Montgomery Parks

Montgomery Parks has launched the Long Branch Parks Initiative a comprehensive look at the parks, trails, amenities, and recreational programs in the area. The initiative is aimed at identifying what needs to be improved or added so the parks can better serve the people living in the Long Branch Area. 

“We are taking a holistic approach in the Long Branch community to enhance the many parks in this area,” said Mike Riley, director of Montgomery Parks. “By providing multiple ways for the community to provide input, we are hoping to engage a broad cross-section of residents so we can better understand how they use our parks and what kinds of improvements are most needed.”


Clarksburg

Construction is ongoing on the 7.24 acres located approximately 0.30 miles southwest of I-270, 1.5 miles from Little Bennett Regional Park and Clarksburg Town Center; and directly north of West Old Baltimore.  The Subject Property is directly across the realigned Clarksburg Road (MD121) from the Clarksburg Premium Outlets and a new and very familiar tenant has signed on- Popeyes.

Popeyes has made plenty of recent moves within Montgomery County, recently opening new locations in Briggs Chaney, Downtown Silver Spring, and Gaithersburg. The fried chicken chain announced last month that it is set to open more than 200 new locations in the United States and Canada this year with additional locations in several other places around the world. Over half of the new Popeyes locations that are scheduled to open in 2022 will feature double drive-thrus, but it’s still unclear whether or not this location will have a drive-thru.


Gaithersburg

Limited parking will be available during the duration of this project (June – September).

Limited parking will be available during the duration of this project. Some drive aisles will be temporarily shifted & up to one entrance will be closed. Reserved tenant parking will be relocated to a designated area within the garage. Due to the extensive area that will be covered & the nature of this “rolling working site,” progress will be variable & subject to weather conditions. The City is unable to confirm exact dates of work being done on each level of the garage.


Gaithersburg

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue (MCFRS) units were called to the Goshen Crossing shopping center on Goshen Rd. near Snouffer School Road for a vehicle fire just before 3am on Wednesday morning, according to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer.

The vehicle fire occurred in front of the Giant Food Store. The first arriving units found commercial tractor trailer vehicle fully-involved in a fire. The fire was extinguished with the assistance of HazMat crews due to a diesel fuel leak. The cab of the trailer was completely destroyed, causing approximately $50K in damages. There we no injuries and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.


Beyond MoCo

Basketball has become the second most popular sport in the U.S., behind just football. While the industry, like all sports, was hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic, the NBA’s revenue for the 2021-2022 season is expected to hit $10 billion, an increase from the around $8.3 billion for the season before the pandemic. WalletHub compared more than 290 of the largest cities based on 21 key metrics, ranging from the performance level of each city’s NBA and NCAA Division 1 basketball teams to ticket prices to stadium accessibility.

Washington D.C. came in 8th in the country in WalletHub’s “2022’s Best & Worst Cities for Basketball Fans” list. Nearby College Park, MD in Prince George’s County (the home of the University of Maryland), came in 7th on the “Small City” list.


MCFRS

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue (MCFRS) units were called the scene of what was initially thought to be an overturned kayak in the area of the O Deck at Great Falls Park Tavern at approximately 4pm on Thursday afternoon, according to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer.

A passerby saw what they believed to be an overturned kayak in the Potomac River and quickly made a good intent call to 911 alerting them of the scene. Swift water rescue boats were deployed for the technical rescue and a U.S. Park Eagle helicopter assisted, eventually finding what turned out to be other debris. The water remained at high levels yesterday with a strong current that brought plenty of debris to the area. Portions of the river remained closed throughout the day due to previous flooding. Several boats and the helicopter remained on the scene to survey the area.


Bethesda

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) were called to the scene of a fire on the roof of the Whitney Apartments on the 7700 block of Wisconsin Avenue near Cheltenham Drive, according to MCFRS Spokesperson Pete Piringer, after smoke was seen coming from the roof of the building at approximately 6pm on Tuesday evening.

Roofers were working on the roof of the 11-story residential building using heat applications and accidentally ignited some insulation located around a fan duct. The workers were able to knock down the fire with fire extinguishers. There was very little extension and the fire was completely out by 7pm. There were no injuries and minimal damage.


Restaurants

Saffron Indian Cuisine has closed permanently. The restaurant’s Google and Facebook page list the restaurant as “Permanently Closed.” Saffron was located at 1321 C, Rockville Pike, in Rockville’s Woodmont Station (the shopping center that is also home to Ledo Pizza). According to LoopNet, the 3,210 SF that was home to Saffron until last week is now available to lease with restaurant equipment in place.

The restaurant opened in 2014 and gained popularity in Rockville, often participating in local events like Taste of Rockville/Hometown Holidays and other food festivals.


Crime

Florin Vaduva, age 31, of Dania Beach, Florida pleaded guilty on Monday to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud.  As part of his plea agreement, Vaduva will be ordered to pay at least $1,085,151.42 in restitution. Though specific details have not been released regarding the institutions that were defrauded, Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department was among those who announced the guilty plea indicating that at least part of the illegal activity occurred in Montgomery County.

Per the press Maryland District U.S. Attorney’s  press release: The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Greg L. Torbenson of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service – Washington Division; Acting Special Agent in Charge Selwyn Smith of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Acting Special Agent in Charge Quenton Sallows, of the Mid-Atlantic Region, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG); Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; Chief Toni Dezomits of the Cary, North Carolina, Police Department; and Sheriff Dusty Rhoades of the Williamson County, Tennessee, Sheriff’s Office.


Restaurants

Eerkin’s Uygher Cuisine has announced a temporary closure due to a kitchen fire that occurred at the restaurant on Mother’s Day morning. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services responded to the fire at Eerkin’s Uyghur Cuisine at 1701 Rockville Pike # B1 in Rockville on Sunday morning around around 10am.  First responders arrived to the sprinkler/warer flow alarm going off and smoke coming from building.  According to Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS, the fire was located in the kitchen and has been put out. There were no injures reported and the building inspector and health department have been requested.

According to its website, “EERKIN’S has been serving quality Uyghur foods to its customers. Our Uyghur ethnic chefs with ancestors from Uyghur’s who are well-informed about the ancient recipes allowing us to offer the centuries old Uyghur foods. The usage of fresh vegetables, meat, beef, chicken and fish makes our Uyghur cuisine the most-tasty and mouthwateringly delicious food.” The restaurant features a tea bar and menu items include Cold Lamb Salad, Baba Ghanoush, Kebab, Chow Mei Fun (Uyghur Spicy Noodles), and Roasted Quails. The restaurant also has locations in Fairfax, VA and DC.


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