Entertainment

The 42nd annual Takoma Park Street Festival will take place on Sunday, October 1st, 2023 from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm and once again will fill the streets of Takoma Park with music, artists and makers, community groups, green companies and great food.

Music: The free event celebrates local music with 18 performances on 3 stages, with a mix of soul, funk, roots rock, blues, swamp funk, folk, working girl blues and new grass, and more.


Beyond MoCo

Dogfish Head Alehouse has announced it will be closing its Fairfax location later this year, according to a post on its social media. The restaurant, which will only have its Gaithersburg location left (800 W Diamond Ave), has decided not to renew its lease at the Greenbrier Town Center in Fairfax (13041 Lee Jackson Memorial Highway).

Dogfish Head Alehouse, which is owned and operated independent from the Dogfish Head brewery in Milton, DE through a licensing agreement, recently closed its Falls Church, VA location at 6220 Leesburg Pike in the Seven Corners Shopping Center. The Gaithersburg location will remain open. The message left on social media can be seen below:


Crime

Per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Columbia: A government contractor is charged by criminal complaint, unsealed today, with espionage. Abraham Teklu Lemma, 50, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Ethiopian descent living in Silver Spring, Maryland, is charged with gathering or delivering national defense information to aid a foreign government; conspiracy to gather or deliver national defense information to aid a foreign government; and having unauthorized possession of national defense information and willfully retaining it.

Lemma worked as an IT administrator for the Department of State, and as a Management Analyst for the Department of Justice. In those positions, Lemma was granted a TOP SECRET security clearance and granted access to classified systems. According to the criminal complaint, between December 19, 2022, and August 7, 2023, Lemma copied classified information from Intelligence Reports and deleted the classification markings from them. Lemma then removed the information, which was classified as SECRET and TOP SECRET, from secure facilities at the Department of State against protocol. The materials related to a specific country and/or geographic region. Lemma accessed, copied, removed, and retained this information without authorization.


Announcement

A Bison Celebration is part of the Smithsonian Institution’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. The Bison Celebration will be a full day event that brings together organizations, scholars, scientists and filmmakers to celebrate the past, present, and future of North America’s largest land mammal. Through captivating films and thought-provoking panel discussions, the museum will explore the bison’s vital role in restoring grassland ecosystems and its deep spiritual connection to Tribal nations.


Event

Bring your family and friends to our free , all-day outdoor Oktoberfest celebration. These will be an outdoor craft fair featuring local artisans and professional woodworkers, a chainsaw carving, woodworking and tool demonstrations by Festool, Montgomery Wood Turners and Carvers. There will also be lots of delicious food provided by El Parente Tacos, El Jeffe Wood-fired pizzas, Bruster's Ice cream and seasonal craft brews from Saints Row Brwsing Company.


Boyds

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to the 13500 blk of W. Old Baltimore Rd, near Lake Ridge Dr in Boyds for the report of a fallen tree on a vehicle. According to Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS Pete Piringer, the person that was driving vehicle is out and there were no serious injuries.

W. Old Baltimore Rd is blocked between Lake Ridge Dr and Broadway Ave. We will provide an update if additional information becomes available.


Beyond MoCo

The identification of the deceased is pending next of kin notification. The victim was struck and killed shortly before 2:00 a.m. today on the southbound side of I-495 in the area of Ritchie Marlboro Road.  Emergency medical service personnel from Prince George’s County Fire Department responded and pronounced the victim deceased on the scene.

Currently, information developed by State Police Crash Team investigators indicates the striking vehicle was a 2009 – 2014 Mini Cooper. The preliminary investigation indicates the victim was walking on the southbound side of I-495, south of Ritchie Marlboro Road in lane 3 when the crash occurred. Investigators believe the striking vehicle sustained damage to the right front-end as a result of the crash.


Bethesda

Trip Advisor is a popular American online travel company that offers ratings of restaurants primarily from those who have traveled to the area, rather than locals. If you’re interested in seeing the opinions of those who have traveled to the area, you’re in luck, as today we’ll be sharing the top 10 restaurants according to Trip Advisor.

10. Silver Diner (12276 Rockville Pike, Rockville): With a 4 out of 5 rating after 639 reviews, Silver Diner comes in #10 overall in the county and #2 in Rockville. The restaurant has an additional MoCo location at Gaithersburg’s Rio.


Aspen Hill

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to Georgia Avenue, near International Drive, for the report of a vehicle fire on Sunday, September 24, around 11am. Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS Pete Piring reports that northbound Georgia Avenue is blocked off at Rossmoor Drive, near Leisure World. Drivers should expect delays. We will provide an update if additional information becomes available. Featured photo courtesy of @izzy.g5451 on Instagram. 

Georgia Avenue near International drive, @mcfrs PE725, AT740, PE740 responding, vehicle fire, some lanes blocked


Beyond MoCo

At approximately 1:31 a.m., today, Frederick County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the Costco Distribution Center, 5236 Intercostal Drive, in Monrovia, Maryland, for a welfare check. The initial call was a truck driver seemed under the influence and had broken out the window of their own tractor.

Per the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office: “Upon arrival, FCSO deputies contacted the suspect, an adult male, who was in the driver’s seat of his tractor with it running at the entrance to the Costco Depot. The male was argumentative and did not want to speak to deputies.


MoCo Government

Wheaton Regional Park is located at 2000 Shorefield Rd. in Wheaton. A free satellite parking shuttle Ride On service to and from the Wheaton Ice Rink and athletic fields will be available.

All are welcome to the celebration, which will include traditional, Kosher, Halal and vegetarian lunch options. There will be a wide range of activities for children and adults including music, dancing, moon bounce, face painting, the carousel and rides on the park’s miniature train.


Beyond MoCo

A section of the festival is dedicated to carnival games to entertain kids, mascots including The Big Dill’s own Dilly the Pickle™ traverse the festival grounds dancing and taking pictures with guests; plus, you can test your rodeo skills with indoor bull riding. And you can’t miss the food selection where guests get to munch on pickled-themed culinary delights, including fried pickles, pickle pizza, pickle egg rolls, pickle fries, and pickle ice cream, in addition to your traditional carnival treats and sweets.