Montgomery County Council proposes property tax hike

4.8% tax increase

planned

The Montgomery County Council, contrary to fake news headlines, is planning to raise your property taxes this year. A required legal announcement published by the Council confirms the planned tax hike in black and white, despite County officials' false claims of no increase.

"Notice of a proposed real property tax increase," the legal notice proclaims. "The County Council of Montgomery County proposes to increase real property taxes," it states. Despite annual false claims of "holding the line on property taxes," MoCo property taxes automatically increase due to rising assessments. The only way the Council could fulfill a promise of "holding the line," or "no tax increase," would be to lower the tax rate by the amount required to offset that automatic increase.

According to the Council's required legal statement, the Council "is considering not reducing its real property tax rate enough to fully offset increasing assessments." Instead, the Council is proposing to hike property taxes by 4.8%.

But while the Council is required by law to disclose their planned tax hike in the legal announcement, County officials and their friends in the media have been falsely claiming no tax increase is proposed. "No tax increases in Montgomery County proposed budget," blared a fake headline on WTOP.com. "It’s what residents don’t see in Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich’s proposed 2020 budget that might impress them the most: no tax increases," the article falsely announced.

The Washington Post's Jennifer Barrios, who never wrote a single article covering the general election County Council At-Large race in 2018 (and unprofessionally didn't even respond to emails during the campaign), tells an even bigger whopper of a lie this morning on the Post website by claiming a tax cut. All three local media statements are entirely false, as these photographs of the actual legal tax hike announcement clearly show.

Fact Check: Because County elected officials and the County cartel-controlled media have told this lie annually for many years, Post fact-checking standards require me to award them the new "Bottomless Pinocchio" rating for those who "repeat a false claim so many times that they are, in effect, engaging in campaigns of disinformation.” 

Rockville Post Office mural is now a stamp

The United States Postal Service has issued a new line of stamps commemorating some of the best Depression-era post office murals from around the country. One that made the cut is right here in Rockville, although to make things confusing, it is currently located in the Rockville Police Department headquarters at 2 W. Montgomery Avenue. That's because the police HQ used to be the Rockville post office.

"Sugarloaf Mountain" by artist Judson Smith (1880-1962) was completed in 1940, and depicts the famous local peak south of Frederick near Barnesville. This is the mountain you can easily see from tall buildings in Montgomery County.

You can order the stamps now from the USPS website. A sheet of 10 forever stamps is $5.50. Designed to raise morale in the Great Depression, perhaps the mural can now help raise morale in moribund Montgomery County.

Photo courtesy USPS

Hot Pot City construction update

There has been significant progress inside the future Hot Pot City, located on "Regal Row" at 199 E. Montgomery Avenue in Rockville. Lighting fixtures resembling Chinese lanterns are in place, as is the bar and a wall with the restaurant's logo and statuary. This was formerly Tara Asia's spot.

Montgomery County headlines:

Neuhaus Chocolates, world-renowned chocolatier, to open Bethesda store

Affordable apartments in downtown Silver Spring

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Java Nation opening Rockville location

Kensington's Java Nation is opening a new location in White Flint. It will be next to Hank Dietle's Tavern, in a space vacated by Helen's restaurant. A sign out front refers to the new location as a "social house and roastery."

Java Nation has operated in Kensington since 2012. Their menu includes hearty breakfast entrees, sandwiches and wraps, pupusas, beef tacos and chicken mushroom empanadas. Of course, a full menu of hot and cold coffee drinks, teas and cocoa is available, as are beer and wine during happy hour. The menu for the new Rockville location is still under wraps as of this morning.

Bambu Che, Coffees, Teas & More and Nature Kitchen coming to Rockville

Two new tenants are coming soon to Towne Plaza on Rockville Pike. Bambu Che, Coffees, Teas & More will be opening next to Navy Federal. This is yet another addition to the Asian dining options in Rockville. In fact, Bambu has a location in Rockville's rival for top Asian dining destination in the region, Annandale.

What is che? It is a term describing Vietnamese beverages, dessert drinks and puddings made with either fresh coconut water or coconut milk. Unusual drinks include the Smashed Avocado with boba and jellies, and Longan Sunrise with longan, basil seed and juice. Don't forget the Red Bean Combo beverage with red beans, taro, pandan jelly and coconut milk. This is definitely a new set of flavors for Rockville.

Also coming aboard at Towne Plaza is Nature Kitchen at 12238 Rockville Pike. There's no public information about Nature Kitchen, although I've been told it is a Korean restaurant. Given the Asian restaurant boom in Rockville, I would not be surprised if that is correct. Stay tuned for more details.

Rockville construction update: AutoZone (Photos)

The exterior of the future AutoZone store at 824 Rockville Pike looks ready to go. There's much more to be done inside the store, however. This was formerly the Patio.com store across from Wintergreen Plaza. AutoZone is currently hiring for all positions.

I couldn't be more pleased as the market continues to invest in the successful "old" Rockville Pike economic model, rather than the urbanization developers sought in a nearly-decade-long battle over the Rockville Pike Plan. Thanks to some of the sharp members of the Rockville Planning Commission, developers didn't get everything they wanted, but the option to urbanize at a more modest scale is still available to them. Yet B.F. Saul is the only development firm that is even daring to go urban on the Pike so far. Perhaps reality is setting in, that having 9 competing urban town centers along the Pike just isn't viable or sustainable, as I predicted years ago.

Perhaps it's because investors recognize that Rockville Pike - not the new urban "town centers" around the state - is the commercial revenue engine of the entire state of Maryland. Those "massive seas of surface parking" remain jammed full of cars seven days a week at aging strip centers like Congressional Plaza, Ritchie Center, Edmonston Crossing and Federal Plaza, to name just a very few. Asian food hall Pike Kitchen is drawing crowds, no residential-on-top necessary. The gigantic former Rockville Ford dealership site, a prime "smart growth" transit-oriented development property, ended up firmly in the 1970s with Roy Rogers and auto repair shops.

It's intriguing that successful Pike & Rose, unlike Federal Realty's struggling Rockville Town Square, presents an old-Pike face to drivers passing by. What do they see? Old-Pike retailers like big box REI with surface parking, and even an auto dealership. Having arguably the best line-up of restaurants on one property in the county hasn't hurt Pike & Rose, and the Pike has always been a dining destination.

Now, here comes AutoZone. It's not Barcelona, but Barcelona wishes they had "old" Rockville Pike.

AT&T to modify and add cell towers in White Flint

AT&T is planning to modify its existing cell towers on the water tank at 11400 Woodglen Drive in the White Flint area of Rockville. They will replace six antennas with new ones, the tips of which will be a maximum height of 113' above ground level. AT&T also plans to add new remote radio head units to the water tank. The tank and towers are in view of several residential buildings, particularly North Bethesda Market, which is diagonally across the street.