Author: Patrick Herron

MoCo Government

Additional Information on This Saturday’s Gun Buyback Event in Rockville

By Patrick Herron

Per Montgomery County: The Rockville City Police Department (RCPD), in partnership with the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office and Montgomery County Public Schools, will hold a “gun buyback” event from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 26, (rain or shine) at RedGate Park in Rockville. The event is open to all and no ID is required. Gift cards of $100 or $200 will be presented to participants for functioning weapons, depending upon the type of weapon brought for exchange.

RedGate Park is located at 14500 Avery Road in Rockville. More than 300 firearms were voluntarily turned in by members of the community during a similar event last August. Community members will be able to voluntarily turn in their firearms and receive a $100 Visa gift card for functioning handguns, rifles and shotguns or $200 in Visa gift cards for functioning assault-style weapons and privately manufactured firearms (ghost guns). All firearms will be accepted with no identification needed and a no-questions-asked policy by law enforcement. RCPD will maintain the ultimate determination on the eligible firearms for gift card issuance.

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Montgomery Parks

Competition for Pickleball Court Space Will Be Topic of Montgomery Parks Virtual Speaker Series Online Panel Discussion on Friday, Sept. 8

By Patrick Herron

Per Montgomery County: The competition for court space between tennis players and players of pickleball, the fastest-growing sport in the U.S., will be the topic starting at 1 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 8, in the next event in the Montgomery Parks’ Virtual Speaker Series. The online discussion, which is free to join and open to all, will feature a panel of experts discuss the challenges of meeting the rapidly growing demand for pickleball in local park systems, comparing the situation in Montgomery County with other areas of the country.

Registration to join the discussion is available at Register. What a pickle! Balancing pickleball and tennis in parks. A Zoom link will be sent to registrants the day before the session.

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Burtonsville

$3.5 Million in Funding Approved for the Burtonsville Crossing Shopping Center

By Patrick Herron

Per the Office of Senator Craig Zucker: Today, the State Board of Public Works released $3.5 million in funding dedicated to the redevelopment of Burtonsville Crossing Shopping Center. The District 14 Legislative Delegation, consisting of Senator Craig J. Zucker, Delegates Anne Kaiser, Bernice Mireku-North, and Pamela Queen, requested that the funding be secured after hearing the community’s visions for the future of the space. The team appreciates the Board of Public Works’ decision to release the funds, allowing renovations to begin.

“We are very pleased with today’s Board of Public Works vote to release the $3.5 million in funding for this project, said Senator Zucker and Delegates Kaiser, Mireku-North, and Queen. “East County is a diverse area, and this funding represents the beginning of a more significant commitment from the District 14 team, the State of Maryland, and Montgomery County, are going to put into this project. The people of Burtonsville and East County deserve a world-class shopping center, and we are glad we helped make this a reality.”

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Bethesda

ala Bethesda to Open This Fall

By Patrick Herron

The owners of ala in Dupont Circle have announced they will open ala Bethesda at 4948 Fairmont Ave, in the former Positano restaurant space.  According to ala, the menu will be similar to the Dupont location, “where the cuisine melds the flavors of Turkey, Syria, Israel, Lebanon and beyond (known as the Levant region), an area of the world that has both a long history and a colorful past.” The new restaurant will feature a patio and rooftop, and is expected to open this fall.

Per ala: ala is under the culinary direction of Executive Chef Ercan Sahn, an internationally trained chef who recently took over the kitchen.   The menu celebrates the flavor and history of the Levantine cooking it has become synonymous for, but with a fine dining touch.  A native of Turkey, Chef Sahn has worked all over the world over the past 20 years, including in Dubai, Turkey and Cyprus.   Most recently, Sahn worked closely with acclaimed DC Chef Fabio Trabocchi at Michelin starred Wharf restaurant Del Mar.  He will also oversee the menu at ala Bethesda. Owner Deniz Gulluoglu and her family live in the Cabin John area of Bethesda and are excited to bring the restaurant to Montgomery County.

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MDLottery

$100,000 Scratch-off Sold at MoCo Sunoco

By Patrick Herron

Her plans for her winnings include “maybe a little investing,” she said, and possibly a vacation to an as-yet undetermined destination. As for other folks who play Lottery games and are still hoping for a big win, she says, “Just be positive.” Sharing in her positivity is the Lottery retailer where she bought the ticket, the Sunshine Ethio store at 6907 New Hampshire Avenue in Takoma Park, which picks up a bonus of $1,000. Featured image courtesy of Google Maps. 

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Gaithersburg

City of Gaithersburg Seeks Resident Feedback on Parking Conditions in Neighborhoods

By Patrick Herron

Per the City of Gaithersburg: The City is in the process of developing new parking permit regulations and updates to the City Code. Feedback is sought from residents to learn about existing neighborhood parking conditions. A survey is available online here through October 1, 2023.

The Permit Parking Program will consolidate the variety of existing City Parking Permits, including Residential Permit Parking, Commercial Permit Parking, The Crossings Permit Program, Commuter Permit Parking, and Temporary Permit Parking, into one program.

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Derwood

Montgomery County Animal Services and Adoption Center Remains at Critical Occupancy, Adoption Fees Waived Through August, 24

By Patrick Herron

Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County Animal Services and Adoption Center (MCASAC) in Derwood has reached a dangerous capacity for animals of all types. Despite the recent support in a campaign to have large dogs adopted, the over-population situation remains critical and has extended to all types of animals. To help inspire adoptions, the shelter is waiving adoption fees for the next 100 pets adopted by Thursday, Aug. 24.

The full capacity means the shelter will only be accepting animals who need immediate help. This policy is to help prevent euthanasia. Owners who must rehome a pet are encouraged to use rehoming websites. The shelter can list pets on the website for owners trying to rehome. Visit Surrender an Animal (montgomerycountymd.gov) for information on rehoming. Due to lack of space in the shelter, surrendering a pet now means it is at an increased risk for euthanasia.

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Gaithersburg

565 Vehicles Stopped and 4 Arrested During Recent Sobriety Checkpoint

By Patrick Herron

On Friday, August 18, 2023, officers from the Montgomery County Department of Police and allied agencies conducted a sobriety checkpoint on northbound Frederick Road at Game Preserve Road in Gaithersburg. On Tuesday, MCPD announced that during the checkpoint, officers stopped approximately 565 vehicles and arrested 4 people for driving while impaired.

Last month, recreational marijuana use became legal in the state of Maryland and Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones issued the following reminder before the July 4th weekend, “We implore drivers to think of cannabis the same way they think of alcohol. Do not get behind the wheel of a car if you are impaired. Our officers will pull over and arrest anyone they suspect of driving while impaired. Alcohol, marijuana and other drugs can impair the ability to drive because they slow coordination, judgment, and reaction times. Our priority is keeping the roads safe for everyone.”

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MoCo News

FOX 5’s Lexi Brooks Leaves Station For Job With WWE

By Patrick Herron

Earlier this week, FOX 5 announced that Planning Editor Lexi Brooks would be leaving the station to begin working for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as a travel production assistant. Brooks had been with FOX 5 since November 2021 and worked behind the scenes on several programs, including Good Day DC. Brooks starts working for WWE this week and says she’ll be flying out this Thursday to work on Friday night’s WWE Smackdown event in Louisville, Kentucky.

“Lexi Brooks has been a planning editor with FOX 5 for nearly two years, booking some the biggest names and making the magic happen behind the scenes at our summer long Zip Trip events. But it’s on to new adventures for the Lexicutioner. She will be missed!” Full segment can be seen below:

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Maryland

Attorney General Brown Announces Court Order to Unredact Names in April 2023 Report on Child Sexual Abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore 

By Patrick Herron

Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: In a sealed order issued August 16, 2023, the Circuit Court for Baltimore City authorized the Office of the Attorney General (“OAG”) to release a revised, substantially unredacted version of the Attorney General’s Report on Child Sexual Abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The court unsealed its ruling today and authorized OAG to release the new version of the Report in late September, subject to further order of the court.

In April 2023, the court authorized an interim public release of the Report. The interim public release was redacted, by order of the court, to shield the identities of ten alleged abusers who had not previously been publicly accused of child abuse. The names of five ranking officials of the Archdiocese of Baltimore were also redacted. Those five officials had extensive participation in the Archdiocese’s handling of abuser clergy and reports of child abuse. In addition, the names were redacted of over two dozen other individuals who were identified by name at various points in the Report although they are not accused of child sexual abuse. In the ruling unsealed today, the circuit court has authorized OAG to release a new version of the Report in which the identities of all but three of the previously redacted persons will be unredacted.

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Bethesda

Update: 15-Year-Old Missing Since July 11 Has Been Located and Reunited With Family

By Patrick Herron

Montgomery County Police has released an update on 15-year-old Sophia Roach, who was missing since July 11. Sophia’s mother, Mayyasa Roach, previously stated that she believed her daughter “was kind of groomed and lured online by somebody, and we’ve got evidence of that from social media.” Statement below, per police:

“Sophia Roach of Bethesda, was located early this afternoon in Baltimore City. She has been reunited with her family in Montgomery County.

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