鈥淭his is a significant step to moving us toward the finish line,鈥� Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman said during the ceremony attended by local officials and the project鈥檚 developers at the 102-acre mall sire at 701 Russell Ave.

Ashman called the moment a milestone years in the making. 鈥淥n behalf of our whole community, I want to say hallelujah 鈥� let the redevelopment begin,鈥� he said.

Opened in 1978, the mall once served as a central shopping and social hub for Montgomery County, featuring major department stores, an ice rink and later a movie theater and food court. For many residents, it was a place of first jobs, first dates and holiday shopping traditions.

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鈥淭his concern is not about Hinduism, Hindu culture, or the Hindi language,鈥澛爐he coalition wrote in a Wednesday letter to county聽and library聽officials.聽鈥淥ur concern is about political ideology entering public institutions under the guise of cultural programming, particularly when that ideology has been documented as exclusionary, hateful, and violent.鈥�

MCPL had planned to host 鈥淢any Languages, One Library: Celebrating Hindi,鈥澛爋n Sunday. The聽free event聽would celebrate the聽unveiling of聽a new collection of 160 Hindi-language books at the聽Germantown Library聽at 19840 Century Blvd.

Among the聽funders聽of the new book collection was聽Germantown鈥檚聽Balvihar聽Hindi School, part of the聽聽(VHPA).聽The VHPA describes itself on its website as聽鈥渢he oldest and one of the largest Hindu organizations in the U.S.鈥澛燫epresentatives of the Hindi school were expected to speak at Sunday鈥檚 event.

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Police say Andre Duvall, 27, fired multiple shots at a county police officer during the incident that occurred inside of an apartment complex on Lost Knife Circle. The officer returned fire and struck Duvall twice, leaving him with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the release. The officer has not been identified.

Video containing the police body-worn camera footage from the shooting is expected to be released to the public early next week, police said in the Friday release.

According to online court records, Duvall faces multiple charges, including two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and several firearms-related charges in connection with the incident.

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Elrich presented his $8 billion operating budget proposal for fiscal year 2027 during a Friday afternoon press conference at Rockville鈥檚 Richard Montgomery High School. The proposal now heads to the County Council for review.

The fiscal year 2027 proposal聽represents聽a $420 million 鈥� or 5.5% 鈥� increase over the county鈥檚 $7.6 billion operating budget for fiscal year 2026. Fiscal year 2027 begins July 1.

鈥淢y budget has tax increases because I cannot instantly grow the county,鈥� Elrich said during his budget presentation Friday. 鈥淵ou have to make investments to grow the county.鈥�

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The restaurant, which offers traditional Greek dishes, was founded in December 2016 by Alexander Hobson, his brother Philip and their mother and executive chef Eugenia Hobson. The Westbard location will be their first venture in Maryland, joining three Our Mom Eugenia restaurants in Northern Virginia, according to Alexander Hobson.

The eatery at 5315 Zenith Overlook will occupy the development鈥檚 central standalone restaurant building. The building is nestled between the development鈥檚 townhomes and a retail building home to a Giant Food grocery store, Piccoli Piatti Pizzeria, Silver & Sons BBQ, Starbucks and Tatte Bakery & Caf茅.

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Twenty people聽voiced their opinions聽at a聽public hearing on the聽聽at the council office building in Rockville. They included representatives of the Montgomery County Renters Alliance聽and聽Housing Justice Montgomery, who were in favor; and representatives of聽the聽Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors聽and the Apartment and Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington, who were opposed.

Under聽Jawando鈥檚聽bill, it would be illegal to collect information from two or more private landlords, public聽databases聽or a combination of both for the purpose of calculating and recommending rents for units in Montgomery County.

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Anyone who was in the building at 7200 Wisconsin Ave. between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. may have been exposed, according to the release from the Disease Control Office of the county鈥檚 Department of Health and Human Services.

Sean O鈥橠onnell, the department鈥檚 deputy chief director of public health services, told Bethesda Today on Friday that, to his knowledge, the department has not yet received any reports from people regarding potential exposure.

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The Dominique Dawes Academy in Silver Spring is at 12006 Plum Orchard Drive in White Oak and is the academy鈥檚 third county location, with two in Clarksburg and Rockville, and fifth to open nationwide.

The Feb. 21 grand opening runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the general public and will feature a full meet-and-greet with Dawes, open gym access, face painting, music and other family activities, according to gym officials. Before the public opening, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., the gym will host a VIP grand opening event for those who enroll early for the academy online.

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鈥淲e don鈥檛 have the money. We just don鈥檛,鈥� County Council President Natali Fani鈥慓onz谩lez (D-Dist. 6) said during a Tuesday media briefing at the council office building in Rockville.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich鈥檚 (D) $6.6 billion six-year capital improvements program (CIP) for fiscal years 2027 through 2032 represents a $634.1 million increase over the current CIP for fiscal years 2026 through 2031. Fiscal year 2027 begins July 1.

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Dozens of community members, many holding signs urging the board to reject the proposed move of Wootton High, packed the board鈥檚 Rockville meeting room as Taylor presented his recommendations regarding two boundary studies and an ongoing analysis of high school programs.

鈥淚 know that change is hard. It is hard for our system and聽it鈥檚聽hard for our community,鈥� Taylor said.

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After several months of investigation, on Tuesday, Montgomery County detectives assigned to the Threat Assessment and Behavioral Solutions Unit identified the caller in the so-called swatting incident as the 12-year-old student, police said Friday in a press release. Police did not identify the girl because she is a minor.

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Around 7 a.m., the county鈥檚 emergency communication center received a call from the woman鈥檚 husband reporting that his wife was giving birth in their car, Pazos said. The husband and wife had pulled over on the southbound shoulder of I-270 near the Falls Road exit ramp.

Pazos said several firetrucks and an ambulance responded and one firefighter assisted the mother with the birth of a healthy baby girl.

With outdoor temperatures hovering around 20 degrees, first responders immediately placed the newborn and mother in an ambulance to warm up and receive additional care before heading to the hospital, Pazos said.

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MCDOT is no longer moving forward with its plans for Parker, the security robot, due to a 鈥渉eightened apprehension towards the government, especially among our minority population,鈥� DeTitta said in the emailed statement.

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Some who spoke at the hearing, such as Seneca Valley High School senior Mark Anthony Briseno, said they were motivated by personal experiences with family separation. A handful were faith leaders guided by teachings about loving the stranger and healing the world.

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According to Maryland law, there are 14 disqualifying criminal offenses that would impact employment eligibility. The offenses range from assault to child sexual abuse. 鈥淚ndicated findings鈥� by Child Protective Services (CPS) means there is 鈥渃redible evidence which has not been satisfactorily refuted鈥� that child abuse or neglect occurred, but is not equivalent to being convicted of a crime, according to Maryland regulations and the Montgomery County inspector general鈥檚 office.

If current employees are found with one of the criminal offenses, there are due process and disciplinary processes that have to be followed, according to MCPS staff. If there are 鈥渋ndicated findings鈥� on the CPS checks, the findings are sent to the MCPS Department of Compliance and Investigations for review.

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