP

$1,000,000

Sold: July 31

4 bedrooms

4½ bathrooms

6,441 square feet

The Big Picture:

The local real estate market dropped for the second straight month in July as home sales were down 22.4% in the Haymarket and Gainesville ZIP codes combined, compared with July 2024. Unlike in June, when Gainesville sales were flat, both ZIP codes saw significant declines in July. More signs of weakness: New listings were also down in both ZIP codes, as were pending sales, according to the latest data from the Prince William Association of Realtors. Homes stayed on the market longer in Haymarket, which also saw a decline in the median sales price.

The July Details:

Closed sales:

• Down 21.3% in Gainesville to 48 units

• Down 23.6% in Haymarket to 42 units

• Combined sales totaled 90, down from 116 a year earlier

New pending sales:

• Down 25% in Gainesville

• Down 14.3% in Haymarket

Median sales price:

• Up 7.8% to $768,000 in Gainesville

• Down 7.7% to $715,000 in Haymarket

Average days on market (homes sold in July):

• 12 in Gainesville

• 24 in Haymarket

20169 Haymarket

15047 MEDINAH COURT

$1,295,000

Sold: Aug. 8

5 bedrooms

5 bathrooms

5,233 square feet

6705 LEOPOLDS TRAIL

$1,175,000

Sold: Aug. 12

4 bedrooms

4½ bathrooms 4,966 square feet

16142 JORDAN CREST COURT

$975,000

Sold: July 24

5 bedrooms

3½ bathrooms 4,617 square feet

15476 CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVE

$975,000

Sold: Aug. 8

3 bedrooms

3 bathrooms 4,307 square feet

6924 NOYES AVE.

$940,000

Sold: July 22

5 bedrooms

3½ bathrooms 4,028 square feet

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Keep

Digital Gateway rezoning overturned

APrince William County judge has voided the rezoning for the proposed PW Digital Gateway – a 22-million-square-foot data center corridor that, at full buildout, would have been the largest in the world.

For now, the Aug. 7 ruling stops the project from moving forward under its current zoning. But the ruling is likely to be appealed.

Prince William Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Irving sided with a group of 12 Oak Valley homeowners in their legal challenge, finding that the county’s public notices for the rezoning hearing failed to comply with state and local requirements. The decision voids the Board of County Supervisors’ December 2023 approval of the project and – if upheld – would require the approval process to restart if developers want to proceed.

Rezoning paves the way for Iron Mountain extension

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors last month unanimously approved a data center rezoning that paves the way for the extension of the Iron Mountain data center campus.

The rezoning in the Brentsville District consists of just under 19 acres to be rezoned from office flex, planned mixed use district and a sliver of agricultural – along the old Hayden Road – to light industrial for data center use. The property is near Wellington Road and Sudley Manor Drive, just off Prince William County Parkway.

The project had received a positive recommendation from county staff and a recommendation for approval from the Planning Commission by a 5-3 vote.

Candidates set for Gainesville District supervisor election

Republican Patrick Harders will face off against Democrat George C. Stewart in a special election to fill the Gainesville District seat on the Prince William Board of County Supervisors.

The winner will replace Republican Bob Weir, who held the seat from early 2023 until his death this summer. The election is Nov. 4, with early voting beginning in mid-September.

Harders, 51, easily defeated Brian Landrum in the GOP’s firehouse primary in mid-August. Stewart, 57, edged Jack Tiwari by four votes in a Democratic firehouse primary earlier in August.

Harders is a small business owner who has lived in the Gainesville District for nearly two decades. Stewart is a U.S. Navy veteran and financial consultant who lives in Dominion Valley in Haymarket.

Battlefield junior among top baseball draft prospects

Baseball America ranked Battlefield High School junior Nico Moritz-Toledo among the nation’s top 100 high school draft prospects for the class of 2027.

The center fielder and Virginia Tech commitment is listed No, 72.

As a sophomore, Moritz-Toledo was a first-team all-Class 6 state selection in helping Battlefield reach the state final. For the season, he hit .370 with eight doubles, two triples, three homers, 30 runs batted in, 34 runs scored and 23 stolen bases.

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Western Prince

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