Showing posts with label Maryland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maryland. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Rockville Catholic school students meet Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh


Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh hosted students from a Rockville Catholic school at the court Monday. Eighth graders from St. Elizabeth Catholic School were given the grand tour of the Court building by Kavanaugh, a Catholic and native of Montgomery County. Kavanaugh is well-known for volunteering his time as a basketball coach. His tour brought the students to what the school termed "the highest court in the land," a basketball court located above the courtroom. Kavanaugh also participated in a question-and-answer session with the students. 



Photos courtesy St. Elizabeth Catholic School

Friday, March 8, 2024

Montgomery County's first Wawa opens in Gaithersburg (Photos)


The first Wawa convenience store and mega gas station celebrated its Grand Opening yesterday, March 7, 2024 at 405 S. Frederick Avenue in Gaithersburg. Many of the price promotions for the opening remain in effect through Sunday, as you will see in some of the photos below. The gleaming interior holds, if not every snack you can imagine, every snack you need. 


Located directly across MD 355 from Gaithersburg High School, Wawa has posted a prohibition on having more than two minors inside the store at any time. Backpacks are also prohibited beyond the vestibule of the store. It will be interesting to compare gas prices at this Wawa with competitors Sheetz and Royal Farms up the road in the coming months.





















IKEA sets opening date for first Montgomery County store


IKEA
has set an opening date for its first Montgomery County store, a small-format Plan & Order Point store at 101 Boardwalk Place at Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg. The store will open on Wednesday, March 13, 2024 at 11:00 AM. A grand opening celebration will be held from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM. There will be giveaways, free food (Swedish meatballs?), and free drinks. Attendees will also be able to compete for prizes in the Spin to Win game. See my sneak peek at the Plan & Order Point interior for an idea of what is in store at Montgomery County's first IKEA store.

"We are thrilled to bring the best of IKEA to our DMV neighbors," IKEA U.S. CEO & Chief Sustainability Officer Javier QuiƱones said in a statement. "We’ve seen that customers are still eager for in-person experiences, and we hope that this new Plan and order point with Pick-up provides a new and convenient way to shop."

Saturday, March 2, 2024

11 Maryland sheriffs endorse MDGOP crime agenda

Harford County, Maryland
Sheriff Jeff Gahler

Sheriffs from 11 counties across Maryland have endorsed an anti-crime agenda proposed by the Joint Republican Caucus in the Maryland General Assembly, and are calling on Democrats in Annapolis to back the five-point plan. The agenda would increase penalties for violent criminals and extend their prison sentences, deny bail for repeat offenders, make the theft of a firearm a felony, reverse the ban on traffic stop searches when officers smell marijuana in the vehicle, and "correct recent misguided laws" to restore accountability for juvenile offenders who commit serious crimes. Passage of the plan was endorsed yesterday by the elected sheriffs of Allegheny County, Caroline County, Carroll County, Cecil County, Frederick County, Harford County, Queen Anne's County, Talbot County, Washington County, Wicomico County and Worcester County.

"Maryland is in a crime crisis," Maryland Republican Party Chair Nicole Beus Harris said in a statement.  "While Governor Wes Moore and the rest of the Democrat Leadership deny this fact, pass laws that make the problem worse, or propose modest changes that won’t make a difference, the Republican lawmakers in Annapolis have a comprehensive plan to make Maryland safer. No one understands this crime crisis or the need for statutory changes better than our state’s law enforcement, and that is reflected in the support these top Sheriffs have given to the GOP Public Safety Agenda."

"Whether misinformed or willfully ignorant to the consequences legislated over the last few years, law-abiding citizens, the overwhelming majority of Marylanders, do not support the cruelty they have had to endure due to our elected officials granting clemency to the guilty," Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler said Friday. "Their political correctness does not make us safer; it only generates intolerance and hatred. Those legislators seeking to delegitimize the rule of law, and tear down law enforcement, have recklessly and deliberately caused avoidable harm to all Maryland citizens. Now is the time to shield and protect our communities from the very few among us who seek to cause us harm."


Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Monumental Sports Network to broadcast Old Glory DC pro rugby matches for 2024 season


Monumental Sports Network
has reached an agreement to broadcast 13 of Old Glory DC's Major League Rugby matches during the 2024 season. Old Glory DC plays its home games here in Montgomery County, at the Maryland Soccerplex in Germantown. The season and broadcast schedule will begin with Old Glory DC's road opener against the New Orleans NOLA Gold this coming Saturday, March 2 at 4:00 PM EST. The games streamed by Monumental Sports Network can be watched through your Pay TV subscription on cable TV, on monumentalsportsnetwork.com, or by downloading the Monumental streaming app on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV, and using an "eligible TV Everywhere log-in."

"Monumental Sports Network is the ideal partner to carry Old Glory and bring all the action, intensity and elegance of professional rugby to the entire Greater Washington Region," Old Glory DC Chairman Chris Dunlavey said in a statement Wednesday. "Rugby is the greatest team sport in the world, and Monumental is bringing it to your living room."

“We are thrilled to welcome Old Glory to the Monumental Sports Network family,” Monumental Sports Network VP of Content & Programming Caitlin Mangum said. “We are happy to bolster our live programming lineup and offer D.C.-area sports fans the chance to enjoy this exciting and quickly growing sport.”

The schedule for Old Glory DC matches on Monumental Sports Network will be as follows:

Saturday, March 2 at NOLA Gold at 4pm

Saturday, March 9 at New England Free Jacks at 2pm

Saturday, March 16 vs. Chicago Hounds at 4pm

Saturday, March 23 vs. San Diego Legion at 4pm

Saturday, March 30 at Charlotte Rugby at 6pm

Saturday, April 6 vs. RFC Los Angeles at 5pm

Saturday, April 20 vs. Houston Sabercats at 5pm

Saturday, May 11 at Chicago Hounds at 6pm

Friday, May 24 at Seattle Seawolves at 10:30pm

Saturday, June 1 vs. Charlotte Rugby at 7pm

Saturday, June 8 vs. New England Free Jacks at 7pm

Saturday, June 22 at Miami Sharks at 7:30pm

Saturday, June 29 vs. NOLA Gold at 7pm

Aldi construction begins at Walnut Hill Shopping Center in Gaithersburg


Excitement is in the air at the venerable Walnut Hill Shopping Center at 16529 S. Frederick Avenue in Gaithersburg. Contractor HBW Construction of Rockville has begun work converting the former Weis Markets space for new anchor tenant Aldi. Renovations to update the shopping center's appearance are also underway at the property, as you can see below. 


Continue to patronize your favorite businesses at the center, as despite the tarps and scaffolding, all tenants remain open during the renovations. A second Gaithersburg location of Sheetz will add to the buzz at the shopping center in the future. The City of Gaithersburg recently approved the annexation of Walnut Hill into the city, in large part to secure the agreement with Sheetz. That Sheetz deal became a critical linchpin in Walnut Hill's plan to revitalize the property. Walnut Hill's ownership said the revenue from the Sheetz would finance the renovations to the center, property upgrades that Aldi had required as a condition of its lease. Sheetz opened its first Gaithersburg store last year, and shortly thereafter declared it was "highly-impressed with the performance" of the location.








Saturday, February 24, 2024

Old Glory DC pro rugby team to host open training session for fans today in Germantown


Professional rugby arrives at the Maryland Soccerplex at 18031 Central Park Drive in Germantown today, February 24, 2024. Old Glory DC, a Major League Rugby team, will host an open training session from 1:00 to 3:00 PM this afternoon. In addition to a preview of the team in action, fans can meet the coaches and players after the session ends. Team ambassadors will provide "Rugby 101" explanations and provide real-time match analysis, and food and beverages (including adult beverages) will be available for sale from vendors on-site. Admission to the event is free.

Old Glory DC's new head coach is Simon Cross. This season's roster features stars from 11 countries around the world, including Team Captain Jamason Faanana-Schultz (AUS), DC native Jack Iscaro (USA) Rob Harley (GBR) of the Glasgow Warriors, Damien Hoyland (GBR) of the Edinburgh Rugby Club, Axel Muller (ARG), and Perry Humphreys (GBR). 

The team's season will begin March 2, 2024 with a road game against the New Orleans NOLA Gold. Old Glory DC's home opener at the Soccerplex will be on March 16, when the club hosts the Chicago Hounds. Single match and season tickets can be purchased during today's event, or online.

Thursday, February 22, 2024

Bethesda Black cemetery advocates to protest at Jamie Raskin campaign event tonight


The Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition will hold a protest rally outside of a campaign event for Maryland Congressman Jamie Raskin (D) tonight, February 22, 2024, at 7:00 PM at the Silver Spring Civic Building. Advocates for the desecrated Moses African Cemetery in Bethesda have been seeking Raskin's help in getting federal action on the historic gravesite, which is hidden under parking lots behind the Westwood Tower apartments. BACC President Marsha Coleman-Adebayo says that the cemetery is in Raskin's district, but that he "refuses to condemn the desecration and flooding" of the burial ground.

Those interesting in participating in tonight's protest are asked to meet up at Ben and Jerry's at 903 Ellsworth Drive in Silver Spring (across from the Civic Building) at 6:00 PM tonight. But if you can't get there that early, just head to the Civic Building at 7:00.

Wawa Burtonsville plan advances to Montgomery County Planning Board as Gaithersburg awaits opening


The first Wawa in Montgomery County hasn't even opened yet, and the company is already moving forward on a second. A proposal to open a Wawa convenience store and mega gas station at 15585-15595 Old Columbia Pike in Burtonsville will be reviewed by the Montgomery County Planning Boad at its February 29, 2024 meeting. Montgomery County planners are recommending approval of the project, with conditions. Wawa will need to obtain a special exception from Montgomery County to accommodate the project's size, and comply with conditions of a forest conservation plan, before it can pull permits to construct the store. 

The site is currently home to a 7-Eleven, a gas station, and a Mattress Barn store. All would be demolished to make way for the Wawa.


The property owners have proposed construction of a new signalized intersection to facilitate safer ingress and egress from the Wawa onto Old Columbia Pike. They have also agreed to construct a 10'-wide "sidepath" along Old Columbia Pike, and a 16'-wide "bike breezeway" (first time I've heard this term in Montgomery County planning) along the ramp to Route 29. A new trash enclosure would be constructed, and up to nine electric vehicle charging spaces would be provided at the Wawa.




Sunday, February 11, 2024

Rockville Lunar New Year celebration set for February 17, 2024


Save the date for the City of Rockville's annual Lunar New Year celebration this coming Saturday, February 17, 2024 from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM, at Rockville High School at 2100 Baltimore Road. Celebrate the good luck of the Year of the Dragon with live cultural performances, interactive displays, craft activities for kids, and to-go snack boxes (while supplies last). Admission is free. The event is co-sponsored by the Asian Pacific American Task Force.

Saturday, February 10, 2024

Larry Hogan announces run for U.S. Senate in Maryland

Larry Hogan, with wife Yumi,
files for U.S. Senate race at the
Maryland Board of Elections office in
Annapolis Friday

Former Maryland Larry Hogan (R) has finally come to his senses, and is running for the one office he might have a chance to win in 2024, the Maryland U.S. Senate seat of the retiring Ben Cardin (D). The question that will be answered in November: Did Hogan's decision come too late? Hogan announced his entry into the race Friday afternoon. Since leaving office in January 2023, the former governor has been exploring a potential run for U.S. President - - initially as a Republican, then as part of a bipartisan ticket under the No Labels platform.

Hogan is the strongest candidate for the U.S. Senate the Maryland GOP has been able to muster in decades. He might have even been the favorite in the race, had he segued directly from being a popular governor with bipartisan support to the Senate campaign. But Hogan's presidential ambitions have enraged both the Donald Trump-loving base of the GOP, and Democrats and independent voters who fear a No Labels ticket will end up sending Trump back to the White House in 2025. 

Once praised by Democrats for his willingness to trash Trump on the national stage, Hogan has received more jeers than cheers on social media for his No Labels adventure and U.S. Senate announcement. And Trump supporters, who still remember Hogan verbally pummeling Republican gubernatorial nominee Dan Cox throughout the 2022 election season, were already lashing "Lockdown Larry" online within minutes of his announcement Friday.

The initial raw feelings will likely give way to a suddenly serious race for the U.S. Senate in Maryland. One big winner after Hogan's announcement: local broadcasters, who are going to enjoy an infusion of cash from the Republican National Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee and GOP dark money groups. MAGA Republicans may not be enthused to vote for Hogan, but the multinational corporations behind various superPACs suddenly see a Senate seat that could be flipped from blue to red by an establishment Reagan Republican.

The biggest losers from Hogan's entry? Democratic candidate Angela Alsobrooks, as national and Maryland Democratic strategists grapple with the fact that only David Trone will be able to dominate the money race in a contest with Hogan. And Republican Robin Ficker, who was the frontrunner in the GOP primary race until yesterday afternoon. Ficker had the most money, and greatest name recognition, among the GOP candidates prior to Hogan's announcement.

Trone vs. Hogan would likely be a premier matchup this fall, with money and national surrogates pouring into the state. The advantage has to go to Trone at the moment. He not only has unlimited funds from his own pocket, but his friends include Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Trone has even hosted fundraisers with Obama and Bill Clinton -- in person -- at his home.

Another big problem for Hogan: abortion. The word you will hear the most from summer to fall in 2024: Abortion, abortion, abortion. It will be coming from your television speakers during every commercial break. The abortion issue could provide Democrats with a clean sweep of the White House, U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate in November. It's been a winning issue for Democrats in blue and red states alike, since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. It's an issue Hogan will have to skillfully navigate, as in that context, few Democrats will want to help tip the Senate back to the GOP by voting for Larry Hogan.

Still, even Trone hasn't been able to buy a seat in Congress every time he's run, losing his first primary contest to Jamie Raskin. Trone doesn't have much support among Republicans, except when compared to more-progressive candidates in his party. On balance, Hogan is remembered by independent and moderate voters in both major parties as a popular governor who ran the state well for eight years. He has much more name recognition statewide than Trone. But he doesn't have the razor-thin advantage he might have had, if he had gone directly into the race from Government House in 2023.

Photo courtesy Hogan for Maryland

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

MD Retailers Association revives effort to allow beer, wine sales in Maryland grocery stores

MRA poster inside Harris Teeter

One of the biggest shocks to the system many new residents of Montgomery County experience, is the moment they learn they cannot purchase beer or wine at their local grocery store or convenience store. They quickly become familiar with Montgomery County's government monopoly on alcohol sales, and the archaic liquor laws of MoCo and Maryland. Restaurateurs and retailers frustrated with the status quo that reduces the profit margins of their businesses - and puts them at a disadvantage when competing against their rivals in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia - made a push to change these laws in the last decade. The effort ran out of steam when no significant media campaign or financial contributions were employed to directly boost the candidates for office who would vote to overturn the Prohibition-style system.

Now the Maryland Retailers Association is reviving the campaign with a new website, and posters such as the one seen above this week in County supermarkets. There is a lot of information and data on the website. It has an easy way to contact your elected officials to encourage them to modernize our liquor laws. Whether the effort will be any more successful than the last remains to be seen.

If the MRA and business owners don't write fat checks to the candidates who will vote to change the laws, and won't publicly endorse those candidates and send glossy mailers with a list of their names to every voter, the campaign will fail again. Most of the articles linked to on the website are from media outlets who strongly support the incumbents and candidates who favor and will preserve the ossified government liquor monopoly we have now. That's not exactly a smart way to propagandize the public in favor of liquor reform, folks.

Former Maryland Gov. Bob Ehrlich was prophetic about many things. He was savagely pilloried by local officials and the media during his time in office for supporting casinos and bus rapid transit. Both later became policy cornerstones of the Montgomery County and Maryland political machines of his most-venomous opponents. One other thing he used to say that has aged very well: Until business owners "get dangerous," and actually back candidates - Democratic, Republican, Green, independent - who will vote their way, nothing will change. The MRA has a nice website. But their campaign doesn't sound very "dangerous" yet.

Thursday, February 1, 2024

Another attempt to restore Office of the People's Counsel in Montgomery County


Montgomery County's government bodies - Board of Education, Montgomery Parks, the Montgomery County Planning Board, to name three recent examples - are in disarray, and have been embroiled in scandals. Incredibly, while holding oversight power, the County Council has actively chosen to not restore funding for a position that can help hold the County's planning authorities (including the Council itself) more accountable to residents and taxpayers: The Office of the People's Counsel. Never a popular position among the developers who have funded most or all of the councilmembers' campaigns this century, depending upon which Council term is under discussion, the OPC was axed in 2010 when the Council finally had an excuse to do so: a budget crisis of their own making. But in 2023, more than a decade after the "Great Recession" ended, the current Council still voted against restoring funding for the OPC.


Fed-up residents and responsible growth advocates are launching a new attempt to persuade councilmembers - some of whom vowed to fund the OPC, but then betrayed the voters and organizations they made the vow to, once in office - to restore the OPC in the FY-2025 budget. The Montgomery Countryside Alliance, which works to protect rural areas, open space and streams from impacts of overdevelopment, is taking a leadership role by creating an easy form to send a brief message to the County Council in support of funding for the OPC.


For those not familiar, the OPC is (or was!) a land-use attorney who provides free advice and technical information to residents regarding development and land-use issues. Residents, most of whom cannot afford the kind of powerhouse legal representation that developers and the County itself have at their disposal, can therefore be better prepared to defend their interests before the Planning Board, County Council and hearing examiners. The OPC can also point out when the Board or Council is in violation of the rules or breaking the law, which non-land-use-attorney citizens may not be able to recognize their own. Perhaps most importantly, the People's Counsel can represent residents' interests in administrative hearings.


Boosting hopes for the return of this critical County government position is Bill PG/MC 112-24 at the Maryland General Assembly in Annapolis, which is sponsored by Senator Ben Kramer of Montgomery County. Senator Kramer has also been a leading voice to make the planning process in the County more directly accountable to residents, such as considering proposals to move some aspects of planning under the executive branch of County government. Kramer's bill would fully fund the Office of the People's Counsel in Montgomery County, just as other jurisdictions like Prince George's County have. In other words, Kramer is saying to the Council, "if you won't do it, we will." But, if you don't use this form to send a message to the Council and the full Montgomery County delegation to Annapolis in favor of funding the OPC, they might not!

Thursday, January 25, 2024

Maryland U.S. Senate candidate Robin Ficker endorses Donald Trump for President


Maryland U.S. Senate candidate Robin Ficker (R) has endorsed Donald Trump for President, the Boyds resident and attorney announced in a press release timed to coincide with Trump's second consecutive victory of the 2024 primary season. The endorsement isn't likely to help Ficker much in the general election, in a state where Trump has some of his lowest popularity numbers in the nation. But, barring former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan coming to his political senses, Ficker has a very good chance to be the GOP nominee in the race this November. He is the only declared Republican candidate in the race with statewide name recognition, as both a former elected member of the House of Delegates and a notorious Washington Bullets superfan seen on TV reports from coast to coast over the decades.

"It's time for us to coalesce behind the only Presidential Candidate capable of restoring logic to our government," Ficker said in a statement. "President Trump is the only candidate with a proven track record of historically low unemployment, safer communities, and lower energy prices. Together, President Trump and I will secure our Southern border. Together, President Trump and I will stop the flow of fentanyl across our border and onto our streets. President Trump and I will take swift and decisive action to protect our communities and secure our border.

"President Trump and I will bring the country into a new, prosperous economic age and help the United States become energy independent again, pursuing an ‘all-of-the-above’ approach to our energy sector. President Biden has failed in every one of these categories. The choice is clear. Reject Biden's policies in the ballot box this November and vote for Donald J. Trump!"

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

Best Buy shelves growing bare as promised 2024 phaseout of physical media begins (Photos)


The DVD and Blu-Ray shelves are growing spare, if not quite bare, at Best Buy stores nationwide. The big box electronics chain announced last fall that it would phase out such physical media in 2024, and it's one New Year's resolution that's being kept. While 4K, Blu-Ray and DVD movies are still being manufactured, Best Buy won't be stocking them as they're released anymore. You can see the policy change beginning to take effect at this Best Buy store at 10901 Georgia Avenue in Wheaton. 


It's been a long time since I've bought a physical copy of a movie. For me, it wasn't so much the convenience of digital or streaming films, but the fact that fewer and fewer releases came with deluxe packaging and collectible items inside. When all you get is an expensive steelbook case and the disc(s) inside, there's little incentive to buy the physical product anymore. And behind-the-scenes features on many discs seem to get illegally uploaded to YouTube eventually, where they can be viewed for free.