Per Montgomery Planning: The Montgomery County Planning Department, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), briefed the Montgomery County Planning Board Feb. 16 on its Wheaton Downtown Study, which examines the progress and challenges toward fulfilling the 2012 Wheaton Central Business District (CBD) and Vicinity Sector Plan and offers specific recommendations to inform decision makers on advancing the sector plan’s implementation. Montgomery Planning is now sending the completed study to the Montgomery County Council.

READ THE WHEATON DOWNTOWN STUDY DOCUMENT


Nike Unite will be opening its Downtown Silver location on Thursday, February 23, according to a recording on the store’s phone line. The store will be open from 10am-8pm Monday through Saturday and 11am-6pm on Sundays.

Back in June we let you know that the Nike Unite store would be coming to Downtown Silver Spring, taking over the location that was formerly home to DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse location at 910 Ellsworth Drive. Nike is also opening a store in Bethesda.


Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to a call for a “big dog” stuck in a construction hole on the 700 block of of Kersey Rd, off of Arcola Ave, in the Kemp Mill area of Silver Spring at approximately 9pm on Monday night (photo below).

MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer described the dog as a “fairly large, fluffy, family dog” who was walking in the backyard and fell into a construction hole and got stuck. Rescue crews, assisted by Technical Rescue Team TR700, were able to rescue the dog after about an hour. The dog was unharmed.


25-year-old Melanie Diaz was killed in Saturday’s fire at The Arrive apartment building in Silver Spring. She was found unresponsive in the seventh floor stairway, along with her two dogs, when attempting to evacuate the building from her eleventh-story apartment. Her family described her as someone who “filled everyone’s life with happiness.”

Diaz was a 2021 graduate of Georgetown University who began her career in DC following college and lived at the Silver Spring apartment building. Her family has traveled from Florida and a GoFundMe was started on their behalf to help with funeral expenses and support for them as they will be out of work for an undetermined amount of time:


Below you will see notes from a media briefing by Fire Chief Scott Goldstein regarding this morning’s apartment fire in Silver Spring.

• Occupant on 8th floor called to let MCFRS know of smoke coming from the 7th floor this morning. Units arrived to find a fire on the 7th floor. Fire was contained to the 7th floor apartment with smoke on several floors above and below the unit.


Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to a a call for smoke reported on the seventh floor of an 18-story residential building, The Pointe, at 8750 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring on Saturday morning.

According to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer, the building was being evacuated around 6am on Saturday morning with firefighters assisting people out. At 6:23am, Piringer tweeted that numerous people were trapped, mostly on balconies, and that several people were being treated for smoke inhalation. As of 7:20am, six people have been transported to the hospital and Georgia Avenue is closed in the area of Downtown Silver Spring (along with other roads). Initially a 2-alarm fire, Piringer later tweeted that it has become a third alarm fire.


Per MCPD: Detectives from the Montgomery County Department of Police – Major Crimes Division have charged seven juveniles, one 14-year-old, three 15-year-olds, two 16-year-olds, and one 17-year-old, with auto theft. On Wednesday, February 15, 2023, at approximately 7:30 a.m., 4th District officers responded to the 12300 block of Livingston St. for the report of a suspicious situation.

Detectives from the Auto Crime Enforcement Section (ACES) were in the area conducting proactive enforcement, with 4th District patrol, in response to Hyundai and Kia theft trends and responded to the location as well. The preliminary on scene investigation revealed that officers observed a red Hyundai Sonata leaving the area at a high rate of speed. Officers determined that the Sonata was reported stolen from Washington, D.C.


Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to a fire at the Elizabeth House apartment building at 1400 Fenwick Lane in Silver Spring on Friday morning around 2:45am. According to Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS Pete Piringer, a maintenance worker located the fire on the 4th floor of the building and the fire was contained by the building’s sprinkler system.

Update – Elizabeth House, automatic fire alarm, maintenance worker located fire (contained by sprinkler); FFs located 1 person in apt; Origin/Cause-electrical failure, electric cord to space heater; Damage, ~$80k; some Water damage (on 2-4 floors) many were vacant (renovation) https://t.co/qsrS7re478


Department is accepting submissions for a new public art installation in downtown Silver Spring park 

Montgomery Parks is looking for an artist to create a permanent art installation at Gene Lynch Urban Park in downtown Silver Spring. The newly constructed park sits on a quarter acre near the Silver Spring Metro and the Sarbanes Transit Center and will open this spring. It includes an open lawn area, a pergola with bench swings and a 10 x 13-foot concrete wall —the location of the new public artwork. 


Tuesday Morning, an off-price retailer of home goods and décor, will close both Montgomery County locations– Aspen Hill (13832 Georgia Avenue in the Northgate shopping center) and Rockville (1616 East Jefferson St. #12B in Congressionak Plaza). According to a Business Insider report, “the chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday. As part of the process, the retailer wants to close 265 stores across the US, or more than half of all of its stores, according to a document filed in bankruptcy court in Northern Texas.” Specific closing information for each location to come soon.

This comes a few months after the company announced that it has entered into an agreement to secure $32 million in convertible debt financing from a special purpose vehicle (“SPV”) formed by Retail Ecommerce Ventures LLC (“REV”), the owner of a diverse portfolio of consumer brands that includes Pier 1 Imports (“Pier 1”), Linens ‘n Things, Stein Mart, Modell’s Sporting Goods, and Ayon Capital, LLC (“Ayon”).


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