Saturday, April 2, 2022
Assault in Rockville
City of Rockville police responded to a report of a 2nd-degree assault yesterday afternoon in East Rockville. The victim reported being assaulted in a vehicle in the 400 block of Lincoln Street at 1:00 PM, according to crime data.
Friday, April 1, 2022
Rockville Mayor & Council to hold closed session on Rockville Town Center business location proposal
Rockville's Mayor & Council will meet in a closed session to discuss a significant business proposal related to the Rockville Town Center area on Wednesday, April 6, 2022 at 11:00 AM. The stated purpose of the meeting is to "consider a matter that concerns the proposal for a business or industrial organization to locate, expand, or remain in the Town Center area of the City." This would likely be a matter that involves legal advice and/or a financial outlay by the city, such as an incentive payment tied to job creation, or to convince an existing company to stay.
The city needs a win in the Town Center area, after Choice Hotels announced it planned to move down Rockville Pike to Pike & Rose, despite Rockville going to great lengths to bring the lodging giant to Town Center a little over a decade ago. Alas, closed session means we won't know yet which business entity, and what proposal(s), are being discussed until a later date.
Easter Bunny returns to Montgomery Mall for 2022
The Easter Bunny is back at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. He arrived at the mall today, and will be holding court in the Center Court on Level 1 through Saturday, April 16, 2022. “We are very excited to welcome the Easter Bunny to Westfield Montgomery again this year,” Westfield Montgomery Mall's Senior General Manager Christi Swanson said.
You don't need a reservation for a photo opportunity with the Easter Bunny, but reservations are encouraged. To make a reservation, click here. The Easter Bunny's hours are 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM Monday - Saturday, and 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM Sundays.
Thursday, March 31, 2022
Rockville weather forecast includes strong storms, high wind gusts this afternoon and evening
A wind advisory is in effect for Rockville, and all of Montgomery County and the Washington, D.C. Metro area. The Weather Channel is currently forecasting strong storms to develop in the Rockville area between 2:00 and 3:00 PM this afternoon. A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 10:00 PM this evening. High wind gusts of up to 50 MPH are possible, causing falling trees and limbs, and power outages. Bring any unsecured objects that might blow away inside from yards and balconies.
Radar via The Weather Channel
Indecent exposure in Rockville
City of Rockville police responded to a report of indecent exposure in the King Farm community of Rockville on Tuesday afternoon. The incident was reported in the 900 block of King Farm Boulevard at 2:18 PM, according to crime data. That is a residential block in King Farm near the Sheraton hotel.
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
fye's new toy concept Alex Baby & Toys "opening soon" at Montgomery Mall
The new-concept toy store fye is opening at Westfield Montgomery Mall now has a name: Alex Baby & Toys. Only two locations are currently scheduled to open nationally this year, with the other being at Holyoke Mall in Massachusetts. Here at Montgomery Mall, Alex Baby & Toys will be on Level 1 in the Old Navy wing. The store is currently hiring for all positions, and I'm told it will be "opening soon."
Tuesday, March 29, 2022
Montgomery County transit use, return to offices remains far below pre-pandemic numbers, new data show
New Google Mobility data show life in Montgomery County has yet to resume pre-pandemic patterns over the first three months of 2022, and some activity categories have even declined below their pandemic numbers. Transit use in the county has been even worse this year than it was last fall, dropping from 43% below early 2020 ridership numbers to 48% below in early 2022. Workers are heading back to the office only 1% more so far this year than they were last fall, with residents working on-location 30% less than during the same period before the pandemic in 2020.
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Wheaton Claridge Local Park |
County residents in 2022 so far are still staying home 10% more than they did in early 2020. In a troubling change, residents have actually reduced their time in parks and in grocery and drug stores. Google data during the pandemic months of 2020 and 2021 had showed residents were actually spending more time in parks, grocery stores and drug stores than they were before the pandemic. Now even those categories have gone negative.
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Buses lined up at Rockville Metro station |
Residents spent 5% less time in parks between January 21 and March 4, 2022 than they did over the same period in 2020. They spent 6% less time in grocery and drug stores so far this year than they did in early 2020, which is odd considering that Covid-19 cases were way up when the year started, and shelves were bare for several weeks at grocery stores. And they've spent a whopping 30% less time in other types of retail stores and in recreation activities this year than they did in January - March 2020.
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County residents spent less time shopping at CVS Pharmacy so far this year than they did over the same period in 2020 |
The data collected by Google is limited to those users who have opted in to allowing the tech giant to track their phone's location. It measures both the frequency of visits, and the amount of time those users stay in the places categorized in the results, such as grocery stores, transit stations and parks.