City Hall, facilities close ahead of severe storms, tornado threat in Rockville

The City of Rockville has closed City Hall and all other City facilities due to the impending severe storms approaching the Washington, D.C. area. Montgomery County Public Schools have dismissed students early today for the same reason. Maryland Governor Wes Moore has declared a State of Preparedness. That action authorizes the Maryland Department of Emergency Management to coordinate preparations with emergency management, transportation, law enforcement, and public health agencies across the state.

Today's storms are expected to bring wind gusts of 70-80 MPH, heavy rain, lightning, hail, and the potential for isolated tornadoes. “We are working with our state and local partners to prepare for potential impacts across Maryland,” Maryland Department of Emergency Management Secretary Russ Strickland said in a statement. “We are planning for the possibility of hazardous conditions which could include debris, downed powerlines, and travel disruptions. Marylanders should make their preparations now by reviewing family emergency plans including where to shelter during a tornado warning, charging personal devices in case of power outages, and signing up for local emergency alerts to stay informed. If you don’t need to be on the roads, stay home, and always follow guidance from local officials.”

Montgomery County, central Maryland under severe storm threat Monday

The latest forecast from the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center portends trouble for the Washington, D.C. suburbs and central Maryland tomorrow, Monday, March 16, 2026. Many meteorologists are saying the NWS prediction is showing the highest chance of a tornado or derecho event they've seen in many years. The NWS predicts there is a 15-29% chance of a tornado in Montgomery and Frederick Counties Monday. The "moderate" designation means "widespread severe storms are likely," with severe weather most likely between 3:00 PM and 9:00 PM.

Such a forecast underscores the importance of monitoring weather forecasts and NWS bulletins over the next 36 hours. Make sure to bring indoors or secure any objects in your yard or on your balcony that could be lifted by high winds. Replace batteries in flashlights and transistor radios as needed tonight, try to fully charge your cellphone, and ensure you have at least half a tank of gas. A few days' supply of non-refrigerated snacks and water bottles can't hurt. Finally, have a plan for all occupants of your home to quickly move to the basement or lowest level of your house if you receive a Tornado Warning on your phone.

Police respond to alleged prostitution activity at hotel in Rockville

Montgomery County police were called to a hotel in Rockville early Tuesday afternoon, March 10, 2026, to investigate an alleged prostitution incident there. The activity was reported at a hotel in the unit block of Research Court at 1:29 PM Tuesday. There are two hotels on that block. Police have not yet identified at which hotel the activity took place.

Ed Hale endorsed by boilermakers union in Maryland governor race

Dan Weber of Boilermakers Local 45 (left) with
Republican candidate for Maryland Governor Ed Hale

Baltimore businessman Ed Hale, a candidate for Maryland Governor, has been endorsed by the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers and the Boilermakers Local 45 Zone #193 unions. "Your efforts to support unions in our fight for good jobs and a just economy help our members and the millions of workers who depend on a strong labor movement," IBB Director of Government Affairs Cecile Conroy wrote in a letter informing Hale of the coveted labor endorsement. "As always, we thank you for your friendship and support of working families."

"Maryland was built by WORKERS — not politicians," the Republican candidate said in announcing the endorsements yesterday. "I’m very grateful for their endorsement. These skilled tradesmen build the ships, power plants, and infrastructure that keep our economy running. As Governor, I’ll always stand with the men and women who build things."

Hale began his career at Bethlehem Steel in Dundalk, where he joined the Ironworkers Union. After moving to another job at the Port of Baltimore, he founded Hale Intermodal Trucking Company, and Port East Transfer. The latter company became the largest employer at the port, and laid the groundwork for the Hale Companies, a trade and logistics firm that incorporated barge and additional truck companies under its umbrella. The Hale Companies also built 343 buildings. 

Hale's massive success in business gave him the ability to win a proxy battle for control of the Bank of Baltimore. His $1.4 million investment led to his appointment as CEO of the bank. Hale parlayed his banking experience into the founding of his own financial institution, 1st Mariner Bank. By 2011, his new bank sported 24 branches, and $1.2 billion in assets. He then purchased the Baltimore Blast soccer team, and has invested millions in revitalization projects in Baltimore, including Canton Crossing, which boasts the only Target in the City of Baltimore and a Wonder food hall. The 20-acre development replaced a brownfield left behind by an ExxonMobil oil refinery, and has won multiple awards.

Incumbent Governor Wes Moore (D) by contrast, has so far fallen flat in economic development and job creation in his first term, despite having been touted as a Wall Street-connected business genius by the local and national press. A budget surplus he inherited from his GOP predecessor Larry Hogan quickly vanished and became a structural deficit under Moore's leadership. Amid gathering fiscal storm clouds, Moore refused to abandon the massive cash-burning Blueprint for Maryland school funding initiative. As a result, the state lost its coveted AAA bond rating. 

Moore hiked taxes and fees, and introduced new ones, including a massive tech tax that has failed to raise the revenue expected because many companies left the state rather than pay it. His vow to quickly rebuild the Key Bridge, destroyed by an out-of-control ship, has spiraled into a fiasco of inaction and skyrocketing cost overruns. Moore has spent the majority of his first term attempting to raise his national profile for a presidential run by attacking Donald Trump, which severely backfired when Trump yanked away the planned Maryland FBI headquarters, the federal blank "100%" Key Bridge construction check promised to Moore by Joe Biden, and the state's National Guard air wing in retaliation.

The inertia, malaise, and affordability woes hammering Marylanders have created an opening for a successful businessman like Hale to make a compelling case to voters. Those voters are also receiving the highest monthly energy bills in the nation, a result of Moore's acquiescence to the Democrat-controlled forced closure of 8 power plants in the state, mandates of clean power purchases, and a massive EmPOWER surcharge added to electric and gas bills. Moore had recently approved an increase in that surcharge so large that utility companies sent written notice to customers to inform them that the charge was coming from the state, not the utilities. Hale has said he would reopen the shuttered plants and expand nuclear energy capacity in the state.

Argument with stranger ends with theft of car keys in Rockville

When we see scooters on the streets of Rockville these days, they are typically being used to make deliveries. One allegedly criminal rider used his to take something away, Rockville City police report. An unknown male suspect became engaged in an argument in the 16000 block of Shady Grove Road around 7:00 AM on March 6, 2026. He finally grabbed the victim's car keys, police say, and sped away on his scooter. 

Police have not released a description of the suspect beyond his gender. If you have any information that could assist detectives in closing this case, call police at 240-314-8900.

Montgomery County government enters the grocery business before Zohran Mamdani

Montgomery County's Marxist County Council has beaten Zohran Mamdani at his own game. Before the New York City mayor could even acquire a site for his first government-run grocery store, his fellow travelers on the Montgomery County Council are poised to launch a government-run grocery wholesale business. It's a two-part scheme. 

Part 1 involves the County awarding one lucky bidder $550,000 in taxpayer funds to build, stock and operate a wholesale grocery warehouse. The government-funded wholesale operation would sell to "schools, senior centers, hospitals, food banks and correctional facilities," according to a press release from Councilmember Andrew Friedson.

Part 2? Friedson is taking a victory lap in proclaiming Montgomery County will be the first jurisdiction in the region to join the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) Local Food Procurement Challenge. Activating the Montgomery County Anger Translator, we can convert that word salad program name into the English language: The County will mandate the purchase of local farm produce by its "departments and agencies" with "public dollars" on the basis of geography, rather than stretching tight "local dollars" (a.k.a. taxpayer funds) by purchasing the cheapest products from anywhere.

The move continues two longstanding Council trends: socialism, and jacking up the cost of government by continually reducing the number of suppliers of a product or service. These include numerous laws mandating the preference or outright mandate that all bidders or sellers must be minority-owned, woman-owned, or veteran-owned. Likewise, some of the laws have excluded bidders or service providers who do not meet a particular ideological or politically-correct profile determined by the Council.

It doesn't take a Harvard economist to tell you that when you reduce the number of bidders, the cost of the winning bid automatically increases. It's called market economics, and it's only one small reason the County budget has doubled in just the last decade. Equally obvious is that the more public dollars funneled into the grocery business by the County, state, and federal government, the more local grocery prices increase. Heckuva job, Brownie!

Maryland Governor candidate Ed Hale vows to cut vehicle registration fees, gas tax

Baltimore resident Ed Hale, running for governor of Maryland as a Republican, is proposing a significant reduction in the state's vehicle registration fees. The fees, massively increased recently by current Governor Wes Moore and the Democrat-controlled state legislature, are now so high that the state has been forced to offer a payment plan to residents already cash-strapped by high housing and grocery prices. "The cost is ridiculous," one resident complained in a video released yesterday by the Hale campaign. "They wanted me to pay almost $400!" "It's awful," a vehicle owner at the Reisterstown Road Motor Vehicle Administration office in Baltimore said. "Who can afford it? It's too much money."

The skyrocketing fees are "just another way to grab money from you," Hale said at a press conference outside the MVA office. Hale has vowed to cut vehicle registration fees back to the level they were before Moore hiked them. He is also proposing to reduce the state's gas tax, as well as Moore's tire tax.

"We know you have to get to work," Hale said. "We know you have to get the kids to school and to practice. The tire tax, gas tax, registration fees and vehicle emissions fees are outrageous and I'll bring this situation under control."

Strong-arm robbery in Rockville

Montgomery County police responded to a report of a strong-arm robbery in Rockville during the lunch hour yesterday, March 8, 2026. The assault and robbery took place in the 12200 block of Rockville Pike at 12:30 PM Sunday. It was reported along the street there. Another shocking crime committed in broad daylight, as Montgomery County's violent crime wave extends into a sixth year at the hands of our pro-criminal, anti-police County Council. Heckuva job, Brownie!

Rockville Mayor & Council to consider conveyance of 301 Frederick Ave. to private owner

Rockville's Mayor and Council will consider the possible conveyance of City property at 301 Frederick Avenue to the owner of an adjoining residential property at its April 13, 2026 meeting at 5:30 PM at City Hall. It's not an insignificant parcel, totalling 7340-square-feet, and is currently improved with a City sidewalk and a bus stop. The adjoining homeowner is asking the City to convey the plot, minus the sidewalk and bus stop, to them.

There's a back story to the request, some context that lends more logic to the potential transaction. You see, in 1964, original 715 Douglass Avenue homeowners Mabel Hill and Alice Mason conveyed this parcel to the City for public use, "for nominal consideration." Now a descendant is requesting that the City convey the unused portion back "for nominal consideration." 

The City has determined it has no further need for the remaining 5867-square-feet of the parcel. It is now giving the required public notice of the potential conveyance, which can be executed by the City Manager upon the approval of the Mayor and Council on April 13. Residents with questions about the proposed property conveyance, or who wish to submit written comments, can contact Jennifer Wang, senior transportation engineer with the Department of Public Works, at jwang@rockvillemd.gov.

Montgomery County Animal Services shelter reaches critical capacity for large dogs

The Montgomery County Animal Services and Adoption Center (MCASAC) is issuing an urgent appeal for community support as the shelter faces an unprecedented space crisis. In a span of just three days—from March 4 to March 6—the facility took in 29 dogs, pushing the total canine population over 100 and exceeding the shelter’s capacity for care. The situation has reached a tipping point, threatening the shelter's long-standing commitment to animal welfare, and avoidance of euthanasia based solely on space limitations.

With dogs arriving faster than staff and volunteers can safely place them, available kennels have become extremely limited. MCASAC is calling on residents who are able to adopt a large dog to visit the shelter as soon as possible. Adoptions are completed on a first-come, first-served basis, and interested individuals should be prepared to take their new pet home the same day. Visitors are asked to bring a leash and collar to facilitate the process.

If you can take a big dog in for a short stay until the crisis is over, residents can join the MCASAC temporary foster program at no cost. The shelter provides all necessary supplies to those willing to open their homes to a large dog temporarily.

Visiting hours at the shelter are 12:00 PM to 7:00 PM Tuesday through Friday, and 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM on Saturdays and Sundays. The shelter is closed on Mondays. MCASAC is located at 7315 Muncaster Mill Road in Derwood.

Operated by the Office of Animal Services, MCASAC is Montgomery County’s only open-admission municipal shelter. It provides 24-hour emergency response and promotes responsible pet care through education and outreach. For more information on the adoption process or to view available animals, visit www.montgomerycountymd.gov/animalservices.

Char'd opens in Rockville, offering Ramadan specials

Char'd has opened at 11881 Grand Park Avenue at the Pike & Rose development on Rockville Pike. The fast-casual burger restaurant is also welcoming those breaking their Ramadan fast each evening. Through the end of Ramadan on March 19, the restaurant is offering complimentary dates and tea during Iftar hour, and will stay open until midnight each night. The Char'd menu is halal, including the grass-fed beef.

Montgomery County starting work on Hoyles Mill MARC station project

The Montgomery County Department of Transportation is making final preparations to begin work on the Hoyles Mill MARC station project. Utilizing land around the Boyds MARC commuter rail station, including the Anderson property the County acquired for this purpose, several upgrades and amenities will be added to the station. These include construction of a new parking lot, a new Ride On bus loop, sidewalks, a shared-use path, and restrooms for bus drivers. The current parking lot has only 15 spaces that typically fill up fast in the morning; the new lot will provide 55 spaces for commuters, as well as new bicycle parking spots.

In addition to the station improvements, the historic Hoyles Mill structure will be stabilized. It is essentially a ruin, but stabilization is needed to insure it doesn't collapse. Montgomery County has received a total of $590,000 in grants from state agencies for this purpose. According to the Library of Congress, much of the mill's sheathing and internal machinery remain intact, and it is one of a few timber-frame mills that remain standing in Montgomery County.

Overall, the goal of the project is to encourage more ridership for MARC from the Germantown and Clarksburg areas. Massive development was allowed in both, but the County Council engaged in a rug pull with new homebuyers who had expected to commute via a new Corridor Cities Transitway rail line, and M-83 Highway. After they purchased their homes, the Council pulled the plug on both projects. The Hoyles Mill MARC station project was approved in 2019, and is only now moving forward.

Maryland Governor candidate Dan Cox proposes property tax limit

Dan Cox, a Republican candidate for Maryland Governor, has proposed placing a limit on property taxes in the state. The proposal would prevent the assessed property value calculated by the state from increasing above the price the current homeowner paid for the house at the time of purchase. Cox's running mate, Rob Krop, announced the platform plank on social media yesterday. "We need to stop taxing families out of their homes," Krop said. 

Assault at residential intersection in Rockville

Rockville City police responded to a report of an assault in the Silver Rock neighborhood on February 25, 2026. The assault was reported at 10:00 PM at the intersection of Woodburn and Gilbert Roads. A motive for the assault is unknown. Police describe the suspect only as a Hispanic male in his 30s, wearing a Carhartt jacket. If you can identify this suspect, you are asked to call police at 240-314-8900.

CNN host diagnoses an embarrassing Montgomery County Council fiscal problem

CNN host Fareed Zakaria stirred controversy last week when he delivered straight talk on why many jurisdictions like Montgomery County have become simultaneously unaffordable while operating on fiscal thin ice. He mentioned a number of familiar factors, but he articulated a particular problem quite well: The fact that the growth of Montgomery County's budget and spending outstrip every other relevant growth factor from business growth and school enrollment to population growth. We know the County spends way too much, as evidenced by our structural budget deficit and the shocking doubling of the budget's size over just the last decade. But when you compare the lack of growth in these other benchmarks to the steadily ballooning amount of spending, the County Council's reckless budgeting looks truly ridiculous.

For example, looking at the supersizing of the County budget, you would think that Montgomery County was enjoying rapid population growth. But even as the budget has reached one record high after another, MoCo's population has actually been shrinking. The County experienced a net loss of more than 9500 residents between 2020 and 2022, and an additional net domestic migration loss of another 11,153 people between 2022 and 2023. And of course, as we know, the very rich are exiting, and the majority of the people moving in are low-income.

"The arithmetic is brutal," Zakaria said in describing a similar population loss (relative to size) over the same period in New York City. "A larger [tax] bill is divided among fewer payers."

Likewise, the budget of Montgomery County Public Schools has grown to obscene heights, even as enrollment has plummeted this decade. And the more generous the Council is with our taxpayer money toward MCPS, the worse the performance outcomes are. It's literally money flushed down the toilet.

"New York already sits at the extreme end of the American tax spectrum," Zakaria noted. So does Montgomery County, whose residents shoulder the highest total tax and fee burden in the Washington, D.C. region. Incredibly, the County Council is currently proposing to raise property taxes yet again this year, and to massively increase the already-gargantuan real estate recordation tax. Both play a role in the unaffordable housing market. Property taxes have become the equivalent of a second mortgage, and high recordation taxes already dissuade homeowners from selling their properties, reducing supply even further while jacking up prices for struggling buyers. Heckuva job, Brownie!

In Europe, Zakaria adds, the NYC and MoCo-level of extreme taxation earns you perks like "free" healthcare, university education, and "amazing infrastructure." In Montgomery County, you get an unfinished master plan highway system, an unbuilt Potomac River bridge, an unbuilt M-83 Highway, an unbuilt Corridor Cities Transitway rail system, an unbuilt Montrose Parkway East, and no bus service to Damascus on weekends and holidays. Trash collection is down to once a week, and is picked up at the curb, requiring homeowners to do most of the job by hauling bins down to the street and back. Snow from a January storm is still melting on many streets.

Jurisdictions like NYC and Montgomery County, Zakaria concluded, "are out of control, promising more, spending more, delivering less and pushing off the fiscal problems to some future date." And then he dispensed this well-worded diagnosis of a central problem in Montgomery County's "leadership:"

"Unaffordability is what happens when government becomes a machine that grows faster than the society it governs." That is exactly the situation in Montgomery County. In a County that hasn't attracted a single new major corporate headquarters in over 25 years, the only booming growth industry is Montgomery County Government, and the best position to be in is either an elected office chair, or one of the many cronies and crooks in the Montgomery County cartel who receive financial kickbacks of taxpayer funds in the bloated County budget.

Rockville nixes plan to reduce vehicle capacity on Redland Boulevard by 50%

The City of Rockville just did something Montgomery County government never does: admit a War-on-Cars proposal is a bad idea. A plan that would have reduced vehicle capacity by a full 50% on Redland Boulevard in the King Farm area was studied by the City from September 21 to October 17, 2025. The pilot plan turned one lane of Redland in each direction between Gaither Road and Elmcroft Boulevard into full-time parking lanes. Redland Boulevard is part of a major east-west transportation corridor in the County, and carries heavy traffic exiting from I-270 that is headed for MD 355, the Shady Grove Metro station, and the Derwood commercial and industrial areas.

Data collected during the pilot found that vehicle speeds were reduced, and that speed camera citations dropped 98%. However, the loss of 50% of vehicle throughput created significant traffic congestion on eastbound Redland during the peak afternoon/rush hour period. Combined with overwhelming public opposition to the road diet, the City has concluded that the Vision Zero project should not be implemented. Cynics might suggest the City just wants that speed camera money, but Montgomery County regularly ignores public testimony and simply steamrolls ahead with any project that makes driving more painful for their constituents.

Photo courtesy City of Rockville 

AI firm KnowBe4 chooses Virginia over Maryland for D.C.-area office

Maryland Governor Wes Moore has touted artificial intelligence and quantum computing as "lighthouse industries" he wants to develop in the state, but yet another such firm has chosen Northern Virginia over Montgomery County. Florida-based KnowBe4 was seeking a location in the Washington, D.C. area to advance "the company’s continued investment in the public sector and its commitment to helping government organizations address workforce trust management, AI-enabled threats and evolving national security challenges." After an extensive search process, the firm chose Two Liberty Center at 4075 Wilson Boulevard in the Ballston area of Arlington County.

"KnowBe4’s strategic decision to expand its offices into Arlington, VA is a testament to the enduring strength of Arlington as a key destination for companies seeking top talent and a welcoming business climate," Arlington Economic Development Acting Director Kate Ange said in a statement. "KnowBe4 will benefit from a unique and thriving innovation ecosystem of federal cybersecurity policymakers and thought leaders working collaboratively with private enterprises and research institutions, all in Arlington." Meanwhile, Montgomery County and Maryland officials are on the sidelines again, watching helplessly as Virginia continues to eat our lunch just because the radical Marxist totalitarian-left elected officials on our side of the Potomac can't put their ideology aside for the good of their constituents.

Mark Warner, U.S. Senator from Virginia, participated in a ribbon-cutting at the new Arlington office on February 23 (see photo at top). KnowBe4's focus on human and agentic AI risk management is a topic of news headlines on a daily basis at the moment. Economic development in Montgomery County and Maryland is not. MoCo and Maryland haven't attracted a single new major corporate headquarters in over 25 years. Heckuva job, Brownie!

Photo courtesy KnowBe4

Assault at apartment complex in Rockville

Rockville City police responded to a report of a 2nd-degree assault at an apartment complex Thursday afternoon, February 26, 2026. The assault was reported in the parking lot of an apartment property in the 1000 block of Rockville Pike at 4:30 PM Thursday. Woodmont Park apartments are located on that block.

Rockville Pike Chick-Fil-A Grand Reopening set for March 5

After major renovations, the Chick-Fil-A at 12001 Rockville Pike at Montrose Crossing will reopen on March 5, 2026. The restaurant will hold a grand reopening event that day to celebrate. It will open at 6:30 AM, and the first 100 customers will receive a gift bag and a chance to win a year of free Chick-Fil-A. From 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM, customers who have downloaded the Chick-Fil-A app will be given the opportunity to spin a prize wheel to possibly win free food and merchandise. Customers dressed as cows between 5:00 PM and 8:00 PM will get a free Chick-Fil-A "BOG Card" while supplies last. Everyone will have a chance to take a selfie with the Chick-Fil-A Cow all day long.

More signage installed at Char'd burger restaurant in Rockville

The windows are still covered at the future Char'd at 11881 Grand Park Avenue at Pike & Rose. But there's another "sign" of progress outside the highly-anticipated burger restaurant. A new pedestrian-facing blade sign has been installed under the storefront canopy. It joins that tiny logo sign above the storefront. The burgers may literally be bigger than the signs at Char'd!