Bethesda

Teas Me is now open at 5017 Wilson Ln in Bethesda. The shop is open Monday-Thursday 10am-8:30pm and Friday-Sunday 10am-9:30pm. The menu features a variety of milk, citrus, and coffee teas, and the store tells us they plan to add food items like eggrolls and muffins to the menu in the coming weeks.

While Teas Me is currently open for business, the shop will hold its official grand opening event this Sunday, August 6 from 10am-6pm. Per Teas Me: “Please come and join our little grand opening party on Sunday August 6th, 2023. Party is open for public. It’s a bubble tea and coffee shop, all ages are welcome. There will be food and music. However, we are now also open for business.” The news of Teas Me’s opening was first reported by Robert Dyer.


Restaurant

Cielo Rojo at 7056 Carroll Ave in Takoma Park has begun construction on its new, larger location just a few blocks away at 7211 Carroll Ave. Once the new restaurant is complete, the current Cielo Rojo location (7056 Carroll Ave) will be converted into San Pancho Burritos, a fast-casual restaurant serving San Fransisco-style burritos, according to report by Source of the Spring. 

Cielo Rojo opened in Takoma Park in 2019.  Owners David Perez and Carolina McCandless first met in 2012 at Gracias Madre, a vegan Mexican restaurant in San Francisco. McCandless has ties to the area, as she’s from Takoma Park and her parents own nearby Amano.


DMV

The next resupply mission to the International Space Station from commercial cargo provider Northrop Grumman is preparing for launch during a window that opens Tuesday, Aug. 1, at 8:31 p.m. EDT at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Many in the mid-Atlantic region may be able to see the rocket after liftoff according to the timetable above in the featured image, weather permitting.

Loaded with more than 8,200 pounds of research, crew supplies, and hardware, Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus cargo spacecraft will launch on the company’s Antares rocket from Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Pad 0A on Wallops Island. The Cygnus spacecraft for this launch is named in honor of the late NASA astronaut, undersea medical officer, and naval flight officer Laurel Clark. Selected by NASA in 1996, Dr. Clark flew as a mission specialist aboard Columbia STS-107. Live coverage of the launch will air on NASA Television, the agency’s website and the NASA app beginning at 8 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 1, with a prelaunch briefing Sunday, July 30 at 5 p.m. EDT. 


Montgomery Planning

The Montgomery County Planning Board and Montgomery County Planning Department have announced their August 2023 calendar of events and meetings. While the Montgomery County Planning Board is on recess until September 2023, past meetings can be watched on demand. The Montgomery County Planning Board is currently in recess. The first meeting after the summer recess will be held September 7, 2023. August Calendar of Events:

August 1 – The Development Review Committee (DRC) will meet in-person and virtually. The community is invited to attend the meeting in-person or online by watching the DRC live video stream or viewing on-demand. The DRC is an inter-agency task force comprised of representatives from Montgomery Planning, public agencies, and utilities such as WSSC, PEPCO, the State Highway Administration, and the county Departments of Permitting Services, Environmental Protection, and Public Works and Transportation. At these regularly scheduled meetings twice a month, DRC members discuss development applications with the Applicants.


MCFRS

Dr. Earl Stoddard, who is the Assistant Chief Administrator in Montgomery County and has served as the Director of the Montgomery County Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security (OEMHS) since January 2016, has provided an update on storm clean-up efforts via Twitter. The full update can be seen below:

“Just to provide an update on storm clean-up. Right now, the primary focus remains power restoration and road clearance. That requires coordination between the County and power utilities given the intersection between vegetation and power lines.


Crime

Detectives are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying two suspects who broke into a construction site and stole construction related equipment in the 10100 block of Washingtonian Boulevard in Gaithersburg– the site where The Carnegie at Washingtonian is being built, next to Life Time.

Per Gaithersburg Police: In July 2023, during the early morning hours, the two suspects entered the construction site and removed construction related equipment and electrical related property with a value of over $170,000. Detectives from the Gaithersburg Police – Investigative Section obtained surveillance video and photos of the suspects. Detectives describe suspect one as a male, thin build with short dark colored hair. The second suspect is a male with two distinguishing tattoos. The first tattoo is located on his left leg and the second tattoo is located on his right forearm.


Downtown Silver Spring

All Set Restaurant & Bar, located at 8630 Fenton Street, Plaza 5 in Silver Spring, has announced it will be hosting its inaugural Oyster Eating Contest on Saturday, August 5th, from 2pm-4pm featuring, an oyster shucking demonstration from Owner & Head Chef, Edward Reavis. The contestant who eats the most oysters will be awarded one dozen oysters a day, every day, for one calendar year, All Set & Money Muscle merchandise, their photo posted on All Set social media, & ultimate bragging rights. All interested competitors must sign a waiver & pay a $25 registration fee. Additional details on the contest can be seen below:

Each ‘athlete’ will have 1 minute to eat as many oysters as possible. Contestants will receive a tray filled with 24 pre-shucked oysters on the half shell. If the competitor consumes all the oysters on the tray, they will be given supplemental dozens.


Beyond MoCo

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) will release a limited number of passes at noon on Monday, July 31 for its 2023 Hip-Hop Block Party at nmaahc.si.edu/HipHop50. This daylong event celebrates the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, Saturday, Aug. 12, from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. (last admission at 10 p.m.), at the intersection of Madison Drive and 14th Street N.W. The event is free, but passes are required. The 2023 Hip-Hop Block Party will be hosted by Vic Jagger and feature performers such as DJ Beauty and the Beatz, The True School DJs – DJ Cuzzin B, Miss H.E.R., and DJ Marc Nfinit, Adam Blackstone and Special Guest Sugar Bear, Mumu Fresh, Monie Love, Kid Capri, J.Period, and more to be confirmed.

NMAAHC hosts the block party in celebration of the culture and music that originated and has been shaped by Black America for decades. Attendees will also be able to participate in interactive activities, such as graffiti art, hip-hop dancing and more.  The Hip-Hop Block Party also marks the return of Club Café, where attendees can taste a delicious hip-hop-inspired menu while experiencing a vibe only the museum can provide. For a complete schedule, please visit nmaahc.si.edu/HipHop50.


DC Sports

Last month it was announced that The Citi Open in Washington, D.C. is combining with the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic to become the Mubadala Citi DC Open beginning in 2023. The move from San Jose elevated the DC women’s event from a WTA 250 level to a WTA 500 level, making the Mubadala Citi DC Open the only combined ATP-WTA 500 tournament in the world on the tour calendar. The move is subject to ATP Board approval.

The Mubadala Citi DC Open is the fifth largest pro tennis event in the United States and kicks off in earnest Monday with a star-studded lineup on the first day of main draw play at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park in the nation’s capital. From former World No.1s Viktoria Azarenka and Andy Murray to past DC champions Liudmila Samsonova, Sloane Stephens and Gael Monfils to local favorite Frances Tiafoe, fans will be treated to plenty of headliners on the first full day in Rock Creek Park.


Beyond MoCo

Last month we let you know of plans for Buc-ee’s Travel Center to expand their operations to New Kent County, Virginia at the exit 211 interchange along Interstate 64– the first in Virginia. The company plans to construct a 74,000 SF store with 120 fueling positions, 557 parking spaces, 24 Tesla charging spaces and 10 bus/RV parking spaces. The location is in the Richmond area, over 125 miles from most parts of Montgomery County. Now we know of plans for a new Buc-ee’s Travel Center that will likely beat this one to opening, in Rockingham County, Virginia at the exit 240 interchange along Interstate 81 (located near Harrisonburg, VA)– a similar distance form Montgomery County, in a different direction.

Per the Rockingham County, VA Facebook page, the company plans to construct a 74,000 square foot store with 120 fueling positions and 24 EV charging stations. The projected opening is in 2025. The company has requested a Special Use Permit for the review and approval of a proposed sign plan for the project.


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