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Unlike several other years this decade, 2009 won't be remembered for a single incident or event. The year was largely shaped instead by shrinking budgets and expanding gridlock, two subjects Fairfax residents have come to know all too well.

Fortunately, all of this year's headlines weren't bad. Fairfax corralled a pair of Fortune 500 companies, an area Little League team made a serious run at the World Series and Fairfax schools implemented a grading scale that had been debated for three decades.

Some of the year's top stories include:

Budget woes hit

government hard

Government officials at all levels, from the state to the school board, struggled to do more with less this year as the weakened U.S. economy and declining home values led to drastic reductions in tax receipts.

Fairfax County raised the real estate tax rate, eliminated about 300 staff positions, reduced library hours and gave no raises to government employees to help close a $650 million budget shortfall. Fairfax County Public Schools increased class sizes, revamped its bus schedule and also froze pay and eliminated hundreds of positions to close its own $150 million-plus budget gap.

On the state level, the Virginia Department of Transportation laid off more than 1,000 employees this year and slashed its six-year construction budget. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) kept trimming away at the state general fund budget, which has now been reduced by more than $7 billion this budget cycle.

As the year came to a close, local and state officials were forecasting even greater pain for next year, as revenues continue to decline.

Construction puts up

roadblocks

Construction on two long-awaited transportation projects got under way this year, bringing detours and temporary road closures to major roadways.

On March 10, federal, state and local officials gathered to formally sign the full funding grant agreement for the first phase of the Dulles Metrorail extension. The approval of $900 million in federal funds allowed major construction of the new rail line to begin. By 2013, the first riders are expected to be able to take the new Silver Line to four stations in Tysons Corner and one at Wiehle Avenue in Reston.

While work to build the high-occupancy toll lanes on the Capital Beltway began in late 2008, construction work on that project had a major presence for Beltway drivers throughout the year. In addition to adding two lanes in each direction to the Beltway, between the Springfield interchange and the Dulles Toll Road, the project involves replacing about 50 bridges and overpasses to accommodate the new lanes. The toll lanes are also slated to open in 2013.

Bad year for Metro

Metro officials will probably not look back on 2009 with much nostalgia.

In June, a fatal Metro crash killed nine people and injured 80 others when two trains collided in transit. Metro officials later called Springfield's Jeanice McMillan, 42, a hero. McMillan was the Metro train driver who lost her own life when the train she was driving collided with another that was standing still. Metro General Manager John Catoe said McMillan saved lives by hitting the emergency brake and slowing the train before the fatal crash.

"There could have been more people with serious injuries and possibly more people who died had she not been alert and taken that action," Catoe said at a Southeast Washington memorial service for McMillan on June 26.

In August, a Metro repairman was killed after being struck by a piece of track equipment. And in late November, three employees were injured in a West Falls Church rail yard crash that caused at least $9 million worth of damage.

Nine people also committed suicide by jumping in front of moving Metro trains in 2009.

Business comes

to Fairfax County

Some notable Fortune 500 companies relocated to Fairfax County in 2009.

In early August, Hilton Hotels Corp. announced the opening of its new global headquarters at Park Place II in Tysons Corner. The headquarters, home to about 500 employees, moved from Beverly Hills, Calif. Hilton occupies approximately one-third of the 11-story, 323,000-square-foot building on Jones Branch Drive.

In September, Science Applications International Corp., Fairfax County's fourth-largest employer, announced that it would bring 1,200 new jobs to the area by relocating its headquarters from San Diego to Tysons Corner.

SAIC already employs 4,300 people at its 18-acre Tysons Corner campus, and another 11,000 throughout Northern Virginia.

While not on the Fortune 500 list, the nonprofit Ignite Institute, a major medical research institution, announced in November that it will be setting up shop in Fairfax County.

Ignite will focus on making advances in the field of "personalized medicine," using a person's genetic makeup to tailor treatments to that individual. The goal is to prevent the onset of common diseases and conditions such as cancer, Alzheimer's and autism, according to Dr. Deitrich Stephan, founder of Ignite.

The Ignite Institute will create an estimated 415 jobs in the next five years, according to the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority.

Gold burglaries

A rash of burglaries in which perpetrators broke into homes during daylight hours and stole gold jewelry plagued Fairfax residents all year long.

The string of nearly 30 countywide burglaries in which thieves primarily targeted Indian and Middle Eastern homeowners across Northern Virginia began in January. The burglars, entering through back doors or windows, typically hit residences during the day when people were not home. The burglaries took place in the Chantilly, Centreville, Fair Oaks, Reston and West Springfield areas. In November, three suspects were apprehended and are now awaiting trial.

Raman Kumar, whose Centreville home was burglarized in February, took the lead in organizing Fairfax County's Indian-American community and organized communication efforts among several victims. He said the community felt relieved when suspects were finally in custody.

"I feel excited and I have spoken with some fellow victims and they feel both excited and a sense of relief, as well," he said. "The task force did help, and news from the media also helped, as did the town meetings that were held to let people know about these burglaries."

Unemployment surges

Fairfax's unemployment rate reached 4.7 percent in September, according to Fairfax Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Sharon S. Bulova (D). That may seem great compared with the rest of the country, but that number is nearly 2 percent higher than the same time a year ago.

During approximately that same period, the number of jobs in Northern Virginia declined by about 1 percent, or approximately 13,000 positions. Unemployment insurance claims in the county also increased 116 percent from July 2008 to July 2009.

Virginia returns

to 'red state' roots

The Republican ticket swept statewide races in November, taking a characteristically Virginian U-turn off the eight-year path of Democratic dominance in the state.

Former Attorney General Robert F. McDonnell (R) easily defeated Democratic state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, winning nearly 59 percent of votes statewide. Lt. Gov. William T. Bolling (R) was re-elected for a second term and Centreville's state Sen. Ken T. Cuccinelli II (R) was elected attorney general, both with similar margins over their Democratic opponents.

Fairfax also elected five new delegates to the Virginia General Assembly, including two Republicans who ousted Democratic incumbents in swing districts. Three open seats were won by Democrats.

Swine flu challenges health officials

The H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu, sickened an estimated 50 million U.S. residents, hospitalized 200,000 and killed nearly 10,000.

Although none of Fairfax County's 1.1 million residents died as a direct result of H1N1, more than a few spent time worrying about it. Most of that angst was tied to vaccine shortages that forced Fairfax health officials to delay mass vaccination clinics by several weeks.

By late October, vaccine shipments began arriving and most of the county's "highest risk" residents -- front-line health workers, fire and rescue personnel, pregnant women and young children -- were inoculated. By mid-November, "second-level" candidates -- children up to age 5 and the parents of children younger than 6 months -- received shots.

Fairfax recalculates

grading scale

This year, grades in Fairfax's middle and high-school classrooms are being calculated a bit differently. Back in May, school officials leveled the playing field for county students by changing to a 10-point grading scale.

The shift was long advocated by parents and students, who said the county's stricter grading scale hurt college admissions and scholarship hopefuls.

Before the Fairfax County School Board's 11-1 vote last spring, most School Board members said they believed changing the scale to 10-points would bring Fairfax in line with the vast majority of grading scales nationwide.

Smoking ban kicks in

The long-debated smoking ban in Virginia took affect Dec. 1, snuffing out smoking at most restaurants and bars statewide.

Legislation was approved by the Virginia General Assembly in February 2009. Criticized as being only a partial ban, the new rule allows restaurants in the state to have indoor smoking sections as long as the area is walled off and separately ventilated. Fines for abusers were set at $25 per offense.

The newly imposed ban represents a shift in Virginia's views on tobacco, which was the state's top cash crop until 2004. English settler John Rolfe sent his first shipment of tobacco back to England in 1612.

Two new schools open

Fairfax County Public Schools opened two new elementary schools in September, the first schools to open in the county since 2006.

Lutie Lewis Coates Elementary School, named for an educator at the former Floris Colored School, serves students living in the Herndon and Oak Hill areas. Most of the students at Coates formerly went to Floris and McNair elementary schools, but the boundary shift also affected Herndon, Hutchison and Oak Hill elementary schools.

Laurel Hill Elementary School serves the Lorton and Laurel Hill areas in southeastern Fairfax. It is serving students of several new subdivisions and pulling students from Halley, Lorton Station and Silverbrook elementary schools. Newington Forest and Gunston elementary schools were also involved in the boundary shift in that area.

Memorable summer for Chantilly Little League

Fairfax County athletes left their mark on fields and courts across the country in 2009, but few provided more drama than Chantilly American's Little League All-Stars.

After winning the Virginia state baseball title -- which took place in Fairfax -- the Chantilly youngsters advanced all the way to the Southeastern Region Little League finals, which were broadcast nationally on ESPN. In a nail-biting 6-3 loss to eventual champion Warner Robins (Ga.), Chantilly got homers from Grant Bain and Mike Sciorra, as well as a strong 10-strikeout performance from starting pitcher Eason Recto. The team finished with a 15-2 record, one game shy of advancing to the 2009 Little League World Series. Chantilly's postseason included a District 10 championship, a Virginia state title, and the knowledge that they had the best season in Chantilly Little League history.

"When we first started the season, I don't think that anybody anticipated that we would be one game from the Little League World Series," said Chantilly American manager Sean Matthews in August. "They should be extremely proud of what they have done. They've done what no Chantilly team has ever done.

Staff Writers Kali Schumitz, Gregg MacDonald, Holly Hobbs and Steve Cahill contributed to this report.