Here's a look at the construction progress inside the future Commas food hall at Ellsworth Place mall in downtown Silver Spring. It's not as far along as you would expect by this point, but represents great progress compared to the stalled-out initial phase of construction. There's still some drywall visible, but a large amount of the white tile you may have seen in renderings has been installed on the walls. Many light fixtures are in place, but the floor is still bare, whereas the renderings showed a grey honeycomb tile design. It looks like the opening is still a few months away.
East MoCo
Aspen Hill • Bel Pre • Burtonsville • Connecticut Avenue Estates • Four Corners • Glenmont • Hillandale • Kemp Mill • Langley Crossroads • Leisure World • Long Branch • Silver Spring • Wheaton • White Oak • Woodmoor • Takoma Park
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Commas food hall construction update at Ellsworth Place (Photos)
Here's a look at the construction progress inside the future Commas food hall at Ellsworth Place mall in downtown Silver Spring. It's not as far along as you would expect by this point, but represents great progress compared to the stalled-out initial phase of construction. There's still some drywall visible, but a large amount of the white tile you may have seen in renderings has been installed on the walls. Many light fixtures are in place, but the floor is still bare, whereas the renderings showed a grey honeycomb tile design. It looks like the opening is still a few months away.
Wednesday, March 27, 2024
Salud! Beer & Wine opening in Takoma Park
Salud! Beer & Wine is coming soon to Takoma Park. The store, which will offer craft beer and fine wine tastings, will be located at 1173-C University Boulevard, in the Hampshire-Langley Shopping Center. Matt Gorman of Renaud Consulting represented the store owners in reaching a lease deal for the 3000-square-foot storefront with property owner Saul Centers. Operating hours for the store will be 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM Monday through Thursday, and 10:00 AM to 11:00 PM on Fridays and Saturdays.
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Aroma Hookah Lounge for sale in Silver Spring
Is the Montgomery County Council's latest attack on business already having an impact? Aroma Hookah Lounge is now being offered for sale at 948 Sligo Avenue in downtown Silver Spring. The Council recently introduced a legislative proposal to limit the hours of operation of hookah bars.
Aroma, with a 600-square-foot outdoor patio and many recent upgrades to the building's key systems, is being offered for sale at an asking price of $200,000. The online sales listing cites "unforeseen family situations" as the reason for the sale offering, and says the lounge has not been one of the downtown Silver Spring establishments to draw noise complaints from residents.
Monday, March 25, 2024
Signs of life at long-delayed Outback Steakhouse in downtown Silver Spring
A series of delays in the opening of the new Outback Steakhouse at 8661 Colesville Road in the Ellsworth Place mall in downtown Silver Spring may be at an end. There are now literal signs of life at the "boisterous Australian-inspired" restaurant across from The Fillmore concert venue. A couple of sandwich boards have been placed outside the takeaway pickup entrance, one of which announces that there is "training in progress" inside.
In addition to the activity on-site, I notice that Outback placed help-wanted ads on multiple employment websites three days ago. The other sign outside the entrance is similarly seeking staff for the restaurant. It has a number you can text if you want to join this training that is in progress. All indications are that Silver Spring diners south of Aspen Hill could soon be tucking into a Bloomin' Onion at the newest Outback in Montgomery County.
Saturday, March 23, 2024
Ficker: David Trone's racial slur shows word was "on the tip of his tongue"
Maryland U.S. Senate candidate David Trone (D) |
Maryland U.S. Senate candidate David Trone (D), in his current role as representative for the state's 6th Congressional District, used a racial slur when speaking to a Black woman during a committee hearing on Thursday. Trone later issued a statement apologizing for using the word, claiming he had meant to use the term "bugaboo" instead. "That word has a long, dark, terrible history," Trone said of the slur in his statement. "It should never be used any time, anywhere, in any conversation." While Trone characterized his language as a mere gaffe, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Robin Ficker suggested it was more of a Freudian slip.
“I am appalled by David Trone’s use of this vile word, especially when addressing a black woman," Ficker said in a statement Friday. "That terrible word does not simply slip out of someone’s mouth unless it is constantly on the tip of their tongue. Trone’s attempt to pass this off as a harmless mistake is an affront to the voters’ intelligence."
Trone's unforced error couldn't have come at a worse time. Days earlier, a poll showed that former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) was far ahead of Trone and Democratic rival Angela Alsobrooks in the contest for outgoing U.S. Senator Ben Cardin's seat. The poll also showed that despite months of relentless, unskippable YouTube ads, Trone is not a a familiar name to most registered voters statewide.
Yet, the poll had only underlined the fact that the Democratic National Committee badly needs Trone and his personal wealth to defeat Hogan this fall. The entry into the race by popular former governor Hogan, who still enjoys bipartisan support and goodwill, means Republican donations and dark money will be pouring into a state that now represents a flippable seat in the Senate. But by the end of the week, Trone had wounded himself badly with his out-of-left-field use of a racial slur.
Trone now finds himself in a similar predicament as two of his Democratic colleagues in Virginia, as well as former Virginia Gov. George Allen (R). In 2019, then-Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) and then-Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring (D) were revealed to have worn blackface as adults. Northam was also accused of being one of two men in a yearbook photograph, whose identities were hidden by Ku Klux Klan robes and blackface. Northam initially admitted he was one of the two men in the photo, without identifying which one, but later retracted his confession.
Allen used a racial slur when addressing a tracker from a rival campaign who was videotaping him at a campaign event in 2006. Despite yeoman's work by The Washington Post to revive Northam and Herring's prospects - and Northam's bizarre framing of collective penance by the state for his personal racist acts - Virginia voters had the last word, firing Herring during the 2021 election. The political careers of all three Virginians were ended by the episodes. But they gave voters a window into the world of politicians who profess one thing in daylight, but hold contrasting mores and values privately.
Those lessons show the real political hot water Trone is now in. The woman he was addressing when a racial slur came to his mind was Black. His leading Democratic primary opponent is Black. And Maryland is one of the American states where Black voters have decisive power. No one can win a statewide election here if they are strongly opposed by African-American voters.
Hogan has not yet issued a public statement on Trone's use of the slur. Ficker, in his statement, recapped his political record on civil rights, including his participation in the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. "Aside from marching with Dr. [Martin Luther] King, last year, I was asked to be on the hospitality committee for the 60th Reunion of the March led by Martin Luther King, III," Ficker recounted. "In 1976, I was appointed by Rosa Parks to be the first general counsel for the National Caucus on Black Aging."
"Unlike Congressman Trone, I have a track record of supporting the black community, instead of just giving them lip service," Ficker said. "I’m incredibly proud of my work to advance racial equality, and I will always be a friend to the Black community in the Senate.”
Friday, March 22, 2024
Chido's Tex-Mex Grill opening soon at Downtown Silver Spring
Chido's Tex-Mex is coming soon to Downtown Silver Spring, according to signage posted at the future restaurant. It will be taking the place of The Eleanor at 931 Ellsworth Drive. The local restaurant brand has one location in Laurel. Tex-Mex is hardly the rarest or most unique cuisine in the area, but that doesn't stop Chido's from boasting it serves "the best margaritas in town," and "Tex-Mex like never before."
Thursday, March 21, 2024
2 East MoCo students named National Honor Society semi-finalists for 2024
Allison Xu |
Allison Xu, a senior at Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda, is one of the 25 finalists out of nearly 17,000 applicants who will receive a $5625 scholarship award from the National Honor Society. She is now also eligible for the $25,000 national winner scholarship, which will be awarded at a gala event on April 5.
Xu is Editor-in-Chief of her countywide student newspaper, The MoCo Student, and her high school’s newspaper, The Pitch. She was named the 2023 Youth Poet Laureate of Montgomery County, and has performed at Kennedy Center, the National Cherry Blossom Festival, and the American Courage Awards.
"I feel incredibly honored to earn this prestigious recognition," Xu said in a statement yesterday. "Winning the NHS Scholarship also inspires me to continue striving for excellence and serving as a role model for others."
"Allison has gone above and beyond to excel academically and lift up her community through selfless service and leadership," National Association of Secondary School Principals CEO Ronn Nozoe said. "Her actions today exemplify the incredible leader she is, and I can’t wait to see what she accomplishes." NASSP is the parent organization of the NHS.
Davina Canagarajah of Sherwood High School, and Raei Tamiru of Wheaton High School, were named as two of the 575 semi-finalists yesterday, and will each receive a $3,200 scholarship.