Olney

Scratch Kitchen opened at 18062 Georgia Ave in Olney in August, initially opening for breakfast and lunch. The restaurant is now open for dinner service with updated hours of 7am-7pm Tuesday through Saturday and Sundays 7am-3pm. The new dinner menu consists of entrees like short ribs, mojo chicken, stuffed chicken breast, mofongo, lemon-butter salmon, and more (photos of the restaurant and some of the menu items available below).

More on Scratch Kitchen Olney:At the start of 2022, owner Bernie Rousseau decided she would lease the space formerly occupied by CB Acai for her daughter, who shared Bernie’s passion of cooking, to operate starting April– when the restaurant initially hoped to open. Tragedy struck, as Bernie’s daughter passed away on February 1st– the same day Bernie got the keys to the new location.


MCFRS

Per Montgomery County Police: On Saturday, October 15, 2022, at approximately 11:16 p.m., 5th District officers and Montgomery County Fire Rescue personnel responded to the area of Frederick Road and Plummer Drive for the report of a traffic collision involving a truck and a jeep. An adult male passenger of the jeep was pronounced dead at the scene.

The man driving the jeep was transported to an area hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. The driver and passengers of the truck were transported to an area hospital with minor injuries. The decedent’s name will be released following proper notification of next of kin.


Gaithersburg

Earlier this year, on February 28th, WRS Inc. (a real estate investment firm based out of South Carolina), purchased Lakeforest Mall’s four anchor sites. The firm previously purchased the core, ponds, and forest conservation of the mall back in 2019. There is a public meeting on Thursday October 20th at 6pm, being held by WRS Inc. regarding the Sketch Plan and Rezoning application for the mall. The meeting will take place at Lakeforest Mall (701 Russell Ave, Gaithersburg, MD).

In April, Gaithersburg’s Office of Economic Development released the dollar amount the properties were acquired for, per Maryland Land Records:


Montgomery Parks

Be cautious because eastern copperheads may be crossing or basking on trails. Copperheads are not aggressive by nature, and the snakes prefer to remain undetected, relying on cryptic camouflage for protection. However, this camouflage can also be the cause for close encounters with people and pets. So, always look where you step.

Key features of copperheads include:


Germantown

Updated at 10:15am with additional information from Montgomery County Police; crash confirmed as fatal

Emergency crews responded to the scene of a crash involving two vehicles on southbound Rt. 355 Frederick Rd in the area of Plummer Drive in Germantown at approximately 11:15pm, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) chief spokesperson Pete Piringer and Battalion Chief Chase Fabrizio. Montgomery County Police has stated that an adult male passenger of one of the vehicles was pronounced dead on the scene.


Gaithersburg

Estes is 5-feet, 2-inch tall and weighs 150 pounds. She has brown curly hair which may be up in a bun.  She has brown eyes and braces. She was last seen wearing a navy zip-up hooded sweatshirt with a Nike logo, peach sweatpants and pink Crocs.    Police and family are concerned for her welfare.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Lily Estes is asked to all the police non-emergency number at (301) 279-8000 (24-hour line) or the Special Victims Investigations Division at (240) 773- 5400.


Bethesda

Randrianarison and Rajaonarison were last seen on Saturday, October 15, 2022, at approximately 2:30 p.m., leaving the 5000 block of Sentinel Drive in Bethesda.

Randrianarison is 5-feet, 7-inchess tall and weighs 141 pounds. He was last seen wearing a dark red cap with an American flag and eagle emblem, gray sweatshirt, gray jogging pants and tan sandals.  Rajaonarison is 5-feet tall and weighs 110 pounds. She was last seen wearing a blue shirt, black, pink and white square-pattern pants and black shoes.


Gaithersburg

The parents of Ryan LeRoux, who was shot and killed by police officers in July 2021, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Montgomery County Police. The attorneys for the family released a statement (available below) on Friday announcing support from The Disability Rights Section of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

The lawsuit claims that LeRoux’s rights were violated under the Americans with Disabilities Act because he was suffering from a mental health crisis when he was shot, according to a Fox 5 report. The lawsuit also claims that MCPD has a history of using deadly force in cases that involve a mental health crisis and that the officers were poorly trained in handling these types of situations.


Damascus

Jake Funk was drafted in the 7th round of the 2021 draft by the Los Angeles and won a Super Bowl with the team in his first year in the NFL. He remained with the team for the first part of the 2022 NFL season, but was released earlier in the week before finding a new home in New Orleans when the Saints signed the running back to the practice squad on Wednesday.

Jake Funk holds the Maryland state record for career touchdowns from when he was a student at Damascus High School. He went on to play at the University of Maryland before getting drafted by the Rams with the 5th pick of the 7th round in 2021. In New Orleans, he joins veteran Jordan Howard who was also signed to the teams practice squad, to prepare begging active roster running backs Alvin Kamara, Mark Ingram, and Dwayne Washington.


Restaurants

Urban Winery’s tasting room and patio is now open at its new location on 2315 Stewart Avenue in Silver Spring. The winery was previously located at 949 Bonifant Street Suite A, where it opened in 2015 and stayed until 2020. Urban Winery was temporarily closed due to construction.

About Urban Winery: “The Urban Winery in Silver Spring, Maryland is located inside the DC Capital Beltway and was the first winery in our region in an urban environment. We offer over 30 wines produced on-site as well as a selection of other hand crafted wines, beers, and spirits produced in the state of Maryland. Our international wine selection represents other small producers from around the globe and features a wide variety of grape expressions for those who truly wish to explore the whole wide world of wine. Our wine shop staff can assist you in selecting the perfect wine to pair with a meal, gift to a friend, celebrate an occasion, or reward yourself for a job well done. In our tasting room you can enjoy a tasting flight and learn more about the wines we make or share a bottle of wine and some light fare in the relaxed atmosphere. Our wine classes can give you an even more in depth look at the incredible world of wine appreciation. Wine making experiences can be booked by those who wish to create their own batch of wine, their own wine story, to share with friends and family.”


Education

“Dear MCPS Community,

Last week, we saw an increase in classroom outbreaks of COVID-19. While the overall Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 Community Risk Level is LOW for Montgomery County, we should remain vigilant about preventing the spread of COVID-19, as well as other respiratory viruses, including influenza and RSV. There are a few things we can do to promote health in our school community: