SPORTS: Colgan, Battlefield, Patriot excelling in tennis; roundup of district champions. Page 12
May 26, 2022 | Vol. 21, No. 21 | www.princewilliamtimes.com | $1.00 Covering Prince William County and surrounding communities, including Gainesville, Haymarket, Dumfries, Occoquan, Quantico and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.
Hung Cao, of Purcellville, left, greets a supporter outside the Gainesville Middle School polling place during Saturday’s GOP “firehouse primary.” SUBMITTED
A rendering of the new stadium the Washington Commanders are planning, possibly for a 200-acre site the team has secured an option to buy in Woodbridge along Interstate 95 between Summit School and Caton Hill Roads. The stadium would feature a translucent roof that would allow for natural light.
Commanders opt for Woodbridge Proposed stadium complex overlaps commuter lot, could impact HS site The Woodbridge properties reportedly eyed by the Washington Commanders for a new $3 billion stadium complex appear to include the Horner Road commuter lot and possibly land slated for the county’s 14th high school – all of which are owned by Prince William County taxpayers. On Monday, May 23, ESPN and the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that the team had purchased 200 acres in Woodbridge for the new stadium. State Sen. Scott Surovell, D-36th, clarified that the team had not purchased the land but rather has an option to buy it, according to communications he had Monday with members of the Washington Commanders’ lobbying team. According to news reports, the team has pledged to pay more than $100 million for the 200 acres included in the site. But some of that land appears to be owned by Prince William County. State Sen. Jeremy McPike acknowledged the possible conflicts with publicly owned facilities shortly after the plan for the Woodbridge site was released by the team. McPike, a Democrat whose 29th District includes the
By Cher Muzyk and Jill Palermo Times Staff Writers
area the team is eyeing for the new stadium, said he has concerns about the possible impacts on the Horner Road commuter lot as well as the high school site. “I need to see how the commuter lots and the schools are handled, or it’s a non-starter,” McPike said of the stadium site plan in a Monday night text message. “We can’t lose one of our most important commuter assets in Virginia.”
Retired U.S. Navy Captain Hung Cao came out on top of the “firehouse primary” Republicans held Saturday, May 21 to pick their nominee to challenge U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton in November. Cao, of Purcellville, garnered 52.3% of the vote in the rankedchoice contest – or the support of 7,729 voters after the 10th round of ballot counting. Jeanine Lawson, a Prince William County supervisor representing the Brentsville District, came in second place with the support of 5,000 voters or about 33.8%. Cao is a Vietnamese refugee who fled his home country with his family when he was a child. He then went on to attend Thomas Jefferson High School and the U.S. Naval Academy. Hao served as a special operations officer in the U.S. Navy. During his 25-year career, he served in combat missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.
See STADIUM, page 4
See PRIMARY, page 2
Lake Ridge v ill e R M in n i e
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Future School Site
Stadium Site
Rd Commanders Land Assemblage
I-95
By Jill Palermo
Times Staff Writer
Hung Cao wins 10th District GOP primary
PHOTO BY ROGER SNYDER
An aerial photo of the Woodbridge site eyed by the Washington Commanders. Prince William County schools owns 96 acres adjacent to the site, which were purchased in 2021 for the 14th high school.
Looking Back: The history of Prince William County’s explosive population growth, page 9
UPCOMING EVENTS: Memorial Day events, live music, farmers markets, page 10
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It’s all about people . . . and always will be. www.vnb.com