Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to the scene of a crash at approximately 10pm on Frederick Rd (355) and Ridgemont Avenue near King Farm on Tuesday night.
According to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer, there was also a fire in the engine compartment of the vehicle. The driver was able to exit the vehicle and crews were able to extinguish the fire, but two people were transported to the hospital.
In April it was announced that all 360 Bed Bath & Beyond and all 120 Buy Buy Baby stores will be closing permanently. Buy Buy Baby’s sole Montgomery County location, at 1683 Rockville Pike in Rockville’s Congressional Plaza, will be closing its doors forever on Sunday, July 30th. The Rockville location was the first Buy Buy Baby store to ever open.
Currently, the store is offering major discounts on all products, but is out of furniture, toys, and other items. There is still a high volume of clothes offered with major discounts. An employee let us know that this is changing by the day, so we recommend anyone checking it out to those who are interested and won’t get into specifics on what is available aside from the clothes.
The Metro Transit Police Department (MTPD) is searching for Adrian Barnes, 29, of Washington, DC for an attempted rape that occurred at ~11pm on July 24 at the Shady Grove Metro Station. According to MTPD, “Suspect approached woman in Shady Grove garage & attempted to rape her. She fought him off & escaped. If you have info on his whereabouts call 202-962-2121 or text MyMTPD (696873)”
Additional details: “Victim reported the suspect, identified as Adrian Barnes, approached her from behind as she was getting in her car. The suspect forced her to the ground, then attempted to rape her. The victim fought off the suspect and ran from the garage to get help.”
Montgomery County, MD is commonly known as being a suburb of the nation’s capital, but what might surprise some is that it is also home to a thriving biotech ecosystem. With over 350 life sciences companies, including global brands like AstraZeneca, United Therapeutics, and Novavax, Montgomery County anchors the third largest biophama hub in the U.S., behind only Boston and San Francisco.
Running annually in Washington D.C. for over 25 years, World Vaccine Congress attracts an international audience from over 80 countries and convenes more than 3,000 people to learn about the latest trends, research, and technologies in the vaccine industry. This year, Montgomery County took center stage, with a featured session on the extensive Biologics Value Chain in the County, as well as a session during which County Executive Marc Elrich spoke about the extensive resources available to companies here, and an exhibit space showcasing these resources.
A Complete Biologics Value Chain in One Region
One of the defining strengths of Montgomery County is its ability to support the full lifecycle of biologics, all the way from early research to large-scale manufacturing. During the panel discussion, moderated by Dr. Stefanie Trop, Director of Life Sciences at the Maryland Department of Commerce, local leaders emphasized that the region’s strength lies in its network of partners who work collaboratively across discovery, development, testing, and production. Panelists from companies in all stages of the value chain spectrum included Dr. Andrew Lees, Founder of Fina Biosolutions, Benjamin Moutier, Senior Vice-President, Vaccines and Immune Therapies at AstraZeneca, Dr. Helen Sabzevari President & CEO of Precigen, and Dr. Frederick Holtsberg, Chief Scientific Officer of Integrated BioTherapeutics.
This end-to-end capability in close geographical proximity gives companies a unique advantage and is rare to find in other markets, even established ones like San Francisco and Boston. In fact, only a handful of places worldwide offer the combination of infrastructure, expertise, and collaboration found in Montgomery County and if diversity, education and population density are taken into consideration – then Montgomery County standouts even more.
“Gaithersburg is one of the six places in the world where we can do what we’re doing,” explained Benjamin Moutier, Senior Vice-President, Vaccines and Immune Therapies, AstraZeneca. “We have the right partners at every step of the value chain [in Montgomery County].”
A Strong Partnership Network
Biotech breakthroughs rarely happen in isolation. They depend on strong partnerships between private companies, local and state governments, academic institutions, and workforce training organizations. Montgomery County has intentionally cultivated these connections, making collaboration and coordination defining characteristics of its life sciences ecosystem.
Dr. Frederick Holtsberg, Chief Scientific Officer at IBT Bioservices, a full service CRO offering clinical & preclinical contract research services, says the company’s close partnerships between them and local stakeholders have been crucial to its success. “As a Rockville-based company, we’re grateful for the partnership and support from city, County, and state leaders,” explained Dr. Holtsberg. “These programs have helped fuel our growth, and we’re excited about the continued momentum of our community.” (more…)
Earlier this month we let you know that Montgomery County’s very own Katie Ledecky finished the 1500m with a time of 15:29.64 and now now owns all of the top 15 times ever recorded in the event. Now, Ledecky has become the first person to win five world titles in two different events and she has tied Michael Phelps for the most individual world golds in swimming with 15.
Ledecky won the 1500m freestyle by a whopping 17.04 seconds at the world championships in Fukuoka, Japan, on Tuesday. According to NBC Sports, “It was Ledecky’s best time since lowering her world record to 15:20.48 in 2018, a welcome sight after moving from Stanford to the University of Florida after the Tokyo Olympics.
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Update: The targeted opening is now by the end of September
The Heights Food Hall at Wisconsin Place in Chevy Chase is now targeting a late August opening. The new food hall will be located in the space formerly occupied by Anthropologie and PF Chang’s on the 5400 block of Wisconsin Ave. The Heights will offer both indoor and outdoor patio dining and will be open seven days a week from 11am-Midnight. According to Common Plate Hospitality (CPH) group, the food hall will include: e one full-service restaurant (Urbano), a full-service bar (The Heights Bar), a speakeasy (The Turncoat), and eight local food stalls, including one stall picked from Urbano’s “Stall Wars” competition. We expect the following culinary partners at this anticipated culinary space:
Last March we let you know that F45, which has been opening locations across Montgomery County with recent openings in Potomac and Olney, is coming to Gaithersburg with an upcoming Kentlands location. Construction has been ongoing and while an opening date isn’t currently available, it may be ready within a few months (photo below). A Germantown location is also expected to open soon in the Seneca Meadows shopping center near Wegmans (no date available).
The company had pre-Covid plans to make a move into Gaithersburg’s Rio Lakefront, which fell through, but signed on to take over the space that was recently closed for a few years and previously home to Subway (between Caspian House of Kabob and the recently closed Edible Arrangements).
Per Montgomery County: Today the Montgomery County Council approved the Rustic Roads Functional Master Plan Update, which is the first comprehensive update to the plan since its creation in 1996. The Council also enacted Bill 30-23 that changes the composition and duties of the Rustic Roads Advisory Committee.
Rustic roads are low-traffic, narrow roadways in historic and scenic locations around the County. They are primarily found in agricultural and rural regions with a large number running through the Agricultural Reserve as well as historic and heritage sites. The Rustic Roads are primarily found in Council Districts 2, 7 and 1.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to a call for a house fire on the 11800blk Goodloe Rd., off Dewey Road, near Viers Mill Elementary School shortly before 11:30 on Tuesday morning. According to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer, crews arrived to heavy fire conditions. Two firefighters were treated for non-life threatening injuries and there were no civilian injuries. Damage is estimated to be ~400K and four adults have been displaced.
The origin/cause of the fire is currently under investigation but fire investigators did locate damaged lithium batteries at the scene. We will post an update if additional information becomes available.
Per Montgomery County: Councilmember Dawn Luedtke introduced a bill today that would improve emergency response by enabling the public to provide personal and medical information to assist emergency responders through a voluntary 9-1-1 registry program. The voluntary registry established through Bill 33-23, Police – Voluntary Registry for Emergency 911 Calls – Established, would allow individuals or their caregivers to notify first responders that someone at their address has differing abilities or health challenges, such as being non-verbal, sensitive to loud noises or bright lights, prone to avoid eye contact, or exhibits other traits. This information would be included in the County’s emergency dispatch system and regularly updated.
“Voluntary 9-1-1 registry is a proven option to help our public safety professionals better support individuals during an emergency call,” Councilmember Luedtke said. “When our first responders arrive on scene, we want them to have as much information as possible so they can provide the most effective and appropriate care.”
Bella Ballet opened in 2013 when owner Hope MacDonald opened the flagship location, located at 347 Kentlands Blvd in Gaithersburg, at age 24 with $5,000 of her savings. Now, she is opening her second location in the neighboring shopping center at 215 Kentlands Blvd, next to Cava.
The flagship location will remain open with classes offered for students ages 2-7. The new sister location, Empower, will open at 215 Kentlands Blvd., and will offer classes for students ages 7-18. This location will be open in September 2023. Enrollment for both locations is available now on the Bella Ballet website.
Per the City of Gaithersburg: In 2019, the State legislature passed HB 1045 requiring all master plans to include a new Housing Element. This new Element is required at a minimum to address the need for affordable housing, including both workforce and low-income housing. The Element may also discuss other facets of housing. The City, over the next several months, will begin working on this new Housing Element, which will include goals and recommendations meant to address future housing needs in the City. The Planning Commission draft can be viewed here.
Comments on the Planning Commission draft may be submitted in writing to the Planning & Code Administration, 31 S. Summit Ave. Gaithersburg MD, 20877, or by email to [email protected] up until the closing of the records. The Planning Commission’s record will remain open until 5 pm July 21, 2023 with anticipated approval and recommendation on August 2, 2023. The Mayor & City Council’s record will remain open until 5 pm on August 18, 2023 with anticipated adoption on September 18, 2023.