Pie 360, Taipei Tokyo latest restaurant tenants at Galvan in Rockville

Just a week after Dunkin' Donuts announced it was opening a new store in the JBG Companies' Galvan development, two other eateries have signed on. Pie 360 and Taipei Tokyo will join anchor tenant Safeway at the mixed-use residential project, now under construction at 1800 Rockville Pike. The development is within walking distance of the Twinbrook Metro station.

Pie 360 is a new venture by Coal Fire, and is the latest entry in the new customizable pizza trend. Like Blaze Pizza and &pizza, customers will select every component of the pizza Chipotle-style, and it will be cooked in just a few minutes. Their menu also features panini, salads and desserts, which include a popular banana pudding. Pie 360 has an existing location in Baltimore, and others planned for Alexandria and the District.

Taipei Tokyo will occupy a 4,447 SF space; Pie 360's will be only 2,007 SF.

Galvan is expected to deliver in late 2015; Dunkin' Donuts will open in 2016, as I reported last week.

Yesterday, Davis Construction workers at the Galvan site enjoyed a preview of Pie 360's menu, as the Coal Fire company provided lunch for them. The crew sat down to a feast of 480 slices of pizza, 180 sub slices, and six trays of pasta. And, of course, hundreds of cold drinks, as temperatures reached the upper 90s.

Photos courtesy Maier & Warner

Rockville acts to avoid becoming "safe haven" for massage parlors, prostitution

Rockville's Mayor and Council voted unanimously last night to approve an ordinance that would apply Montgomery County laws to massage parlors in the city. An effort spearheaded by Councilmember Beryl Feinberg led to the measure introduced by Rockville Police Chief Terry Treschuk, which would allow the city to cooperate with Montgomery County Police and Department of Permitting Services in the regulation of "bodywork" businesses like massage spas.

Much like the recent county regulations, the aim of the city ordinance is to fight the growth of human trafficking and prostitution in such enterprises. The growing immigrant population has led to an increase in victims of both crimes who, due to language or fear of being deported, may be unable to seek help from police easily.

The change in the county rules led to concerns that illegal spa businesses squeezed elsewhere in Montgomery would seek refuge in Rockville, making it a "safe haven" for prostitution and human trafficking. Feinberg said about 60 such illegal enterprises have been closed by the county since the new rules went into effect, which created the urgency to extend those rules to the city.

The Mayor and Council voted unanimously to waive the review period for the ordinance, to get the rules into place as quickly as possible.

Rockville city staff member to join MoCo Council panel discussion on Rockville Confederate statue

The absence of Councilmember Tom Moore at last night's Mayor and Council meeting resulted in little argument over the next steps the City of Rockville will take regarding the controversial Confederate statue at the Red Brick Courthouse. In fact, the Mayor and Council ended up voting unanimously on the next communication that will be sent to the Montgomery County Executive and Council on the matter. That email will thank County Executive Ike Leggett for his decision on the statue, and quickly removing the graffiti that defaced it last week. It will also name a city staff member to serve on the County Council task force that will discuss the ultimate fate of the statue beginning August 11.

Leggett's decision was to remove the statue from the courthouse grounds. What remains undecided, is where it will be relocated to.

Councilmember Virginia Onley addressed her decision to withdraw her support for Moore's aborted letter to Leggett, and sign on to a new letter with Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton and Councilmember Beryl Feinberg. Onley said two specific points influenced her choice. First, Moore's letter implied the Mayor and Council had voted on issues they had never actually taken a vote on. Secondly, Moore's suggestion of moving the statue to the Beall-Dawson House was actually impossible, Onley noted. The house is owned by the city, but is rented by the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Resident Joe Jordan criticized Moore's media attacks on the mayor in recent days. In remarks made during the Community Forum segment of the meeting, Jordan took Moore to task for his inflammatory language, in which Moore described Newton as "lawless and unprofessional." Such attacks were "just wrong," Jordan said, and asked that the bickering stop.

The staff member who will represent the city in the discussions will be selected by the City Manager.

Mustache Cafe and Hookah Bar opens in Rockville (Photos)

You won't have to wait for Movember to go to the Mustache Cafe in Rockville. The cafe and hookah bar is open now at 1 Dawson Avenue, right off N. Washington Street. Their website at mustache.cafe is only a mustache as of press time.

The main draw here is hookah more than as a cafe, adding another lounge hangout alternative for tobacco aficionados to the existing Sam's Hookah Bar & Cafe and Vape Ink in Rockville.

Rockville Confederate statue walled in by Montgomery County (Photos)

Montgomery County has "boxed up" the controversial Confederate statue on the grounds of the Red Brick Courthouse, placing wooden walls around it. Only the soldier's head is now visible. This is ostensibly to prevent further vandalism of the statue before it can be relocated.

The future of the statue is expected to be discussed by the Mayor and Council at their meeting Monday evening. However, the city's Historic District Commission must weigh in on the matter, and they are not scheduled to meet until September 17.

John Moser to be recognized at Rockville Mayor and Council meeting this Monday, August 3

The late John Moser, a longtime volunteer and familiar face to residents of Rockville, will be formally recognized by the Mayor and Council Monday night for his years of service to the city. Among his many roles, Moser served as chair of the Rockville Arts Commission.

Moser was a major proponent of ensuring public art be a prominent aspect of future development in the city, including in its revitalized town center. That is probably his most obvious legacy to the city.

Conspicuously missing from the agenda for Monday's meeting, is a formal agenda item for discussion of the Confederate statue, which is expected to be a topic that evening.

Rockville construction update: Renaissance Street (Photos)

Here's an updated set of photos from the newest street in Rockville Town Center, temporarily known as Renaissance Street. As you may recall, Choice Hotels has asked the city to consider renaming the street, which has a moniker uncomfortably similar to a competing hotel brand.

The Rockville Planning Commission is expected to act on the request at next week's meeting.