Gaithersburg City Councilmember Rob Wu has announced that he running for Montgomery County Council in District 3. The seat is currently held by former Gaithersburg mayor, Sydney Katz.

As of today, there are no other candidates that have filed to run in the district.

More information on Rob Wu, courtesy of his website, can be seen below:

Rob is a public servant, Army Officer, and most importantly, a husband and father. He’s running for Montgomery County Council to move our community forward.

Rob moved to Maryland while on active duty with the United States Army, first living in Frederick, then Prince George’s County and Silver Spring, and has been a proud resident of Gaithersburg since 2012, with his wife Jamie, 8- year old son Julian, 5-year old daughter Teresa, and dog Dibels.

A lawyer by trade, Rob’s career has focused on civil service, as an active duty Judge Advocate, U.S. Army civilian, and Senior Attorney at the United States Government Accountability Office. He now works at Northrop Grumman, following in the footsteps of his parents, grandfather and other members of his family who all worked for Grumman in Bethpage, New York. Rob has a Bachelor of Science degree with majors in Biology and Environmental Studies from Tufts University, a Juris Doctorate from the University of San Francisco School of Law, and he is currently working on a Master of Law degree from the George Washington University Law School concentrating in procurement law.

While at Tufts, Rob felt the call to serve and enrolled in the Reserve Officer Training Corps program. Four years later, in 1999, he received a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army. Rob served on active duty as a Judge Advocate in the Army for nearly seven years, and has remained in the Army reserves ever since. 

On active duty, Rob served overseas in South Korea, where he experienced its wonderful culture and people, and stateside in New Jersey, Frederick, Maryland, and attached to the Pentagon.  In 2015, Rob deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and, later as an Army civilian, to Afghanistan, where he worked on reconstruction efforts. In the Army reserves, Rob has taught contract and fiscal law, advised commanders, and most recently supported U.S. Special Operations Command as a procurement advisor.

In Gaithersburg, Rob found his community calling as a member of his community’s homeowners association, as a member of various City committees, and supporting his local PTA. It is through these community activities that Rob got a bug for politics. When he first decided to run for Gaithersburg City Council, Rob was cautioned by local politicians that first-time candidates have a tough road to victory.  Undeterred, Rob knocked on thousands of doors and talked to residents about their issues.  As a result, Rob was elected in 2015 with the second-highest vote total. 

As a council member, Rob has kept his promises to give every resident a voice, truly listen to the communities he serves, and advocate for a government that is responsive to the needs of its residents. He has championed policies to increase affordable housing, prioritized smart, sustainable growth and mixed-modal transportation, and has been a voice for environmental stewardship, to name a few issues.

Andrew Einsmann has officially declared his candidacy and will be on the ballot for Montgomery County Council Seat in the newly formed District 7.  Andrew has lived in the county for over 20 years- with the majority of those years in this new district.  

The newly formed 7th district is an upcounty district bordered on the south by Derwood and the Shady Grove Metro. It spans east to include Ashton, Sandy Spring and Olney.  It goes West to Montgomery Village and then traverses north through Damascus all the way to the county line.  A large portion of this district is the Agricultural Reserve.

Additional information is available via his press release below:

A husband, father, son, real estate agent, small business owner, soccer coach, basketball coach, president of numerous HOAs, PTA board member, former member of the Upcounty Advisory Board, Catholic, Scientist and U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer and two-time President of Upper Montgomery and Rockville Rotary Clubs.  “My long history in our community gives me deep experience and  allows for a balanced, smart approach when it comes to representing the district.” said Einsmann. 

If elected Andrew Einsmann’s major focuses would be:

Jobs- Why is Montgomery County last of any local jurisdiction when it comes to private sector job creation?  We need to use Novavax as a model and find more companies like them to come into the county and stimulate our economy.  We need to work with small businesses and hire more small business navigators and make it less cumbersome for a small business to open.  We need to work with the SBA and local banks to increase the opportunities for small businesses to find funding.

Housing and Transit options- These two items in my mind go hand and hand.  If you cannot get from your house to your job, it limits where you live.  I support the 2050 thrive plan but I will work to get more transit hubs in the county and therefore places we can put higher density.  I look forward to talking with our community about starting a study to expand Metro out to Olney to reduce dependency on cars. Hopefully we can get more transit options to alleviate that.

Increasing affordable housing is very important but we need some outside the box thinking.   New construction cannot always be the fix for affordable houses so in certain circumstances, we need to be flexible with zoning and potentially convert unused office spaces into houses.  One idea I like is The Lofts in Gaithersburg which was converted from a hotel to an apartment complex.

Environment- We have some strong policies in place.  Now we need to work towards implementing them.  We need a cleaner power grid.  The cleaner the grid, the more it makes environmental and economic sense to buy electrical vehicles.   “Smart Solar” or solar power combined with battery storage is the best option in our county and we need incentives so people can cover lesser used spaces into solar farms.  We need to learn how to make solar farms and agricultural farming coexist.

Andrew Einsman said, “I am a good listener and not afraid to ask the hard questions.”  He believes he can bring “common sense to complex problems.”  “We need to create a Montgomery County that provides opportunities to our kids.” “When they graduate college or go straight into the workforce, we want them to come back to live, work and play.” “I have a vision to move Montgomery County forward to be that place again. So come along for the ride and see the places we can go.”

Authorized by Friends of Andrew Einsmann, Ann Einsmann, Treasurer

Christopher Bolton, a lifelong MoCo resident who currently resides in Fairland, has announced his candidacy for County Council in District 5 (a new district in East County that spans from White Oak to Spencerville, Burtonsville, and parts of Leisure World).

Bolton is a Democrat who served in the navy for 5 years. He joins Brian Anleu, Fatmata Barrie, William “Chip” Montier, Daniel Koroma, Kristin Mink, and Jeremiah Pope in the District 5 race.

More information below, from Christopher Bolton:

“Lifelong East County resident Christopher Bolton joins the New East County Council race. Bolton a former Chair of the East County Citizens Advisory Board, current Parliamentarian of the East County Citizens Advisory Board, Co-Chair on the Reimagining Public Safety Task Force committee on policy and de-escalation, a member of the Complete Census Count Committee, and a volunteer for Maryland Medical Reserve Corps.

Bolton wants residents to know that “He has been doing the work for years to get East County heard by Elected officials”. Bolton also states that he “will not participate in public funding, nor accept money from PAC’s and Special interest groups”. “If I am going to get elected, I need to learn to use what I have, you know do more with less”. Bolton runs a Free and Reduced lunch program for 3 non-public Charter schools in Maryland and DC. 

Bolton also stated “That there is too much money in politics and that is why he is running. You call your elected officials, and you don’t get a response until something tragic happens”, “residents feel as if they aren’t important here in East County”. Residents for years have stated they must compete with the affluent parts of the county for attention” 

“You have Candidates who are raising 5 to 6 figures in donations, Bolton states. Residents ask me “who are they going to owe when they get in office, always a favor for a favor, will all that money have an impact when it’s time to get our needs heard”? Bolton states that won’t be the case with him as he will use what little money raised to make an impact and get his message out.” “You won’t have to worry about me owing anyone if I win this election.” 

Bolton also stated that Transparency will be the corner stone of his campaign, “I have nothing to hide, I am running an open campaign, not a lot of money but any information from my campaign that a voter or another campaign wants they can have it, that’s how confident I am that I am the best to represent the District.”

893,213 people in Montgomery County are now fully vaccinated, which is 85% of the total population, according to CDC data (1,050,929 residents have received at least one dose).

The 85% metric was initially going to be used to end the indoor mask requirement in Montgomery County, but the Montgomery County Council, acting as the Board of Health, met on the morning of January 4th and voted to terminate the existing Board of Health regulation that was scheduled to end the indoor mask requirement when Montgomery County reached an 85% vaccination rate.

As of now, the regulation is scheduled to end on January 31 at 11:59pm, meaning masks will be required until at least that date. The County Council will meet on January 24th to determine whether or not to extend the regulation again.

Yesterday, the County Council held a public hearing and discussion on the resolution that would require restaurants, bars, fitness centers and other establishments to require customers to provide proof of vaccination against COVID-19 before entering indoor areas, as proposed by County Executive Elrich.

The Council heard public testimony from residents and several business owners, as well as County health officials.

During the meeting, Council President Gabe Albornoz announced there will now be another public hearing next Tuesday, saying that the Council wants to be “methodical and thoughtful about this process because obviously this order has a lot of consequence to it.” The vote is now tentatively scheduled for next week’s meeting.

Just one day after the indoor mask requirement was lifted in Montgomery County, the “number of cases per 100,000 residents in the last 7 days” has reached 50 again, putting the county back in the “Substantial Transmission” threshold.

We spoke with Montgomery County’s Assistant Chief Administrative Officer, Earl Stoddard, who told us that “Board of Health Order 19-975 mandates that Dr. Bridgers, the acting Health Officer, provide official notice if the County proceeds into substantial transmission and set a timeline for the mask requirement.”

Stoddard wrote “Based on the numbers from the Maryland Department of Health today, we believe we have reached that threshold.”

“Dr. Bridgers will await confirmation from the CDC data tracker, likely to come tomorrow.

As was done with the original return of the face covering requirement, Dr. Bridgers intends to provide several days of notice for businesses and residents to become aware of the re-instatement of the requirement.

Based on conversations with them, we anticipate that the Board of Health will convene Tuesday to review this.”

Montgomery County’s Covid Dashboard can be seen here.

Last December we let you know that MoCo passed legislation banning single-use straws at restaurants. In December, restaurants will have to post information about straws no longer being provided to customers.

Below you’ll see all you need to know about Montgomery County’s ban on single-use straws:

Effective May 1, 2021, a restaurant may not provide a straw to a dine-in customer, except upon request by a customer, or if the straws are in a self-serve dispenser. Straws provided for take-out, delivery, and drive-thru sales may be provided as usual.

Effective December 21, 2021, food service businesses must post information that straws will no longer be provided to a customer, with exceptions, and that only reusable, home compostable, or marine degradable straws will be provided to a customer only upon the customer’s request.

These same types of straws will be provided in a self-serve straw dispenser and to a customer who orders food for carryout, delivery, or drive-thru sales.

Who must comply with this law?

• All food service businesses, including full-service restaurants, limited-service restaurants, fast food restaurants, cafes, delicatessens, coffee shops, supermarkets, grocery stores, vending trucks or carts, food trucks, businesses or institutional cafeterias located in Montgomery County, Maryland. The law also applies to not-for-profit organizations.
• All food service operated by or on behalf of Montgomery County departments and agencies, as well as other businesses selling or providing beverages within the County for consumption on or off the premises.

Are there any exemptions?

Food service businesses must keep a limited supply of plastic straws available to customers to comply with federal disability requirements. In such instances:

• A food service business must provide a plastic straw to a customer upon the customer’s request.
• A food service business and its’ employees must never ask about the nature of the disability or for any medical information.

Where can food service establishments find a list of straws that are home compostable or marine degradable?

We publish a list of vendors offering affordable recyclable or compostable food service ware products, including straws that are home compostable or marine degradable. The list is reviewed and updated annually. Note: a reusable straw includes a straw made from bamboo, glass, silicone, or stainless steel.

Montgomery County Health Officer, Dr. Travis Gayles, announced that he would be leaving the position last week. According to a press release by Hazel Health, a school-based telehealth company, Dr. Gayles has been hired as the new Chief Health Officer.

Dr. Gayles will remain in his position as Montgomery County’s Health Officer until September 13th.

More information is available in the press release below:

“Hazel Health, the national leader in school-based telehealth, today announced the addition of Dr. Travis Gayles as Chief Health Officer, Andrew Post as Chief Innovation Officer, and the promotion of Jeannie Chen to Chief Clinical Operations Officer, furthering the company’s commitment to transforming access to quality healthcare for all.

Dr. Travis Gayles and Andrew Post join Jeannie Chen and the Hazel Health team at a momentous time for the company amid exponential growth and increased customer need. Hazel has increased the number of partner schools 25x over the last year and continues to expand its reach. As the country continues to battle a public health crisis with COVID-19 and an alarming rise in pediatric mental health cases, expert leadership across the organization is paramount to continue meeting growth demands.

Prior to joining Hazel Health, Dr. Gayles served as the Health Officer and Chief of Public Health Services for Montgomery County, Maryland, where he oversaw the county health system and was integral in leading the COVID-19 pandemic response. Prior to this, Dr. Gayles was the Chief Medical Officer of the District of Columbia Department of Health. Dr. Gayles brings significant pediatric clinical experience, having worked as a primary care provider and a pediatric hospitalist in community-based settings. Dr. Gayles has also been a published researcher on topics such as the impact of exposure to bullying and interpersonal violence on adolescent risk-taking behavior. He received his BA in Public Policy and African American Studies from Duke University, his Ph.D in Community Health and his MD from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Gayles holds faculty appointments at NYU, Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland.

“At no time in any of our lives has access to meaningful health services been more important for children,” said Gayles. “Hazel Health has established itself as the leader in providing telehealth services to children across the country. This platform has enormous potential to change the way pediatric physical and mental health care is delivered and close the significant gaps that remain in access to care for children. I am excited to join the team to continue the tremendous growth and inspire even more innovation.”

Montgomery County Government Will Close Tomorrow (6/18/21) in Observance of Juneteenth

Earlier today President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Holiday Act. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan has also declared tomorrow as a state holiday in honor of Juneteenth.

We have now been told that Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich has made the decision to close Montgomery County Government on Friday, June 18th in observance of the holiday.

Only essential employees working onsite are expected to report to work. Essential employees who are scheduled to work remotely should observe the day as a holiday and not report to work. All other non-essential employees should not report to the office or telework.

More information will be distributed when employees are sent official notification later this afternoon.

Hans Riemer Announces He Will Run for County Executive in 2022

Montgomery County Councilmember Hans Riemer has announced that he will be running for County Executive in 2022.

He has been a Montgomery County Councilmember since successfully running for an at-large seat in 2010 and winning re-election in 2014 and 2018. He was unsuccessful in a previous run for the District 5 seat in 2006, losing to Valerie Earvin.

Riemer graduated from UC Santa Cruz in 1995 and worked for the National Academy of Social Insurance, where he interned during college. Later in 1995, he was hired as Public Policy Associate at the Save Our Security Coalition, under Arthur S. Flemming.

In 1996 he founded the 2030 Center, a non-profit policy organization focused on protecting Social Security, improving health care, and supporting progressive solutions for fiscal challenges at the federal level.

In 2004, Riemer started working for Rock the Vote as their political director and led Rock the Vote’s partnership with CNN to host a youth debate in the Democratic presidential primary. In 2008 he joined the Obama presidential campaign, serving as the National Youth Vote Director before working for the AARP as a senior advisor on Social Security policy.

The following message is posted on his campaign website:

“Dear friends and supporters,

The Montgomery County Executive can set the tone and the pace for our dynamic and thriving community — by bringing people and ideas together to move us into the future.

Montgomery County needs progressive leadership that is effective and forward thinking. It is time to move on from the politics of the past. You know my deep convictions for Democratic values and my record as a councilmember with a vision for the future.

That is why I am writing to let you know that I will run for Montgomery County Executive in the June 2022 Democratic Primary.

COVID has taken a hard toll, but we are ready for the hard work of rebuilding and reinventing. It is time for:

• Economic development so that the next generation can live, work, and thrive here; and to help small businesses recover
• Housing policies that promote affordability and inclusivity, and support a growing workforce
• Creative investments in education to accelerate learning in the wake of COVID from pre-k to higher ed; and including new STEM talent pipelines for both students and jobless workers
• Climate policy that provides national leadership through local action
• Police reform that positions Montgomery County as a model for the nation in transparency and trust — and for youth and racial justice
• Finishing the Purple Line, the Corridor Cities Transitway and upgrading MARC into real commuter rail

We can do this!

Join me this June as I launch my campaign. Together, let’s build momentum to make Montgomery stronger and more vibrant! You can choose from two events:

The primary is on June 28, 2022. As in the 2018 election cycle, I will proudly run as a public finance candidate, meaning that I will only raise contributions from individuals, no special interest groups.

Use this form to let me know you are coming on June 12 or June 16. You can make your donation right away to help me reach the public financing threshold of 500 individual donations.

Thank you!

Your friend,

Hans Riemer“

Tired of Dodging Potholes on Your Street? You Can Ask MoCo to Fix Them!

Many of us are familiar with the stark and sudden feeling of horror that can come after speeding through an unexpected pothole. Crunch! Some might liken it to stubbing your toe in the night when you’re stumbling into the dark towards your kitchen for a midnight snack…only, the pothole might feel just a bit more painful, and potentially much more expensive.

Other times, you might feel like you are a stunt driver in the way you weave through your neighborhood on the way home from a long day at work, avoiding chasms in the road that are distributed ever so inconveniently amidst parked cars.

The good news is, MoCo residents don’t have to settle for sitting around and grumbling ineffectually amongst themselves about roads that sometimes feel nearly impassable — in fact, Montgomery County’s Department of Transit encourages residents to notify them of any necessary repairs to county-maintained roadways.

The DOT has a convenient online form for submissions of road repair requests. The county website states that a transit representative will investigate the request in no later than five business days (however, some online requests will be investigated the very next business day, so don’t let that hold you back).

Not all roads in Montgomery County are maintained by the MoCo Department of Transit. The bigger numbered roads (Rt. 355, 27, 185, etc.) are maintained by the Maryland State Highway Administration — however, you can make online requests for those state-maintained roads here.

There are also some roads that are maintained by municipalities within the county (City of Rockville/Gaithersburg). If you know that the road you are struggling with is within the incorporated city limits, you can contact Gaithersburg’s Public Works Department at 301-258-6370 and Rockville’s at 240-314-8567.

What are some MoCo roads that you feel deserve some real TLC? Comment below (and then contact the appropriate maintenance authority to get them fixed!).