Peeping Tom at Rockville hotel

Rockville City police responded to a report of a Peeping Tom at a hotel early Saturday night, May 25, 2024. The incident was reported at a hotel in the unit block of Research Court at 7:46 PM. There are two hotels on that block.

Black cemetery advocates call for boycott of Montgomery County Juneteenth events

Advocates protesting the ongoing desecration of Moses African Cemetery in Bethesda are calling for a boycott of Montgomery County government-sponsored Juneteenth 2024 events. The Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition is organizing the boycott to highlight the failure of Montgomery County elected officials at the local, state and federal levels to condemn the desecration and intervene in the matter. BACC is asking residents to instead attend an alternative slate of Juneteenth events that it will be sponsoring.

The BACC Juneteenth events will include an interfaith program on June 15, 2024 at 1:00 PM at Macedonia Baptist Church at 5119 River Road in Bethesda, and a community program on June 19 from 3:00 to 6:00 PM at the church that will include speakers, food and cultural performances. Further details on the June 19 event are pending.

BACC announced the planned boycott yesterday, Memorial Day, by also recognizing an American Civil War veteran who is buried in Moses African Cemetery. Pvt. William H.H. Brown served in the 30th United States Colored Troops (USCT) Regiment. The 30th is credited with exhibiting incredible heroism in many critical events and battles, in the service of a Union that had given them nothing up to that point in its history. 

A Maryland state archive lists a Pvt. William H. Brown as having been mustered into Company E of the 30th on March 3, 1864. The record indicates Pvt. Brown was honorably discharged, like a majority of the 30th, on December 10, 1865.

The biggest of BACC's alternative Juneteenth events will be a celebration of Brown's service and heroism on June 18 at 1:00 PM, beginning at Macedonia Baptist Church. An honor guard of 30th USCT Regiment Civil War reenactors will lead a march from the church to the nearby Moses African Cemetery. There, they will lay a wreath, raise the Juneteenth flag, and sound Taps. The public is invited to join the march and ceremony. 

Private Brown is one of many whose graves either remain under a parking lot alongside and behind the Westwood Tower apartments in Bethesda, or whose remains were directly desecrated and illegally relocated into a mass grave elsewhere on the site. Montgomery County has blocked all attempts to conduct any independent archaeological examination of the two recognized cemetery parcels, one of which it already owned via the Housing Opportunity Commission's ownership of Westwood Tower, and the other - located across the Willett Branch stream from Westwood Tower's rear parking lot - it hastily acquired to prevent any search for remains.

A third parcel directly adjacent to the second is now being developed as a self-storage building by a private company. While that parcel was not officially part of the cemetery, concerns were raised during the project approval process in 2017 about burials that may have occurred just over the property line of the graveyard, a phenomenon not unusual in cemeteries of that era where boundaries may not have been physically delineated. Those concerns were brushed aside by the Montgomery County Planning Board, who called in armed police to intimidate cemetery advocates peacefully protesting at the public hearing. In addition to demanding silence of the protesters, officers ordered them to turn their signs around to the blank side.

The self-storage project has faced many delays since its approval. When excavation commenced, observers with the BACC reported seeing possible bones and funerary objects being removed from the site. An archaeological expert employed by the developer declared that the materials were not human remains or funerary objects, and they were trucked away and stored in a Virginia warehouse at an unknown location. The BACC and its own expert asked why, if the developer's expert was correct, they could not have a chance to examine the items themselves.

BACC officials have asked Montgomery County elected officials at the local, state and federal levels to condemn the desecration of the cemetery, and to intervene in several respects, including the release of the excavated materials for independent review. None have done so. 

The cemetery and Macedonia Baptist Church are the only physical remnants of a vibrant Black community that existed in the now-industrialized and commercialized area along River Road between Brookside Drive and Little Falls Parkway. Former slaves emancipated from the adjacent Loughborough plantation established the community after the Civil War. A River Road "colored school" provided education prior to desegregation of public schools. The community's descendants were forced from the land in the 1950s and 1960s by developers via various illegal or unethical means. 

Former resident Harvey Matthews - who grew up on a property now home to a Whole Foods Market - has cited the deceptions and intimidations employed by developers, including physical threats and actual violence by a local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan. He recalls that he and his family were beaten by Klansmen. Montgomery County government and law enforcement looked the other way at the time, and not only allowed the Black community to be forced out, but completely eliminated its history from the official County historical narrative.

The HOC recently violated Maryland law by trying to sell the cemetery property to a private developer, without contacting the descendants of those buried there. That matter is now before the Maryland Supreme Court. A recent concrete pour at the self-storage construction site only further angered the descendant community.

"This is the level of vile barbarism [and] White supremacy that is unmatched in history," BACC President Marsha Coleman-Adebayo said on WPFW FM last week, citing the shocking fate of Pvt. Brown's remains. "This is how Montgomery County, Maryland celebrates Juneteenth, and this is why the BACC calls for boycott of the Montgomery County Juneteenth program."

Photo of 30th USCT Regiment provided by BACC

Rockville thief with green thumb steals 15 plants

A thief with a green thumb allegedly stole 15 plants in the Rockshire neighborhood on May 16 or 17, 2024, Rockville City police report. The 15 plants had been left "unattended" between 5:15 PM on May 16 and 12:53 PM on May 17, and were stolen during that time. It was not specified if the plants were at the Wootton's Mill Community Garden, or at a private home across the street. Police have not released a description of the suspect(s) as of this writing. If you have any information about this incident, call police at 240-314-8900.

Rockville Target offers Prince for Target pickleball collection

Target has added a small pickleball section to most of its stores, in cooperation with sporting goods brand Prince. Called "Pickleball Point," it appears to have everything a beginner needs to get started. The section is an exclusive partnership between Target and Prince, and is planned to be a limited-time promotion. Among the 80 items in the "Prince for Target" collection are retro track suits and pleated skirts, as well as paddles with colors that match the apparel. Target says the merchandise will be available "while supplies last." Pricing starts at $9.99, and most items are under $50. Hopefully they won't be Target-ed by the Rockville pickleball thieves.

Rockville convenience store robbed

Rockville City police responded to a report of a robbery at a convenience store Thursday afternoon, May 23, 2024. The robbery was reported at a store in the 800 block of Baltimore Road at 3:46 PM Thursday. That is at the Burgundy Park Shopping Center. A 7-Eleven in that shopping center was robbed last December.

Dawson's Market closing at Rockville Town Square

Dawson's Market is closing at 225 N. Washington Street at Rockville Town Square. The grocery store, which threatened to shutter before until the City of Rockville (a.k.a. you, the taxpayer) stepped in to provide a financial subsidy, will close at the end of June, owner Bart Yablonsky told The MoCo Show in a statement yesterday. I noticed the store was selling off a lot of kitchen equipment and cafe seating back in February (in fact, the auction listing remains online). When I messaged Dawson's Market on February 7 about the reason for liquidating so many items, the store declined to respond. The auction went forward on February 12, and the store remained open. No closure announcement has been posted on the Dawson's Market website or social media accounts as of this writing.

The departure of Dawson's is yet another blow to the struggling Rockville Town Square and Town Center, though the grocery store part of the development was troubled from the beginning. Major supermarket chains balked at the space that the original developer had built on spec with a grocery tenant in mind, finding it too small and hidden at the back of the property. Perhaps now that chains like Aldi, Lidl and Trader Joe's are in major expansion mode, and utilize smaller store footprints than Giant or Safeway, a bigger-drawing brand name will be willing to take another look at this opportunity. The typical Aldi is 22,000-square-feet, while a Trader Joe's can be only 10,000-15,000 SF.

Despite the fact that Dawson's wasn't what the original developer had in mind for this space, the unique selection of products and prepared foods, and events like wine tastings, helped it build a loyal-if-not-financially-sustainable customer base. Morguard, the new property owner of Rockville Town Square, now has the grocery store space and the long-vacant and large former American Tap Room, CVS Pharmacy, and Gordon Biersch spaces to fill. The company having its base in Canada probably isn't doing a Maryland property any favors, but Morguard doesn't even list the vacant RTS storefronts on its Leasing page.

Insurers are price-gouging Maryland residents: Why they're getting away with it

Maryland residents are paying outrageous premiums for health insurance, auto insurance and homeowner's insurance. It is price-gouging, pure and simple. But Maryland lawmakers recently concluded their 2024 legislative session without taking any action to protect their constituents from these predatory premiums. And now we know why.

Insurance companies are among the biggest financial contributors to our elected officials in Annapolis. As a result, a Democratic-controlled general assembly is treating insurance firms the way our Montgomery County Council treats the real estate development industry: with a hands-off, libertarian-Republican, brass knuckle capitalist approach that Ayn Rand and Ronald Reagan could endorse.

Most of us expected that the more years we drove while maintaining a good driving record would lower our insurance costs. Instead, premiums continue to skyrocket to record heights. In the case of auto insurance, we have been twice-victimized by our elected officials. Not only have they failed to protect us from premium price-gouging, but their soft-on-crime approach has given insurers a handy excuse to claim that all of the stolen vehicles are costing them money.

Here's a look inside the insurance companies' checkbooks, and your governor's, legislative leaders' and Montgomery County legislators' campaign treasure chests. The contributions listed below are only a portion of the donations made, and primarily cover the period from 2022 to 2024. Elected officials listed are A) Governor Wes Moore, B) State Senate President Bill Ferguson, C) Speaker of the House Adrienne Jones, D) Gov. Moore/Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller's Inaugural Committee, and E) Montgomery County delegates and state senators.

Liberty Mutual

2022:

$500 Eric Luedtke

$1500 Jeff Waldstreicher

$1000 Will Smith

$1000 Brian Feldman

2021

$250 Nancy King

$750 Will Smith

$250 Brian Feldman

GEICO

2021

$250 Jeff Waldstreicher

$250 Ben Kramer

$250 Brian Feldman

State Farm 

2023

$1000 Bill Ferguson

2022

$750 Bill Ferguson

$250 Will Smith

 

2021

$500 Brian Feldman

2020

$1000 Bill Ferguson

$2000 Will Smith

Carefirst Blue Cross

Since 2022

$1000 Wes Moore

$1000 Will Smith

$2000 Brian Feldman

$500 Marc Korman

$500 Jheanelle Wilkins

$250 Ben Kramer

$6000 Bill Ferguson

$30,000 Moore-Miller Inaugural Committee

$500 Bonnie Cullison

$2000 Democratic Senate Caucus Committee

$500 Kumar Barve

$500 Eric Luedtke

Nationwide 

Since 2020

$3500 Will Smith

$1000 House Democratic Caucus Committee

Farmers

$30,000 Moore-Miller Inaugural Committee

$6000 Brian Feldman

Erie Insurance

$1750 Jeff Waldstreicher

$2000 Adrienne Jones

$1500 Will Smith

$5000 Wes Moore

$500 Ben Kramer

$750 Brian Feldman

USAA 

Since 2020

$250 Jeff Waldstreicher

$500 Will Smith

$1000 Adrienne Jones

Cigna 

Since 2022

$750 Bonnie Cullison

$750 Ariana Kelly

$3000 Wes Moore

$1500 Adrienne Jones

$750 Brian Feldman

United Healthcare

$30,000 Moore-Miller Inaugural Committee