Furniture & Rug Depot closing in Rockville

Furniture & Rug Depot is closing at 5230 Randolph Road at Loehmann's Plaza in Rockville. A "wall-to-wall" closing sale is underway. "All must go. Nothing held back!" reads a sign in the window. But the showroom still appears to be loaded with merchandise as of last evening. Furniture & Rug Depot has been in business for 25 years.

See's Candies closes at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Nothing says Christmas is over like the departure of See's Candies at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. In recent years, they haven't lingered for long, clearing out right after Christmas. See's still hasn't subscribed to the idea that Christmas officially ends on January 6. That hasn't stopped them from prospering - their profits increased by $10 million over 2021 by the end of the 2022 holiday season.

Indecent exposure on New Year's Eve in Rockville

Rockville City police are seeking the public's help in identifying and locating a man alleged to have exposed himself on New Year's Eve. Around 2:11 PM on December 31, 2023, the suspect exposed his privates while walking around an occupied vehicle in the 200 block of Congressional Lane. Police describe the suspect as a White male, 5'9" tall with a medium build, and wearing a gray and white long-sleeve shirt, a gray hat, and blue jeans. If you have any information about the suspect or this incident, you are asked to call police at 240-314-8900.

Police called after assault at Rockville gas station

Officers with the Montgomery County police department were called to a gas station in Rockville on the afternoon of New Year's Day, after an individual reported having been the victim of a 2nd-degree assault there. The assault was reported at 2:31 PM Monday at a gas station in the 5400 block of Randolph Road. There is a Liberty gas station on that block of Randolph.

Gaithersburg City Council eases path to approval of Guapo's dining pier at Rio Lakefront

Rio Lakefront continues to pose a major competitive challenge to rival developments in the City of Rockville, with the foundational advantage of free parking. Last night, Gaithersburg's City Council voted 3-2 to shorten the approval process for a proposed dining pier at Guapo's at the popular development off of I-270. Councilmembers Neil Harris, Lisa Henderson, and Robert Wu voted in favor of the expedited process; Councilmembers Jim McNulty and Yamil Hernández cast the dissenting votes. The majority voted to approve the first of two options, declaring the pier proposal to be a change of minor effect, and allow the Planning Commission to make the final decision on the matter. Their other option would have been to declare the proposed addition to pose a detrimental impact to the property, which would trigger a longer approval process with a public hearing, and a final vote by the Council.

Opponents, and some who voted in favor, focused on two major concerns. First, the possibility that an increasing number of restaurant tenants would seek to have their own barges on the lake, thereby blocking water views for pedestrians and other tenants. And second, the possible pedestrian conflicts with servers frequently crossing the boardwalk with trays of food.

But the horse has already left the proverbial barn on this issue from a rhetorical and legal standpoint. The Mayor and Council have already approved a similar dining pier for Copper Canyon Grill at the property. Any other tenant could now cry foul with that precedent being set, and the time for hand-wringing about the potential drawbacks was when the original Copper Canyon pier was on the table for debate.

Guapo's supporters, including Mayor Jud Ashman, said they were confident that property owner Peterson Cos. would be capable of policing these questions on its own, and would be unlikely to allow actions that were detrimental to its long-term success. Ashman added that he would like to see more outdoor dining options in the city, in general. It's likely that Peterson will also benefit from higher revenues as more barges are approved, as it will be leasing additional square footage to the tenants in question.

Rockville rocked by earthquake overnight

A 2.3-magnitude earthquake occurred in Rockville overnight, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Maryland Geological Survey. The earthquake was recorded by MGS at 12:51 AM and four seconds, and was located 9.5 miles beneath the surface, the DNR reported. According to the MGS map, the epicenter of the earthquake was on the golf course of the Lakewood Country Club, and just south of Lakewood Elementary School.

No injuries have been reported so far, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services spokesperson Pete Piringer, but residents of Rockville reported feeling the ground shake, as did others in Montgomery County and even Northwest Washington, D.C. There haven't been reports of damage yet, but since many were asleep during the quake, we'll have to wait until properties can be inspected today.

The minor quake follows a significant one on the other side of the globe in Japan yesterday; with people watching footage of that earthquake around the world, tremors were already on the minds of many. But it was not as strong as the other quakes in the D.C. region since 2011.

Car crashes into Rockville apartment building

A driver left the roadway in the 700 block of Monroe Street in Rockville yesterday, December 31, 2023, crashing their vehicle into a tree and an apartment building. The accident occurred at 3:30 PM at the Parkside Landing apartments off of Cabin John Parkway. No one was injured, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson Pete Piringer. 

A City of Rockville building inspector was notified to assess any structural damage to the apartment building. The cause of the accident has not yet been announced by authorities.