In May we let you know that DMV Iron Gym, a world class facility that offers hand selected, state of the art gym equipment from the 1960’s up to the latest technology from the best manufacturers in the world, is coming to MoCo. The 16,000 square foot facility planned open in Rockville’s Federal Plaza in September 2023, next to Micro Center. The opening date has been finalized– Friday, September 15th.

Its mission is to provide members with the most effective equipment, to see the fastest results, allowing them to become the best version of themselves. “For years, we’ve been hearing from our members that they would love to see us expand into Maryland. We were excited by the central location of Federal Plaza in Rockville and look forward to bringing a state-of-the-art gym and training facility to Montgomery County,” says Leo Williams, Owner of DMV Iron Gym.


A couple weeks back we let you know that Luna Hall has signed on to move into one of the vacant spaces in the Pike Center (the shopping center that’s the longtime home of TGI Friday’s and the recently opened Golfdom), according to Kimco. The location is listed as taking is the former CiCi’s Pizza spot.

Luna Hall tells us that in addition to Rockville, Luna Hall also has new branches on the horizon in Tyson’s and Ellicott City, but that Rockville’s Luna Hall will be their “premier location.” The Rockville location will offer Hot Pot and Korean BBQ at Top Pot KBBQ, and food court with ten offerings, including Dumpling District, Kung Fu Tea, TKK Fried Chicken, Pollo Aria, Buena Onda by renowned Iron Chef Jose Garces, Mala Pot, Ramen, Kebob, a dessert spot, and a bakery. An opening date is not yet available.


Kung Fu Tea in Rockville Town Center (275 N Washington St) has closed permanently. Though Kung Fu Tea has opened various Montgomery a county locations in recent years, the store on N. Washington Street was the first to open in the county back in July of 2015. The store recently added ‘Neon Gaming’ this past spring in an effort to bring in additional customers.

A sign has been placed on the door that reads, “Dear Valued Customers, We regret to inform you that Kung Fu Tea Rockville has closed its doors. We sincerely thank you for your support over the years. Please visit our sister store KFT Rio 6 Grand Corner Ave Gaithersburg, MD 20878.” There are additional Kung Fu Tea locations across the county.


Per the City of Rockville: The city is seeking community input as work on Rockville’s first Pedestrian Master Plan continues this fall. The plan will guide the development, construction and maintenance of safe, convenient, and equitable walking and rolling facilities across the city. Walking and rolling describes mobility that does not use motor vehicles, e-scooters or bicycles. This includes walking with or without a white cane, audio-assistance device or walker; running; or using a wheelchair, knee-walker, mobility scooter or stroller. Find video of a staff presentation of the draft plan with the June 28 Planning Commission meeting listing at www.rockvillemd.gov/AgendaCenter.

View the draft plan and submit comments to city staff via email or through the Pedestrian Master Plan Draft Survey at engagerockville.com/pedestrian-master-plan. The survey asks community members to identify what parts of the plan work well, what changes are needed and what’s missing. All comments will receive a response and will be shared with the city’s Planning Commission and Mayor and Council for their public hearings.


Per the City of Rockville: In their ongoing fight to bring awareness to the national impact of opioid addiction and signal hope for recovery, Rockville’s Mayor and Council proclaimed September as National Recovery Month at their Monday, Aug. 7 meeting. The theme for National Recovery Month is “Recovery is for Everyone: Every Person, Every Family, Every Community.” The proclamation states that: “The Rockville Goes Purple initiative is increasing awareness of the dangers of opioids and other substances, and strives to reduce the number of lives lost to drug addiction in our community.”

Lights at City Hall, the Rockville City Police Department headquarters and other city and county facilities will once again shine purple throughout the month. The theme of the campaign is “Opioids: Let’s Talk About It,” which encourages dialogue about, and openness around, the problems of opioid addiction, and awareness about the dangers of stigmatizing addiction.


The Container Store, which currently has one Montgomery County location at 1601 Rockville Pike in Congressional Plaza, will be opening a second Montgomery County location in Gaithersburg.  The retailer specializes in storage, home office organizers and organization supplies, including custom closets and shelving systems. It provides an experience-driven shopping destination with more than 11,000 organizational products offered.

Representatives from the Rockville location were unable to provide us with any additional details about the exact location of the retailer, but we are told that the vacant space in Downtown Crown next to Woodhouse Day Spa is the likely location. The Container Store recently announced that it will be opening six new small format stores in fiscal 2023 and three new stores in fiscal 2024, with Gaithersburg estimated to open in Winter 2023. The Rockville location is approximately 24,000 SF and the small format stores tend to be approximately 15,000 SF.  Visit www.containerstore.com/locationsfor more information about store locations, the product collection, and the services offered. We will have an update with confirmation of the Gaithersburg location being in Downtown Crown as soon as we have it. Below is a list of the six new locations expected to open by the end of 2023.


Per Montgomery County: Bicycles that are no longer being used by some can make a big difference for others. The Montgomery County Department of Transportation’s annual Bicycle Donation Drive will be held on Friday, Oct. 20. The event will make it easy to donate previously owned bikes and ensure they will have a continued impact.

From  7 a.m.-2 p.m. on Oct. 20, bikes will be collected (rain or shine) outside of the Montgomery County Council Office Building Garage at East Jefferson and Monroe Street in Rockville. Bicycles should be in good working condition or in need of only minor repairs. Donations will be refurbished and MCDOT will match the bikes with residents in need through the Bike Match program.


According to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s office, “Today in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD, before the Honorable John Maloney, a jury found defendant, Leaundra Matthews, 25, of Accokeek, guilty of second-degree murder for the death of Christian Matthews, her 17-year-old brother. Christian Matthews was fatally strangled during an attack by the defendant’s boyfriend and another co-defendant while he was asleep inside the family’s Silver Spring home in the early morning hours of March 21, 2017.

Leaundra Matthews faces up to 30 years in prison. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 19, 2024 at 2 p.m. In January of 2019, a jury convicted Leaundra’s boyfriend, 26-year-old Tysean Lipford, on a charge of second-degree murder for the death of Christian Matthews. He was sentenced in June of 2019 to 30 years in prison and is currently serving that sentence. Daniel Howard is the other codefendant facing murder charges. His trial is scheduled for April 2024. In addition, Leaundra’s twin sister, Lemae Matthews, pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to murder in October of 2021 and will be sentenced following the conclusion of Howard’s April 2024 trial.”


Per MCPD: Sawsan Al Hadidi of Rockville has been charged with obstruction of justice and bribery after she allegedly attempted to bribe a Montgomery County Child Welfare Services (CWS) employee. The 42-year-old is accused of attempting to pay off an Assessment Social Worker, who had been assigned to investigate claims of sexual abuse against a child, which had been initiated by Al Hadidi.

The CWS employee reported that on Wednesday, July 26, Al Hadidi stated she had a gift for the investigator and presented a large amount of cash. The investigator refused the money and reported the incident. A warrant was requested and Al Hadidi was issued a summons to appear in court.


Wendy’s, located at 5001 Nicholson Ln. in Rockville, will hold its Grand Reopening celebration on Saturday, September 23rd at 10:30am. As with recent area Wendy’s Grand Reopening celebrations, the fast food chain will offer “free food for a year” to the first 100 guests in line.

As the fast food chain did with one of its Gaithersburg locations and its Derwood location, Wendy’s will give away 100 VIP ticket to those 16 and older and present in line at 10:30am when the dining room opens (a purchase is necessary to be considered for a card). Anyone who gets a VIP ticket will be able to come back to the store once a week for a year to receive a free sandwich, salad, or breakfast biscuit.


According to the Rockville City Police, “at approximately 10:20 p.m. on August 28, 2023, Rockville City Police responded to the 700 block of Rockville Pike for a report of an assault. Through the course of our initial investigation, several juveniles, known to each other, met at an undisclosed location and engaged in mutual combative behavior which resulted in one of the juveniles being stabbed several times. The victim was transported to a local hospital in stable condition.”

The incident is under investigation and anyone with information is asked to contact the RCPD Criminal Investigations Unit at 240-314-8938 or [email protected]. Featured image courtesy of Google Maps.


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