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Thursday, June 13, 2024 

Community Meeting on Public Safety

Graphic promoting June 26 Community Meeting on the Drone as First Responder program

One important addition to next fiscal year's County budget was to expand the Montgomery County Police Department's Drone as First Responder program to Montgomery Village, Gaithersburg, and Germantown.

This program is already active in Silver Spring and Wheaton and has proven to help police more quickly and safely respond to public safety concerns in those areas - enabling first responders to better understand the nature of emergency calls for service. We advocated for expansion of the program to the Upcounty to boost public safety coverage in these areas and we're grateful to County Executive Marc Elrich for his support.

Want to learn more about this innovative public safety tool? Join the Police Department, me, and Councilmembers Marilyn Balcombe and Sidney Katz in the cafeteria at Gaithersburg High School from 6:30-8 p.m. on June 26.

If you'd like to join the meeting virtually, use this Zoom link and click below for more information and to sign up. 

June is Pride Month! 

June is Pride Month! This annual celebration honors the significant contributions of the LGBTQIA+ community and serves as a call to action and reminder of the work ahead to promote equity and inclusivity. 

I'm proud that we're increasing funding for the MoCo Pride Center, which provides vital services to local LGBTQIA+ residents. 

Councilmember Luedtke at annual Pride flag raising ceremony on Monday in Rockville.

Here in Rockville, the seat of County Government, we held our annual Pride flag raising ceremony to demonstrate the County’s commitment to being a welcoming and affirming community. 

Councilmember Luedtke and Councilmember Glass at Olney Theatre Pride Month Celebration.

Thank you to everyone who joined Councilmember Glass and I for a Pride celebration we hosted at Olney Theatre! 

Several local performing arts companies - the Kentlands Community Players, Rockville Little Theatre, Rockville Musical Theatre, and Victorian Lyric Opera Company - will join forces to present the Pride Month musical revue “Love Is Love Is Love” on June 29 and 30 in Gaithersburg. 

Join in the fun and festivities during Pride in the Plaza at Veterans Plaza in Silver Spring on Sunday, June 30 from 12-8 p.m.! 

If you run a business or nonprofit with a storefront, request a free Pride decal for your window to show your support for the LGBTQIA+ community and emphasize that hate has no home here!  

Damascus Placemaking Off to a Great Start

Click to watch the video recap of the Damascus Placemaking kick-off meeting, via Montgomery Planning

Thank you to everyone who participated in the June 3 community kickoff meeting for the Damascus Placemaking Festival.

There was tremendous turnout from community members who voiced their ideas on how to transform Main Street for the two-day event this fall and how to strengthen community ties to local businesses for the long term. Attendees expressed the need for better walkability, more sidewalks, more locally-owned small businesses, and a bigger arts presence centered around the historic Druid Theater. Learn more in the summary video and keep up-to-date with the project via its website. 

Check out the story on our legislation introduced this week to allow campgrounds in rural areas including the Agricultural Reserve.

I'm proud of the deep level of collaboration with Agricultural Reserve stakeholders, including farmers and residents, to ensure we're balancing the ability for visitors to enjoy our rural areas with the need to preserve farmable land in Montgomery County.

Thank you to Councilmembers Marilyn Balcombe, Sidney Katz, and Natali Fani-Gonzalez for teaming up to sponsor this zoning text amendment, and to Council President Andrew Friedson and Councilmembers Gabe Albornoz, Evan Glass, and Laurie-Anne Sayles for co-sponsoring. Click the link below to sign up to testify at the public hearing starting tomorrow and get more details here.

In the Community...

Stay Safe this Summer

The summer solstice - Thursday, June 20 - is the official start of summer! The new season brings hotter temperatures - and climate change means that temperatures and weather events are becoming more extreme. It's important to take necessary precautions. Follow these tips to keep yourself, your family, your pets, and your neighbors safe.

Sign up for Alert Montgomery to receive weather and other emergency alerts via text, email, or voice message. If you work outdoors or employ outdoor workers, take steps to prevent heat illness at work. Trees are also vulnerable to excessive heat. Sign up for watering reminders via Reforest Montgomery. These occasional emails let you know when to water trees during periods of heat, drought, or low rainfall. 

Service Year Application Deadline Approaching 

Know a recent high school graduate who is searching for a calling? Encourage them to apply for Maryland Corps/Service Year Option. Established last year by Governor Wes Moore, this program provides full-time service opportunities in the areas of climate, education, health, trades, information technology, and public safety. The year of professional growth and career exploration allows participants to earn a salary, gain new skills, and serve the community. June 15 is the deadline to apply for the coming year. 

Paws in the Park 

As an animal lover and advocate, I'm always excited to spotlight fun community events like the annual “Paws in the Park” dog walk and festival, which raises money for the Montgomery County Humane Society. The event in Gaithersburg on June 15 will feature a large pack walk, a K9 agility course and competition, contests for dogs and people, music, and food vendors. Children under 12 attend free! Register for the event.

Fourth Annual Children’s Business Fair

Young Montgomery County entrepreneurs will again have a chance to show their creativity, business sense, and sales acumen by developing and displaying products for the Fourth Annual Montgomery County Children's Business Fair! The event on August 10 in Rockville Town Square will be open to youth ages 6-15.

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