Rio Lakefront’s ‘Light Up the Lakefront’, which includes a fireworks display, will take place on Saturday, December 9th from 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm. “Join us for a festive evening of holiday fun on the Lakefront with activities along the Boardwalk (near Guapo’s/Charley Prime) and Fire Lounge (between True Food Kitchen & Uncle Julio’s):
6:45 PM: Enjoy a Dazzling Fireworks show over the lake!* Perfect viewing all along the Boardwalk and Fire Lounge.
Chop Robinson, a 6’3, 253 pound Defensive End for the Penn State Nittany Lions, watched his current team beat his previous team as Penn State rolled through Maryland 51-15 on Saturday. Robinson, a Quince Orchard High School graduate and Gaithersburg native who owns his high school’s sack record, was injured two weeks ago against Ohio State, and wasn’t able to play in the last two games, including Saturday’s game against Maryland. The now-Penn State standout is having a great season for the 8-1 Nittany Lions, with five tackles for loss, three sacks, and a forced fumble on the season, and hopes to return next week against Michigan. Many analysts and draft experts currently have Robinson going in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Last year, Robinson was selected All-Big Ten honorable mention by the coaches and media, named a Pro Football Focus All-Big Ten second team selection, and earned the team’s Reid Robinson Outstanding Defensive Lineman Award with Adisa Isaac. Appearing in 12 games as a sophomore, he posted 26 tackles (19 solo), 10 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, two pass breakups, three quarterback hurries, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble. Prior to the start of this season, Robinson earned preseason second-team All-American honors and was named to the Bednarik Award, Lombardi Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy watch lists prior to the start of the season.
Downtown Crown, the restaurant and retail portion of Gaithersburg’s Crown neighborhood opened in 2014 with Harris Teeter as an anchor and restaurants including Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Coastal Flats, Paladar Latin Kitchen, La Madeleine Country French Café, and more. Though the places listed are all still open, there have been some changes in the area the last nine years or so. Below, we’ll go over a few recent closures, some vacancies, and a pretty big “coming soon.”
BurgerIM, an Israeli burger chain, closed permanently earlier this year after about three and a half years at 200 Ellington Blvd. Doki Toki, an Asian bakery and dessert shop that took over for Mango Mango in May 2022, closed early this past summer after just over a year at 202 Ellington Blvd. Old Town Pour House, one of the original Downtown Crown tenants, closed last month at 212 Ellington Blvd after 8.5 years.
According to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, “In the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD, the Honorable Christopher Fogleman has sentenced defendant, Marvin Frazier, 24, of Germantown to 40 years in prison suspend all but 25 to serve and five years of supervised probation upon release. Frazier was convicted by a jury in April of 2023 on charges including attempted first-degree murder, two counts each of first-degree assault and use of a handgun in a crime of violence, and illegal possession of a handgun. The sentencing hearing took place on Thursday, November 2nd, 2023.
This stems from an incident at a music studio along Montgomery Village Avenue in Gaithersburg on August 8th, 2020. Frazier shot a 19-year-old male, causing him to become paralyzed from the waist down. He also pistol-whipped a 20-year-old male. The defendant and victims are associated with rival gangs. The defendant fled but was apprehended in 2022.
The two bronze statues of a cat and a bear have been a fixture at Gaithersburg’s Rio Lakefront for years, but did you know that they have a name and a story behind them? The whimsical sculptures of Fridolin, the bronze bear, and Kimo, a human size bronze cat, encourages a “hunt for missing objects.”
The bronze animals hold open books that tell a story about their character and that describe six lost items — a pocket watch, hat, suitcase, beehive, Dutch shoes and a bag of popcorn with a bird eating from the bag. See if you can find them all! Read their stories below:
The City of Gaithersburg will host its 97th annual tree lighting ceremony and “Jungle Jubilee” festivities on Saturday, December 2, 2023 from 6pm- 8pm at the Concert Pavilion in Olde Towne Gaithersburg (32 South Summit Ave).
Per Gaithersburg: Celebrate diverse & vibrant holiday traditions at Gaithersburg’s Jingle Jubilee. Enjoy an evening of music, dance & song. Enjoy an evening of music, dance, and song. This year marks the 97th anniversary of the tree lighting ceremony. The festivities take place at the Concert Pavilion in Olde Towne. Admission is free. The outdoor venue features lawn seating with limited chairs. Please feel free to bring your own chair to enjoy the entertainment.
Rio will be hosting its Holiday Makers Market on Saturday, November 11th and Sunday, November 12th from 11:00 am – 5:00 pm. “Join us as we kick off the holiday shopping season with a two-day Holiday Makers Market with Locally Crafted on Grand Corner Avenue!”:
A list of artisans participating on each day can be seen in the images below:
The Maryland Department of Transportation will host a series of open houses, including one in Rockville, to engage the public about improvements to the Interstate 495/270 corridor from the American Legion Bridge to Frederick.
Most City of Gaithersburg facilities & offices are closed on November 10, 2023, in observance of Veterans Day, with the exception of the following:
The collection of recycled materials will take place as scheduled. Bulk pick up is unavailable.
Carmen’s Italian Ice is partnering with the owners of Kung Fu Tea at 130 Market St in Gaithersburg to open a new location. Carmen’s will be sharing the space with Kung Fu Tea, taking over the portion that is currently occupied by Tutti Frutti. According to Carmen’s, it will initially offer 3-4 flavors of custard, 6-8 flavors of Italian ice, milkshakes, and more. The plan is to open in about two weeks. Earlier this year Carmen’s partnered with the Clarksburg Market at 23329 Frederick Rd to open a similar concept in Clarksburg.
About Carmen’s: It started with a simple idea. Introduce homemade gourmet Italian Ice to the Washington DC area. Jason Mandler – a native of Parsippany, New Jersey – opened Carmen’s Italian Ice & Cafe in Rockville, MD in 2001. Tracing its roots back to Philly and South Jersey where this dessert has been a mainstay for years, Carmen’s offers homemade, gourmet Italian Ice in over 60 flavors. It also now offers frozen custard, shakes, and a toppings bar.
The Montgomery County Department of Police – Special Victims Investigations Division (SVID) are asking for the public’s assistance in locating Ashley Portillo Rivera, a missing 13-year-old from Gaithersburg. Rivera was last seen on Tuesday, October 31, 2023, at approximately 9:30 p.m., in the 182000 block of Lost Knife Rd. She is 5’5″, 125 lbs., with brown eyes and black hair.
Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Ashley Portillo Rivera is asked to call Montgomery County Police Non-Emergency (301) 279-8000 (24-hour line).