Amazon Fresh Shady Grove Road store opening soon in reversal of plans by retail giant (Photos)

Amazon will open its Amazon Fresh grocery store at 15790 Shady Grove Road at the 270 Center on the border of Rockville and Gaithersburg after all, according to signage posted at the property. This saga began when I broke the story about Amazon leasing the space way back on September 1, 2020. The retail giant completed the interior fit-out of the store by the late summer of 2022, and spent months installing its Just Walk Out system electronics. It then postponed the grand opening to 2023, only to abruptly remove all signage from the building in April of 2023. Many other Amazon Fresh stores - some of them fully-constructed like the Shady Grove location - were also "paused" or canceled around the same time.

But after 14 months of abandonment of the project, Amazon suddenly posted help wanted ads for the Shady Grove Road store at the start of this month. Was this a glitch in Amazon's job site? On June 5, I emailed all three leasing representatives for 270 Center to ask if Amazon had reversed its decision. All three declined to reply to my inquiries. 

The secret can no longer be contained, however. On Sunday, a large banner was posted on the blank storefront with the familiar Amazon logo. Inside the store, more Amazon signage is visible. Parking space reservation signs for curbside pickup and Amazon Flex drivers are massed in the store's vestibule. And self-checkout machines are not only in place, but are activated with lit screens. 

Amazon's decision to go forward with the store is a triple win for the community. It will greatly increase foot traffic to 270 Center and its other tenants, a benefit the property owner has had to wait for nearly four years to realize. Second, Amazon Fresh delivery will now be extended to parts of the area where it has been unavailable. Finally, along with the new Aldi at the Walnut Hill Shopping Center, south Gaithersburg, Derwood, and upper Rockville residents will now have two grocery stores whose business models are centered around competitive pricing. Aldi is expected to open in July; Amazon has not announced the opening date for the Amazon Fresh as of this writing.

Dirty Dough opening in Rockville

Cookies are most definitely the new cupcakes and fried ice cream rolls. And here comes the latest entry in the latest trend, Dirty Dough. The rapidly-expanding chain has leased a space at 36-B Maryland Avenue at Rockville Town Square. How does Dirty Dough differentiate itself from the Crumbl Cookies, Levain Bakeries, and Chip Cities of the world? With stuffed fillings that render their creations not as mere cookies, but "super-stuffed cookie bombs." 

Like the competition, Dirty Dough is constantly producing limited-edition flavors, on a weekly basis in this case. If you need more sugar to go with your cookies, they also serve Dirty Shakes, in which you can have any cookie of your choice mixed in, and Dirty Scoops of ice cream. "Coming soon" signage has been posted in Dirty Dough's future Rockville storefront. The chain has an existing Maryland location in Halethorpe, with new ones coming soon in Baltimore and Laurel.

Pop 2000 Tour landing at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda June 23, 2024

Bring me up, Carson! Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda is once again allowing you to relive your - or your parents' - MTV TRL afterschool Y2K memories with the Pop 2000 Tour event tomorrow, Sunday, June 23, 2024 from 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM on Level 1 of the mall in the Nordstrom wing. Hosted by Chris Kirkpatrick of NSYNC, the event will feature live performances by Kirkpatrick, O-Town, BBMAK, Ryan Cabrera, and LFO.

The standing-room-only concert will take place from 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM near Nordstrom on Level 1. But the festivities will get underway at noon with spin-the-wheel prize giveaways, airbrush tattoos, rhinestone gem art, and a 2000 Photo Moments station. Create a 2024 photo moment by purchasing a selfie with your favorite boy band after the concert. Merchandise for the participating artists will also be on sale.

Look for Pop 2000 Tour activities on Level 1 near Kiehl's. HOT 99.5 will be broadcasting live from the event. The radio station will be hosting its own activities and giveaways. Pop 2000 is free to attend, but you need to RSVP online.

"The Pop 2000 Tour will bring the energy and excitement of 2000s pop music to Westfield Montgomery, giving our community the chance to relive that era in music," Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield SVP of Shopping Center Management Leah Heil said in a statement Friday. "We look forward to watching the audience transport back in time and sing along to hits they’ll never forget, while creating new memories with friends and family.”

Top two images courtesy Westfield
Bottom image: AI

Peter Chang signage removed at Rockville Town Square

The final trace of local celebrity chef Peter Chang has been removed from his former restaurant at 20-A Maryland Avenue at Rockville Town Square. Kungfu Kitchen abruptly took over the space when Chang made his unexpected exit from the struggling Town Center property in April. Chang's eponymous restaurant operated at Rockville Town Square for ten years. His exit stings all the more as the Montgomery County-averse dining critic of The Washington Post just wrote rave reviews of Chang's newest restaurants in Gaithersburg and Arlington. 

Chang's status among celebrity chefs and prolific restaurateurs is remarkable in that his fame derives entirely from the products of his kitchens. He is rarely seen or heard in the media via interviews or public relations efforts, and doesn't belittle aspiring chefs on competitive cooking TV shows, or engage in publicity stunts. Chang is known for one thing: his cooking. Rockville Town Square is increasingly known for...empty storefronts.

Aldi opening in July at Walnut Hill in Gaithersburg (Photos)

Construction has accelerated in the final phase at the Aldi grocery store opening soon at 737 S. Frederick Avenue at the Walnut Hill Shopping Center in Gaithersburg. The store, which is the center's new anchor tenant, is now expected to open on July 24, 2024, according to Google. Signage is up on the storefront, and checkout counters and shelving are in place inside. Operating hours have been posted on the door. This Aldi is likely to draw many customers from communities like King Farm and Upper Rock in Rockville, as well as from Derwood, as it will be more convenient than the 1501 Rockville Pike location.

Man wounded in Rockville shooting

Rockville City police responded to a report of a shooting around 8:30 PM last night, June 20, 2024, near the intersection of E. Argyle Street and Blandford Street. Officers arriving at the scene found an adult male suffering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen. They provided first aid until an ambulance transported the victim to a local hospital. Police say he is currently in stable condition.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Cpl. Renae McEvoy at 240-314-8983 or via email at RMcEvoy@RockvilleMD.Gov.

Could a Netflix House be coming to Montgomery Mall in Bethesda?

Is Montgomery County ready for Netflix IRL? The leading streaming service announced the planned opening of two Netflix House "experiential entertainment venues" at malls in Dallas and King of Prussia, with potential plans for more in cities yet to be identified. Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda seems like a logical choice to join the list. Netflix Houses are described as being "over 100,000-square-feet" in size. Montgomery Mall's vacant former Sears store is 150,000-square-feet, is currently mothballed, and is generating zero revenue for Westfield beyond whatever tax break can be claimed for the vacancy.

Westfield holds an approval from Montgomery County for an urban-style, mixed-use expansion of the mall, including a demolition of the empty Sears building, but has not taken any visible steps to immediately proceed with that development. A Netflix House would be a good short-term use to generate revenue until Westfield is ready to move forward with the expansion.

"Imagine waltzing with your partner to an orchestral cover of a Taylor Swift song on a replica of the Bridgerton set –– and then walking around the corner to compete in the Glass Bridge challenge from Squid Game," Netflix said in its Netflix House announcement Tuesday. "After pretending to fight for your life, you’ve worked up an appetite and want to get a bite. You see a nearby restaurant with food inspired by Netflix shows from around the world; the meal is memorable, but you still want to buy some Stranger Things merch. Luckily, there’s a shop that sells that Hellfire Club T-shirt you’ve always wanted." 

There are other malls in the region, but Montgomery Mall has the ideal vacant building space that Netflix requires for a Netflix House immediately available. Its loss of Sears as an anchor would be its gain in this case. A Netflix House would generate significant additional foot traffic for other tenants of the mall.

On the other hand, the timeline for opening of the first two Netflix Houses suggests significant construction is required. The Galleria Dallas and King of Prussia Mall Netflix Houses are expected to open in 2025. By the time a Netflix House would open in 2026 or later, who knows if Netflix will still be the entertainment giant it is today? Two years is an eternity in Hollywood, and Westfield might want to proceed with its redevelopment of the Sears building and adjacent parking lot before, or by, that time.

Rendering courtesy Netflix
Photos by Robert Dyer