• Arlington's top prosecutor wants a special grand jury in a fatal police shooting. The Commonwealth's Attorney will ask the court to convene a panel to examine the May 8 death of Shawn Valn, 33, who was killed inside a Columbia Pike 7-Eleven after a nearly three-hour standoff. The grand jury would decide whether probable cause supports criminal charges. ARLnow

• Loudoun opens its second-phase data center review to the public next week. The county hosts two identical open houses on the Data Center Standards and Locations project, Sept. 28 at Broad Run High School in Ashburn and Sept. 30 at the Douglass Community Center in Leesburg, both 6 to 8:30 p.m. Phase two targets policy and zoning changes to blunt the impact of existing development. Loudoun County

• Arlington starts a year-long conversation about aging affordable apartments near Ballston. County Manager Mark Schwartz has empaneled a working group to study the 512-unit Ballston Park complex, where affordability agreements on about half the units are expiring. Officials say no units are at risk now, and displacement would not come before 2030 at the earliest. ARLnow

• Reston residents say two vacant office buildings have become a magnet for trespassing and vandalism. Neighbors near 1831 and 1861 Wiehle Avenue report break-ins, graffiti, fires, and people living in tents and vehicles, and they accuse owner JBG Smith of neglecting the site. Police logged 11 calls to the addresses this year through Sept. 14. FFXnow

• Loudoun's building department pauses some services in early October for staff training. The Natural Resources Division goes offline Oct. 1 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and Permit Issuance closes Oct. 6 from 8 to 11 a.m. Building code plan review and inspections continue as normal. Loudoun County

• Arlington's County Board shut down Big Tony's bid for DJs and karaoke. The 4-1 vote cited the Clarendon bar's history of hosting unpermitted live entertainment, including karaoke nights held for months after a January notice of violation. Owners argued live entertainment keeps the restaurant alive and blamed confusion over the county code. ARLnow

• Arlington backed off, for now, a crackdown on noisy vehicles. The county is holding on a program to target loud cars. ARLnow

• Inova bought two Merrifield medical office buildings for $97.5 million. The health system flipped from tenant to owner at the Willow Oaks Medical Campus, whose seller had paid $70 million for the property just a year earlier. Inova already anchors the eight-story buildings near its main Fairfax hospital. FFXnow

• Fairfax County moves to make room for a bigger Reston Community Center near Lake Anne. The county is poised to allow space for the expansion. FFXnow

• Loudoun's first Bartaco opened for a soft launch at One Loudoun. The Ashburn restaurant, first reported here two years ago, is running dinner-only for now, with lunch hours expected as soon as next week. It joins Van Leeuwen, Tatte, Alo, and Arhaus on the new Exchange Street block. The Burn

• Nothing Bundt Cakes is heading to Hybla Valley. The chain confirmed a "coming soon" location at Mount Vernon Plaza, taking a roughly 2,500-square-foot space between TJ Maxx and Buffalo Wild Wings. It will be the bakery's sixth in Fairfax County. FFXnow

• A new Peruvian chicken spot in Herndon is close to opening. Peruvian Charcoal Chicken & Grill has installed its facade sign and posted hiring notices at the Worldgate Centre. The menu runs from spit-roasted chicken with yucca and plantains to burritos, gyros, and burgers. The Burn

• Fairfax unveiled "Circles of Memory," a public artwork honoring residents lost to COVID-19, near the Herrity Building. FFXnow
• Loudoun invites nonprofits to an Oct. 8 training session on its FY 2028 Human Services grant program. Loudoun County
• Loudoun Fire and Rescue marks October as Fire Prevention Month, with company open houses starting Oct. 3 in Leesburg. Loudoun Fire & Rescue
• A local recovery organization launched a new grassroots advocacy group in Arlington. ARLnow
• DJ Sam Feldt spins Clarendon Ballroom tonight; Morgan Page follows Saturday. Arlington Magazine

Two vacant towers on Wiehle Avenue have quietly become the neighbor nobody wants, a reminder that in a region obsessed with what gets built next, the harder problem is often what got left standing empty.

That's the briefing. Look out for each other out there. See you Monday.

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