Panera Bread space marketed for lease in Rockville Town Center

Panera Bread's space at 219 E. Middle Lane in Rockville Town Center is being marketed as available for lease. Prospective tenants and their representatives are warned "Do not disturb" the existing restaurant. Panera Bread remains open for business at this time, but its loss would certainly be a blow to the lunch scene in the Town Center area. A former bank space in the ground floor of the same building, vacant for some time now, also remains available for lease. Panera has two other locations in Rockville, at the Fallsgrove Village Center, and at Federal Plaza on Rockville Pike.

R.F. Fager Supply opens in Rockville

R.F. Fager Supply has opened a new location in Rockville. It is next to Taipei Cafe at 800 Hungerford Drive (MD 355). In addition to its consumer-facing designer plumbing fixture showroom, R.F. Fager also carries a massive inventory of plumbing supplies for the professional tradesperson. The company started in Central Pennsylvania, but has expanded into Maryland in recent years.

Assault on residential street in Rockville

Rockville City police responded to a report of an assault on a residential street in the King Farm area yesterday morning, March 28, 2026. The assault was reported in the 800 block of Elmcroft Boulevard at 11:45 AM Saturday. At least one individual was also accused of obstruction, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct in the same incident. This took place just three days after a teen was stabbed outside of the nearby Safeway store at King Farm Village Center. Yet another example of the troubling new trend of violent crimes being committed during daylight hours in Montgomery County.

Man shot to death in Rockville

Montgomery County police are investigating a deadly shooting in Rockville last night. The shooting was reported in the 12900 block of Twinbrook Parkway at 10:20 PM Friday. Officers arriving at the scene found a 20-year-old man in a parking lot suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. @TheDMVLive reported the man had been shot in the face, and was in cardiac arrest. Police say officers began CPR on the victim, who was transported to a local hospital, where he tragically passed away.

No suspect has been identified so far by police. A homicide investigation is now underway. The victim will not be identified until family members can be notified, police say.

Maryland silica factory closing, production relocating to South Carolina

There goes another one. Evonik Corporation will close its Maryland factory in Havre de Grace, and relocate its production of silica to South Carolina. The closure will eliminate 34 jobs, according to a filing the chemical firm submitted to the state on Wednesday. While the company explains its strategic move with buzzphrases like "economies of scale," there are several obvious reasons why the grass appears much greener in the Palmetto State if you are running a business enterprise.

Industrial electricity rates in South Carolina are 22% less than in Maryland. This is largely due to the forced closure of eight power plants by Maryland elected officials, who have also mandated the purchase of ever-increasing amounts of "clean power," such as solar or wind. In addition, the state has socked energy utility customers with an EmPOWER Maryland fee, that funds a Marxist program that subsidizes the purchase of energy efficient equipment by lower income customers. The end result is that Maryland now imports the majority of its electricity from out-of-state, naturally at greater cost than it had been provided from those shuttered in-state plants. Not to mention that Maryland ratepayers are now receiving record-high monthly power bills.

Maryland's corporate tax rate is 8.25%. South Carolina's is 5%. Doh!

Last year, Maryland Governor Wes Moore and the Democratic-controlled legislature established a 3% tech tax. By comparison, IT consulting, custom coding, and systems design are not taxed in South Carolina.

Finally, Maryland’s average annual pay for chemical engineers is approximately $121,012 to $140,708. In Charleston, the average is roughly $93,975 to $128,000, according to Indeed.com.

Heckuva job, Brownie!

Maryland Governor candidate Ed Hale blasts Wes Moore's floundering Key Bridge rebuild

"I heard a noise, it's that close to me," Maryland Governor candidate Ed Hale recalled of the collapse of the Key Bridge in Baltimore two years ago today. The Republican businessman and Charm City resident's home was within earshot of the catastrophe that unfolded on March 26, 2024. Two years later, progress on the construction of a replacement bridge has stalled as the cost of the project ballooned fivefold under the administration of Governor Wes Moore (D). Running afoul of federal funding guidelines, and Moore's relentless personal attacks on President Donald Trump, have led to the possibility that former president Joe Biden's vow to pick up 100% of the tab is now in serious jeopardy. Hale scheduled a press conference within sight of the bridge yesterday to excoriate Moore for the lack of progress, 24 hours ahead of the predictable Moore media blitz.

"It's a bridge that I've used pretty much all of my life," Hale told reporters Wednesday. "I'm from around here. This is my house right here," he added, gesturing toward his home. The neighborhood around the former bridge connection "is hurting, because it takes forever to go from here to over there," Hale said.

Hale argued the floundering rebuild is "emblematic of a governor that's really not paying attention to this whatsoever. He'll smile and say that he is, but he's not. And what you see is anger on both sides of the bridge, all around [Anne Arundel and Baltimore] County and just, the citizens here are extremely upset and don't like the idea that we're not getting this done. There's no end in sight for this thing to be done."

"We are a ship without a rudder," Hale charged of Moore's leadership of the state, saying the current governor's attention is largely consumed by his quest for the presidency in 2029. He announced that in lieu of a workable solution from the Moore administration, "I have a plan."

"I'm going to have the bureaucrats involved, the engineers, and the construction companies involved in this whole process, and see what they can do," Hale said. "And if they don't have a reasonable explanation, they're not going to last long in my administration." He suggested the state turn to Maryland-based firms that do similar work around the world to rebuild the bridge, saying he knows they are qualified because he has hired many of them for his own projects. "I've talked to a bunch of people, and they're standing by, ready to do it."

Hale cited the outflow of residents and wealth from Maryland to other states in recent years. Voters are "now telling me, 'If you don't win, we're moving,'" Hale recounted. A recent poll found that over 60% of Maryland residents are either in the process of leaving the state, or are considering a move. "We can't continue to have this happen," Hale said.

"We don't have economic development. We don't have job creation. We are the worst in the nation for job creation," Hale explained, noting that as a private sector businessman, he has created tens of thousands of jobs. By "every metric you can think of, we're failing," Hale said. "I don't intend to fail. I intend to make things better. Help is on the way."

Teen stabbed at Safeway in Rockville

A teenage boy was stabbed multiple times outside of the Safeway grocery store at 403 Redland Boulevard in the King Farm Village Center in Rockville last night, March 25, 2026. The shocking crime took place just after 8:30 PM during a peak shopping time. Montgomery County and Rockville City police both responded to the incident, in which the juvenile victim was hospitalized with what were believed to be non-life-threatening injuries. One suspect has been arrested, County police say, but they have not provided a description of the suspect in custody, nor of a second potential suspect they are still looking for. Eyewitnesses have stated there were at least six teens in the gathering outside the store that led to the altercation.