Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) is beginning his second year at Virginia’s governor and has an aggressive plan laid out for this year’s legislative session.

McDonnell sat down to speak with a few Patch editors in Richmond on Friday, less than a week before Virginia General Assembly gavels into session on Wednesday.

There were many topics to talk about, including transportation, education, health care, the cost of college, gas taxes, illegal immigration, redistricting and much more.

As a region, Northern Virginia has experienced rapid growth, and along the way, growing pains. McDonnell answered Patch’s questions with both the Commonwealth and our individual region in mind.

Northern Virginia’s explosive growth and prosperity has not come without difficulties, and in the 2011 legislative session many bills will come to fruition to deal with transportation and education issues.

On many local legislators’ minds as they head into General Assembly is redistricting of 40 senate districts and 100 delegate districts this year but many Patch readers were concerned about projects taking place in their own backyards.

McDonnell spoke to Patch about the effect of the Base Realignment and Closure project,  which is closing and consolidating military bases. Their decisions  will bring 6,000 jobs to the area, U.S. Route 1 redevelopment in the southern part of Fairfax and Metro expansion to Reston and finally  to Dulles.

McDonnell told Patch about his plans to privatize the state-owned ABC liquor stores to fund transportation projects and also touched on his views on gas taxes, budget cuts and the bad traffic in Northern Virginia.

Patch will distributing a series of video interviews with the governor throughout the week. Here is the the first installment: the governor's plan to sell the ABC stores.