Author: MCS Staff

Gaithersburg

MoCo’s Only 24-Hour Starbucks in FirstField Shopping Center to Close For One Month in September

By MCS Staff

MoCo’s only 24-hour Starbucks location at 505 Quince Orchard Rd. in the FirstField Shopping Center (Gaithersburg) will be closed for one month starting on September 9th and lasting until October 9th for renovations, an employee of the store tells us. Employees of the store will all be working at nearby locations for the duration of the closure.

Update: We’ve been informed that the Starbucks located at 300 Spectrum Ave in Gaithersburg will be temporarily moving to 24-hours during the duration of the Firstfield remodeling, beginning September 3rd.

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Education

Six MCPS Students Win Medals at National ACT-SO Competition

By MCS Staff

Six MCPS students received medals at the national Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) competition in July. ACT-SO is a high school initiative sponsored by the NAACP to promote and encourage academic and artistic excellence. MCPS ACT-SO students received more than $50,000 in scholarships.

The 2022 medalists are:

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Crime

Texas Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Threatening a Maryland Doctor Who Advocated for the Covid-19 Vaccine

By MCS Staff

Per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Maryland: U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III sentenced Scott Eli Harris, age 52, of Aubrey, Texas, yesterday to six months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for sending a threatening message to a Maryland medical doctor who publicly advocated for the COVID-19 vaccine.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division; and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

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MoCo Government

David Blair Issues Statement Conceding to Marc Elrich After Recount

By MCS Staff

Rockville, Md., August 24, 2022 — David Blair released the following statement on the 2022 Montgomery County Executive Democratic primary election:

”Today, the Board of Elections certified the recount results of the primary election and my bid for County Executive came up 32 votes short. Earlier today, I called Marc Elrich to wish him the best over the next four years.

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Education

MCPS AND MCEA Reach Agreement on Special Education Incentives

By MCS Staff

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) and the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA) have both sent emails to employees and members notifying them of an agreement reached on Special Education Incentives. Below is the message from MCPS:

“Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) has been working to ensure that it is fully staffed for the first day of school on Monday, Aug. 29. One of the most significant hiring challenges has been for those who work in special education. Today, the district is announcing that it has reached an agreement with the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA) on incentives for special education teachers. This agreement was ratified and signed by both parties on Wednesday, Aug. 24.

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Gaithersburg

City of Gaithersburg Updated LED Street Light Conversion (3,750 Lights to be Converted to Energy Efficient LED)

By MCS Staff

Per the City of Gaithersburg: As part of its strategic plan to enhance environmental sustainability and improve public safety, the City of Gaithersburg has developed a five year project to convert all City-owned street lights from the current high-pressure sodium (HPS) fixtures to the more energy efficient light emitting diode or (LED) fixtures.

LEDs require less maintenance and are more energy efficient, which contributes to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emission associated with their use. Streetlights are important to the safety of our City, and in addition to being more efficient, LEDs also create a more even spread of light, minimizing bright and dark spots. The light appears brighter and whiter, making it easier than traditional yellow looking HPS lights to identify what’s illuminated below. All the fixtures have a color temperature of no more than 3000k. This reduces the sharpness of the light and is deemed best practice by both the International Dark Sky Association and the American Medical Association. The new light fixture will be similar in style to the existing fixtures.

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Events

Montgomery County Police: Notes Regarding President Biden’s Rally in Montgomery County on Thursday

By MCS Staff

Per Montgomery County Police: President Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden are scheduled to visit Richard Montgomery High School on Thursday, August 25, from 4-8 p.m., for a grassroots event. In preparation for the event, please note the following:

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Germantown

MCFRS Respond to Fire at Shisha Lounge in Germantown

By MCS Staff

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services responded to a fire at the Shisha Lounge (13063 Wisteria Dr.) in Germantown on Tuesday night around 8:45pm.  According to Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS Pete Piringer, Fire Investigators determined that the fire originated in an employee area of lounge where smoking devices and tobacco is cleaned/changed out. A probable cause of the fire is improperly discarded smoking materials.

No injuries were reported and the fire was not large enough to activate sprinkler. Damages are estimated to be around $85K. The business is currently listed as “temporarily closed” on Google and we will post and update when more information becomes available.

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Clarksburg

(Postponed) Paranormal Cirque Coming to the Clarksburg Outlets

By MCS Staff

UPDATE: The Clarksburg shows have been postponed indefinitely.

Paranormal Cirque is coming to the Clarksburg Premium Outlets (22705 Clarksburg Rd) from September 8-18th. Paranormal Cirque previously ran at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Gaithersburg this past spring.  According to the event’s website, Paranormal Cirque is “a crazy yet fun fusion between Circus, theatre, and cabaret in perfect harmony with the evolution of a show that brings you back to when we dream .….. and when we had nightmares and fantasies. Scare, encompass, amuse and surprise are the ingredients for a mixture of emotions impossible to forget. This is truly a Paranormal experience like no other.” Tickets can be purchased at www.paranormalcirque.com Note: No-one under the age of 13 will be admitted to the show. Guests aged 13 – 17 must be accompanied by an adult.

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