Chart showing Montgomery County continues to rank first in vaccination rate of all mid-size and large counties nationwide
Montgomery County continues to rank first nationwide in the percent of eligible population fully vaccinated compared to all other mid-size and large counties with a population greater than 300,000. Our mark of 76.1 percent of eligible residents who have received both of their shots or a one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine is why COVID infections have remained at the lowest rates since the start of the pandemic and why according to CDC standards there is a “very low risk of transmission” in our community.
Thank you for stepping up, getting your vaccine, and doing your part to keep yourself, your family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers safe. Despite this success, there are still many in our community who haven’t been able to access vaccines or who may remain skeptical. Montgomery County continues to offer vaccination appointments so please spread the word about the availability and effectiveness of this opportunity.
Thank you to the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce for your partnership in helping County businesses over the past year. Click the image or here to hear more
I’m deeply humbled and extremely grateful to the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce for honoring me as “Legislator of the Year” at their annual meeting and awards event last week. It’s a reflection of the partnership we’ve forged together to help County businesses try to survive in one of the most challenging years in history.
Businesses are our partners and their success is central to the County government’s ability to sustain the services that provide our County’s high quality of life, support the most vulnerable in our community, and achieve our social and environmental goals.
Over the past year, the Montgomery County Chamber, its members, and other employers worked with us to help create and advocate for the County’s Public Health Emergency Grant program, the Telework Assistance Program, Reopen Montgomery Grants, as well as numerous other aid programs directed at some of the hardest-hit sectors of our economy including childcare providers, arts and hospitality, restaurants and retail. We also lowered the County’s annual Trader’s License fee imposed on all retailers to a flat $15 and are looking forward to how two initiatives we championed, Economic Impact Statements on all Council legislation and the Economic Development Strategic Plan, will help steer us toward a more welcoming and competitive business climate and a stronger and more resilient economic recovery.
The Council returned this week for the first time since approving next fiscal year’s budget and we hit the ground running.
One piece of legislation we introduced will help area hospital patients and their families get greater access to kosher meals provided by local nonprofits. Thank you Bikur Cholim of Greater Washington for raising the issue of the lack of healthy and quality kosher meal options for patients and their caregivers. We should support families in their time of need by helping nonprofits provide culturally-appropriate food. Thank you also to my colleague and co-sponsor Councilmember Nancy Navarro for her continued leadership.
The other piece of legislation will help address our significantly increasing need for more senior housing by allowing multiple building types for independent living facilities, including campus-style townhomes, duplexes, and detached houses. Right now, our zoning code limits independent living facilities to apartment or condominium building types. Residents deserve a more modern approach so they have greater opportunities to age in our community with dignity and vitality.
Thank you to my colleagues Councilmember Sidney Katz for co-leading this effort with me and Councilmembers Navarro, Tom Hucker, and Hans Riemer for co-sponsoring.
Recent day on a parkway opened for pedestrian, bicyclist, and non-motorized use
This week, the Council unanimously approved our resolution declaring our support to continue the wildly successful Open Streets programs that began as a result of the pandemic now that we begin to return to some semblance of normality.
Last week, County Executive Elrich announced that the County Department of Transportation will continue the Shared Streets component of this program through the summer. This is great news and we’re working with the County, Montgomery Parks, Bethesda Urban Partnership, National Park Service and residents to make any needed adjustments so we can maintain these car-free streets for the long-haul.
Using these streets for outdoor dining, recreation, walking, and biking during the pandemic proved the safe, healthy, and community-building power of giving our public spaces to the public. Let’s take this positive approach and a “culture of yes” we embraced during the desperation of the pandemic and make it part of our new normal.
Click the above image or here to watch the celebration of 75 years of the Kiwanis Club of Bethesda
A huge congratulations and thank you to the Kiwanis Club of Bethesda, who we celebrated at the Council this week for its 75 years of service and philanthropy to the community. The Club has a long and rich history of addressing community needs -- donating the first iron lung to Suburban Hospital, creating Miracle League Baseball in the County, providing more than $100,000 in grants annually to local community groups, and numerous other examples of volunteerism and support.
We were joined by Club President Marlayna Proctor and several members to express our appreciation for their longstanding community engagement and for how they’ve continued to step up, including during such a challenging 2020. If you’re interested in helping or have ideas for a community service project, reach out.
We also wished congratulations and good luck to our friend and colleague, Dr. DeRionne Pollard, a trailblazing and transformational president of Montgomery College who oversaw the institution's growth into one of the nation’s premier community colleges and an engine of talent development and opportunity. Dr. Pollard is moving on to become president of Nevada State College, and we wish her well on this terrific personal and professional opportunity.
We’ll have big shoes to fill in continuing Dr. Pollard’s leadership and passion for education as a singular force that can transform a life, family, and community. I’ve been fortunate to meet with many Montgomery College students over the past three years, and their stories exemplify just how critical the college has been in their lives.
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