Rockville delivery driver robbed at gunpoint

Rockville City police responded to a report of an armed robbery in the Fallsgrove area yesterday afternoon, February 18, 2023. A delivery driver was stopped in the 700 block of Fallsgrove Drive near the Thomas Farm Community Center at 4:00 PM. Two male suspects in their late teens or early twenties approached the driver and displayed a handgun. They demanded cash, and the delivery driver complied.

The suspects fled on foot, and the victim was not injured, police say. No physical description of the two suspects was given by police, but they were wearing all-black clothing. Anyone with information about this incident, or about the suspects, is asked to call RCPD Criminal Investigations detectives at 240-314-8938.

Maryland "closely monitoring" air quality after toxic East Palestine, Ohio train derailment

Maryland Department of the Environment
air quality monitoring station

More than a few Maryland residents have been wondering if the toxic chemicals released into waterways and the air from the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment might have any environmental or health impacts here. The Maryland Department of the Environment has been "closely monitoring the situation," MDE spokesperson Jay Apperson said Friday evening. Department officials have been focused on impacts from the air, as Apperson said the runoff into the Ohio River will not affect Maryland waterways.

There has been speculation online that pollution such as airborne particulates or acid rain caused by the derailment, and by the controversial clean-up effort of toxic substances from the train cars, could impact neighboring states. Some satellite images shared on social media depicting a plume cloud from the controlled burn-off of chemicals at the crash site showed it passing over Western Maryland at times. 

But Apperson said the state has so far found nothing of concern within our borders. MDE's air quality monitoring station in Garrett County "shows no effect on levels of gas or particulate matter" as of last night, he reported. "The department will continue to monitor and evaluate the situation," Apperson added.

Photo courtesy MDE

Rise Southern Biscuits & Righteous Chicken sets opening date in Rockville

The wait is about to come to an end at Rise Southern Biscuits & Righteous Chicken at 16248 Frederick Road in Rockville. Rise will open at 7:00 AM this coming Sunday, February 19, 2023 at 7:00 AM. A grand opening event will be held later on, in March. Rise is located in the new Rock Grove Shopping Center.

Rockville brewery launches Mardi Gras-themed beer with all-day party today

Toast Mardi Gras with a beer inspired by the holiday today at True Respite Brewing Company at 7301 Calhoun Place, #600, located off of E. Gude Drive in Rockville. The brewery is rolling out its limited-edition Party Gras, a 6.3% ABV fruited sour ale fermented with passionfruit, and conditioned on tangerine, lime, and a touch of rum extract with an all-day Mardi Gras party today, February 17, 2023. Special guests will include the Calypso N' Roux food truck selling Cajun food, Zydeco band Little Red & the Renegades, and Twitch-streaming tarot coach Skye Marinda.

Photo courtesy True Respite

Tuesday Morning closing stores in Rockville and Aspen Hill

Tuesday Morning will close its stores at Congressional Plaza in Rockville, and at Northgate Plaza in Aspen Hill, the company announced. A closing sale is underway, that includes all merchandise, the company said in an announcement. The Dallas-based home goods retailer said it is closing more than half of its stores, but the closures will have to be approved by a bankruptcy court, Business Insider reports. Tuesday Morning filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Texas on...Tuesday morning.

Rockville police warn of increase in thefts from vehicles this week

Rockville City police report an increase in thefts from vehicles in several communities across Rockville over the last few days. Many of these vehicles had been left unlocked, police said. In cases where the doors had been locked, valuables like purses had been left in plain view inside the vehicle. Thieves then smashed windows to grab those items. The police department exhorted residents in a social media post to "lock it or lose it," and to never leave valuables where they are visible, as thieves are very active in Rockville at the moment.

Rockville Amazon Fresh store: "Go big," or go home?

A long-completed but yet-to-open Amazon Fresh store filled with empty shelves on Shady Grove Road has become the local poster child for a nationwide freeze on Amazon's expansion plans in the grocery sector. Amazon successfully opened Amazon Fresh stores in Friendship Heights and Chevy Chase Lake, but the 270 Center store on the border of Rockville and Gaithersburg has been frozen in time since the fall of 2022. Yesterday, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy offered the first update on the cloudy future of the retail giant's bricks-and-mortar grocery adventure to the Financial Times, and it was a vaguely positive one.

Empty shelves inside the completed-but-unopened
Shady Grove Amazon Fresh store

Amazon plans to "go big" on expansion of its physical grocery stores this year, Jassy said in an exclusive interview with the FT. He said the halt he ordered on the openings and leasing of new locations cost the company $720 million in Q4 of 2022, and blamed the problems that warranted the pause on the pandemic. He said that now "we're hopeful that in 2023 we have a format we want to go big on, on the physical side."

That sounds like we can expect the Shady Grove store to go forward this year, and that the hysterical forecasts of all Amazon Fresh stores closing will prove to have been premature. Surprisingly, Jassy sounded more bullish on bricks-and-mortar stores than on the company's Amazon Fresh online delivery service, saying "people want to actually touch and feel" the foods they are buying before making a purchase. The FT noted that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos had promised to remain engaged on the grocery push after stepping aside as CEO in 2021. It's likely Bezos wasn't too pleased to hear the company hesitate on a plan that was meant to facilitate major growth in Amazon's online same-day-delivery service, which is dependent upon having neighborhood hubs like the Amazon Fresh grocery stores function as warehouses.

Bezos has a home in Washington, D.C. You can be sure he is going to be monitoring the progress of a Shady Grove store that is practically right under his nose in Montgomery County.