Friday, March 24, 2023

Sexual assault at Rockville Metro station


Rockville City police were called to the Rockville Metro station at 251 Hungerford Drive Wednesday night, after a sexual assault was reported there. The incident was reported at 8:09 PM on March 22, 2023. This was the second sexual assault Rockville police responded to in as many days; the first took place in King Farm the day before.

Thursday, March 23, 2023

Sexual assault in King Farm area of Rockville


Rockville City police responded to a report of a sexual assault in the King Farm neighborhood on Tuesday morning, March 21, 2023. The incident was reported on the street in the 700 block of Redland Boulevard at 11:45 AM Tuesday.

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Umi Sushi & Seafood Buffet "coming soon" to Rockville


Umi Sushi & Seafood Buffet
is "coming soon" to 1471 Rockville Pike, according to a banner posted at the building. The large space was previously home to Miller's Ale House over the last decade. Umi promises "the largest and most elegant Chinese, Japanese and American cuisine restaurant." It appears to be a chain with locations in Brooklyn, Queens, and Brandon, Florida.



Tuesday, March 21, 2023

Melashops moving to Montgomery Mall in Bethesda


Melashops
is moving from Gaithersburg to Bethesda. The fashion market has closed its Lakeforest Mall store, as the mall itself is closing March 31, 2023 and is in its final days. On April 1, Melashops will open at its new home, Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. Melashops carries apparel, jewelry, and accessories from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkiye, Afghanistan, and more. Look for Melashops on Level 1 across from Urban Outfitters.



Assault at Rockville gas station


Rockville City police responded to a report of an assault at a gas station in the King Farm area of the city Sunday afternoon. The assault was reported at a gas station in the 700 block of Gaither Road at 1:10 PM. That is the Shell station next to Dunkin' Donuts.

Arhaus to open at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda


Arhaus
will soon open a Bethesda location at Westfield Montgomery Mall. Construction of the furniture store is already underway inside their generously-sized showroom space on Level 1, as you can see below. Arhaus was founded in 1986, and specializes in heirloom-quality furnishings made from materials like wicker, aluminum, and teak. The company supports an exhaustive range of causes and organizations, from environmental sustainability to LGBTQ+ advocacy groups. In 2021, it opened a manufacturing and distribution facility in North Carolina to demonstrate its commitment to another goal, bringing back currently-offshored jobs to the United States.





Monday, March 20, 2023

The final days of Lakeforest Mall, closing March 31, 2023 (Video + Photos)


The end is nigh for Lakeforest Mall in Gaithersburg. Opened as a grand shopping and entertainment destination with distinctive architecture on September 12, 1978, the mall was hugely popular through the end of the 1990s. But then, a succession of greedy owners conspired with the sugar baby corrupt politicians they controlled in Montgomery County to run the successful mall into the ground. 

The mall's signature fountain and skating rink were removed, and local elected officials intentionally allowed crime to spiral out of control. Predictably, crowds began to thin, and quality tenants began to move out. 

The mall will close March 31, 2023, and will be demolished in 2024. It will be replaced with a massive housing development that will bring thousands of new residents to a property that has no rapid transit station, and no new highways planned, a traffic disaster in the making. Of course, the same political machine that helped run down the mall is approving that redevelopment.

Let's take a last look around inside Lakeforest Mall, where remaining anchor tenant Macy's was in its final hours before closing for good. We'll ride the glass elevator, and the escalators. You'll see some ghosts from the mall's past, including JCPenney, Sbarro, Ruby Tuesday and Sears. 

You'll also see that this is another example of crony capitalism gone utterly mad, with a perfectly-good mall building being torn down long before its time, with all of the waste and environmental harm such greedy demolitions generate. The new development won't have retail of even half the quality the mall did, if the tenant rosters of other post-Great-Recession developments north of Rockville are any guide. Here's a final look at the breathtaking architecture, thought-provoking art installations, inspiring aesthetics, and the grand lines and designs that represent all that is good in America and western civilization. Lakeforest Forever!