Author: MCS Staff

Beyond MoCo

D.C. Ranked the 10th “Best City For Christmas” in 2022

By MCS Staff

With spending over the winter holidays projected to be between $943 billion and $960 billion this year, the highest amount ever, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2022’s Best Places for Christmas Celebrations– with Washington D.C. coming in 10th out of the 100 biggest cities in the country.

In order to determine which cities will offer a holly jolly holiday even amid the stresses of high inflation, WalletHub compared the 100 biggest U.S. cities based on 32 key indicators of a safe and affordable Christmas. Our data set ranges from the availability of Christmas traditions to the percentage of residents who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to the city’s overall generosity.

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Germantown

Shoppers in Germantown to Change Hours of Operation Starting December 26

By MCS Staff

Shoppers in Germantown, the last remaining Shoppers in Montgomery County, will be changing its hours starting December 26th. The grocery store, which was open 24 hours about a decade back, has been operating from 6am until midnight, 7 days a week. The grocery store will now be closing a couple hours earlier starting the day after Christmas– opening at 6am and closing at 10pm, 7 days a week. Shoppers Germantown is one of few grocery stores in Montgomery County that offers beer and wine.

Shoppers signed a new lease in 2021 to ensure that it will maintain its presence in Montgomery County for the foreseeable future. An announcement was made back in 2018 that UNFI would acquire SUPERVALU, the parent company of Shoppers grocery stores. At the time, UNFI was clear in its plan to divest the retail business, which included the Shoppers Food banner. UNFI then announced an agreement to sell 13 Shoppers locations to three separate grocery operators. They continued to own the Rockville and Germantown stores, but ended up keeping just the Germantown store. Rockville closed in 2020 and was replaced by Aldi. The Glenmont location was one of the locations that was sold, and Lidl opened in that location in February of 2021.

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Bethesda

Delhi Spice is Replacing Moh Moh Licious in Bethesda

By MCS Staff

Delhi Spice, a new restaurant serving Indian cuisine, is coming to 4925 Bethesda Ave in Bethesda. The restaurant will be taking over the space that was recently home to Moh Moh Licious and previously home to Himalayan Heritage. Moh Moh Licious has a location at 7414 Georgia Ave NW DC that remains open.

The new restaurant has a hearing for the transfer of the liquor license on Thursday, January 5th at 11:30am and may open before that for food service, as it has already set up menus on food delivery apps. The menu includes vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes, including appetizers, salads, soups, Tandoori specialties, entrees, seafood, biryanis, and more.

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Business

MCPS: Superintendent Recommends $3.2 Billion Operating Budget

By MCS Staff

Per MCPS: Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Superintendent Dr. Monifa B. McKnight has recommended a $3.15 billion Operating Budget for Fiscal Year 2024. It continues the district’s focus on preparing all students to thrive in their futures. The funding provides a high-quality education for growing student enrollment, for continuing recovery from lost learning time due to the pandemic, for new research-based innovative approaches for teaching and learning, for competitive salaries for staff, and for increased costs of goods and services.

Released Monday, Dec. 19, Dr. McKnight’s budget recommendation represents a $235.4 millionincrease—8%—over the current budget (FY 2023) and $267 million above the minimum amount required by the maintenance of effort law. The recommended increase includes more than $40 million realized in savings.

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Clarksburg

Clarksburg Town Center Hopes To Start Construction in 2024; Weis Signs LOI To Become Grocery Anchor

By MCS Staff

A Clarksburg community meeting on the future of the Clarksburg Town Center (CTC) revealed updated plans that hope for construction to begin in 2024 and be completed in “one fell swoop” and a grocery anchor, Weis, having signed a letter of intent to open up a new store at the CTC. Additional information and a few slides from tonight’s meeting available below:

History: The Clarksburg Master Plan was approved in 1994 with preliminary plan approval for 1300 units approved in 1995/1996. Original site plans (phase I and phase II) were approved in 1998 and 2002 and from 2007-2011 the marketing of a retail area for the proposed Clarksburg Town Center (CTC), which is located between Snowden Farm Rd, Stringtown Rd., Clarksburg Rd., and 355, proved to be unsuccessful with grocery stores and retailers widely rejecting an amended plan from 2008.

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Maryland

MDOT Doubling Lyft Rideshare Credits to $10 to Give Marylanders a Safe Ride Home

By MCS Staff

The Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration’s (MDOT MVA) Highway Safety Office announced today that it has doubled the Lyft rideshare credit to $10 to encourage more Marylanders to take advantage of the safe ride option this holiday season. The rideshare credits are available through a grant from the Governors Highway Safety Association, Responsibility.org and Lyft.

According to preliminary data, so far this month (December 1 – 13, 2022) 500 people have been arrested for driving under the influence, with at least one arrest occurring in each of Maryland’s 24 jurisdictions. MDOT is encouraging Marylanders to take advantage of the free rideshare credits to put toward a safe alternative to driving impaired. Each Marylander is eligible to receive one $10 rideshare credit each weekend while supplies last. A select number of rideshare credits will be available between 4 p.m. and 2 a.m. on the following dates:

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MCPS

MCPS: Annual Warming Hearts and Hands Campaign Benefits Most Vulnerable Students

By MCS Staff

For the past 8 years, the Educational Systems Federal Credit Union (ESFCU) on behalf of their Support Education Foundation, Inc, hosts an annual Warming Hearts and Hands campaign. The foundation works to gather winter clothing items to be donated to the MCPS Homeless Liaison to give to our students in need.  On Dec. 14 the foundation dropped off hats, gloves, mittens, scarves and a many toiletry kits including a toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, soap and deodorant.

Per MCPS: “MCPS is grateful to the Educational Systems Federal Credit Union and their Support Education Foundation, Inc. for their efforts each year to support the social and emotional well-being of our most vulnerable students.”

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Crime

Man Sentenced to Two Years in Federal Prison For Threatening to Kill Black Customers at Various Stores Across The Country, Including a Cannabis Dispensary in Rockville

By MCS Staff

According to Buffalo News, a Seattle man, Joey George (37), was sentenced Friday in U.S. District Court to two years in federal prison for threatening to kill Black customers at a grocery store in Buffalo as well as other businesses across the country, including a cannabis dispensary in Rockville.

According to the Department of Justice, George pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Seattle to making interstate threats and committing a hate crime for interference with a federally protected activity. The defendant has been in federal custody since his arrest on July 22. According to the plea agreement, Joey David George, 37, of Lynwood, telephoned multiple grocery stores in Buffalo, New York, and threatened to shoot Black people in the stores. George told the staff at the store to “take him seriously,” and ordered the store to clear out the customers, as he was “nearby” and “preparing to shoot all Black customers.” One store closed. The threats followed a racially-motivated shooting at another Buffalo grocery store in May. Law enforcement traced the phone number and identified George as the person who made the call.

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Restaurants

Boston Market No Longer Opening New Rockville Location

By MCS Staff

Last January we reported that Boston Market would be opening a new Rockville Pike location, according to signage that was put up at the old Katsu Go location in Towne Plaza (the shopping center that’s home to Navy Federal Credit Union and PM Pediatrics) at 12238 Rockville Pike Rockville, MD 20852. This morning we spoke with a klnb representative who told us that Boston Market signed a lease, but is pulling out of the space. The restaurant previously had a location just a couple miles away– on Randolph Road in Loehmann’s Plaza. That location closed back in February of 2019 and has since been replaced by Toosso.

Boston Market also closed its White Oak location in early 2020, but has remaining MoCo locations in Aspen Hill and Gaithersburg. Boston Market was founded as Boston Chicken in 1985. Currently the chain has over 340 company-owned restaurants nationwide. An expected opening date is not currently available.

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Downtown Silver Spring

The Breakfast Club to Open Thursday, December 22

By MCS Staff

The Breakfast Club plans to open on Thursday, December 22, at 8240 Fenton Street in Downtown Silver Spring, according to a report by Source of the Spring. The restaurant, which will feature breakfast all day, but will also have lunch and dinner menu items, is inspired by “Papa Sherman” who is owner Jason Miskiri’s father.

The Breakfast Club’s menu will include omelets, French toast stuffed with cream cheese and strawberries, and pancakes, according to a previous report by Bethesda Beat “Additionally, there will be heavier entrees, such as lamb chops, chicken and waffles, and shrimp and grits.” The Breakfast Club was originally aiming for a March opening, but has run into construction supply chain issues during buildout. “We have slowed down because of the materials being on backorder. This is true throughout the country,” Miskiri said to Source of the Spring last March.

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