Most Read Fairfax City Patch Stories of 2011

Before 2011 becomes only a distant memory, let's take a quick look at some of the top Fairfax City news stories from last year. You picked these stories by reading and sharing them.

The 5 Most-Read Breaking News Stories of 2011

1. : Early September rains flooded streets and creeks, damaging roads and killing a Vienna boy and a Great Falls man. and info to Patch's hour-by-hour coverage of the weather damage. This updated coverage, and your photos made this easily the most-read Fairfax City Patch story of 2011.
2. : A state trooper lost control of his cruiser and ran into the Auld Shebeen in downtown Fairfax. No one, thankfully, was injured.
3. : This incident closed off Braddock west of Route 123 and backed up traffic. Patch rushed out to snap photos of the wreckage and get a first-hand glimpse of the scene.
4. : This butt slasher character was scaring shoppers all over Northern Virginia. Armed with what police suspected to be a box cutter, he targeted young women in malls. When police finally got a lead to who he was, he fled the country and was .
5. : Motorists just didn't understand why a mass of motorcycles chose late August to make their annual journey from Somerset, Pa. to Washington and then to New York City. Over 1,800 motorcycles shut down some of NoVa's heaviest traveled routes just before rush hour.

Special mention: !

The 10 Most-Read News and Feature Stories of 2011

1. : The announcement, follow-up and official opening stories sparked discussion and countless emails to the editor. Everyone wanted to know when Walmart was planning to open. And what would happen to Bloom ().
2. : Plans to redo the shopping center at Braddock and Route 123 had some neighbors excited... some not so much.
3. : This recent Fairfax High School grad has to watch what she eats and touches.
4. : Fairfax City-ans sounded off on national and local issues, like whether Obama deserves four more years and whether Joe Paterno should have been fired.
5. : Foodie Nancy Loughin introduces one of the newest restaurants to open in Fairfax City. Piero's took over the old Carlos O'Kelly's location. See her take on the city's and . What's next? A hometown favorite, Coyote Grill. Stay tuned.
6. : Parents and players were horrified when Michael Santiago collapsed during an April rugby match. The 17-year-old PVI senior in a Fredericksburg hospital.
7. : The murder of a 20-year-old after hits close to home. Police have linked Morgan's death with the 2005 rape of a woman walking home from Giant in Fairfax City.
8. : Developers didn't like that their two-year's worth of work planning a new development for Fairfax City's Kamp Washington area didn't pass the council. Some neighbors saluted the city's decision for .
9. : George Mason University released a scathing report about the Mason community's thoughts on the school's police department. Let's just say that many of the students aren't so pleased with their officers.
10. :Every Lamb Center story did well in 2011, but none like the latest on the Lamb Center's court appeal on the center's future at Fairfax Circle.

What's in store for 2012? Well we've got more on the Lamb Center, a new budget season, council and mayor elections, the hunt for a new schools superintendent, new development and businesses coming to the city and lots more. 

2012 Honorable Mention: . This story is already a top contender in the most-read list for 2012. Check it out.