Rockville’s Compost Crew Inc., the largest food scrap recycling company in the Mid-Atlantic, announced the opening of a new composting project at Butler’s Orchard in Germantown, Md. Under the terms of the partnership, Butler’s Orchard owns the composting program, which was constructed and will be operated by the experienced team from Compost Crew. “Compost is an important part of our healthy farming practices,” said Ben Butler, Farm and Finance Manager at Butler’s Orchard. “This partnership provides us with a guaranteed source of high-quality compost for our crops without the hassle, as Compost Crew does the dirty work.”

This location is the newest Compost Outpost®, a modular food scrap composting site that can be built in months. Compost Crew aims to promote distributed composting around the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area by creating a series of Compost Outposts in partnership with area farms, municipalities, and other property owners. The Compost Outpost at Butler’s Orchard started taking in food scraps earlier this month. It will process 20 tons of organic materials per month, including five tons of food scraps collected from approximately 200 Montgomery County homes. All finished compost produced at the Compost Outpost will be put to use on the farm, creating a circular system that minimizes the transportation of materials.


Apna Pizza at 14050 Travilah Rd in Rockville (Travilah area), the former site of Pizza Palace, has announced that due to an electrical issue the restaurant’s opening has been delayed. The new pizzeria recently wrapped up construction and a countdown on the restaurant website said that the restaurant would be opening later this week.  The new opening date is now to be determined.

Apna will serve Indian style pizza, and say they will be the first in the area to offer that style. The menu will include items such as tandoori chicken pizza, butter chicken fusion pizza, masala paneer pizza, impossible korma pizza (vegetarian) or a build your own with toppings of your choice and Indian flavor and spices. In addition to pizza, they will serve sides of loaded fries, which they described as “poutine but with an edge”, and wings.


Update 6/20:  Apna Pizza has announced that due to an electrical issue the restaurant will not be opening this week. New opening date to be determined. 

Back in March we let you know that Apna Pizza is coming to 14050 Travilah Rd in Rockville (Travilah area), the former site of Pizza Palace. The new pizzeria has wrapped up construction and a countdown on the restaurant website says that the restaurant will open later this week


The Suds & Soles 5K will cause a few street closures in Rockville today (Saturday, June 18th). The Rockville City Police Department has let community members know that N. Washington St (from Middle Ln to E. Jefferson St) and E. Montgomery Ave./Courthouse Sq. (From N. Washington St to Maryland Ave.) will be closed from 2pm-11pm. Neighborhood roads along the course will be closed from 7pm until approximately 8:30pm.

The Suds & Soles 5K will be held this evening, June 18, 2022 at 7:30pm in Rockville Town Center.  The race is presented through a partnership of the Montgomery County Road Runners Club and the City of Rockville.  The 5K Run is open to all ages and will be followed by a fantastic post race party!  Adults will be able to sample beverages from local breweries as well as enjoy other post-race refreshments.


The right lane of southbound 355, starting 335 feet south of Marinelli Rd. until 500 feet north of Marinelli Rd on Rockville Pike will be closed beginning Wednesday, June 23 from 9am until 3pm on weekdays for a gas main replacement. The temporary closure is expected to be completed no later than July 29th. A letter, seen below, was sent by Washington Gas to the community regarding the repairs and lane closure.

Beginning, Wednesday June 23rd at 9 a.m., NPL Company will perform a replacement project operation to replace approximately 835′ of gas main at the intersection of Rockville Pike and Marinelli Rd.


Last month we let you know that BoBaPop Tea Bar opened up inside the Kyoto Matcha location at 33 Maryland Ave Unit A in Rockville Town Square.  The store will officially hold a Grand Opening this weekend, with deals on drinks available both days.

BoBaPoP opened its location at 312 Main Street in the Kentlands in 2018 and was the first of the Vietnamese based company’s stores to open in the United States. BoBaPop opened its second MoCo location at 19847 Century Blvd, Unit J in Germantown, the former site of August 32, back in November.  The company has over 150 stores worldwide.


The City of Rockville will hold a virtual forum on Town Center, 7-9 p.m. Tuesday, June 28. Rockville Town Center comprises about 200 acres of the city, generally bounded by properties along Fleet Street to the south, South and North Washington streets along the west, and the railroad tracks to the east.

The forum, which is open to the community, will discuss and solicit feedback on:


HomeSense opens today at 12013 Rockville Pike in Rockville, the former site of A.C. Moore. The store is open from 8am until 10pm on opening day. HomeSense is owned by the same company that owns HomeGoods, Marshalls, and TJ Maxx. Cosmopolitan magazine describes Homesense as “HomeGoods on steroids.” The chain sells furniture, rugs, lighting, kitchenware, home décor, and books.

According to it’s website, “We travel the world to bring savvy home curators an ever-changing selection and exceptional savings for every corner of their home,” and “explore a new home décor store with aisles of unexpected finds, and an ever-changing selection of famous brands and global discoveries—all with genuine value. Homesense is part of the HomeGoods family.”


Angela Judge, who was an assistant city manager with Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and formerly with the City of Atlanta, Georgia, was named Rockville’s deputy city manager in May of 2021, with her official duties in the position beginning on Monday, June 14. Approximately one year later, the City of Rockville announced her departure, effective today, Wednesday, June 15.

Per the City of Rockville: Deputy City Manager Angela Judge is departing the City of Rockville as of today, Wednesday, June 15. She will be joining her husband, Warren, who will be assuming command of United States Coast Guard Training Center Cape May in Cape May, New Jersey. “I want to express my sincerest appreciation, on behalf of all of us, to Deputy City Manager Angela Judge for the outstanding work she has performed in the past year for our organization and community,” City Manager Rob DiSpirito said.


NIAID conducts and supports research—at NIH, throughout the United States, and worldwide — to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing, and treating these illnesses. News releases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID website.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.


After the COVID-19 pandemic caused cancellations in 2020 and 2021, Independence Day fireworks and celebrations are back in a big way this year. Below is a list of all the MoCo fireworks displays that have been announced:

Sign language interpreter services and other auxiliary aids or services will be provided upon request with as much notice as possible, preferably at least three business days before the event. To request special accommodations, contact a therapeutic recreation specialist at 240-777-6870 or email [email protected].


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