Montgomery County, MD

IN THE NEWS

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January, 2015 News 

• 1-31-15 Frederick News-Post:  Report: Long-term federal funding needed in passenger and transit rail projects
• 1-31-15 San Antonio Express-News:  A hospital born in humble roots becomes a giant -- Brooke Army Medical Center was born amid a wave of construction in San Antonio during the Depression, but its history was rooted in a rustic military during the past century, one whose growth would be fueled by advances in health care and war.
• 1-30-15 U.S. Naval Institute:  Center for Strategic and Budgetary Analysis (CSBA) Predicts Congress will Trim Pentagon Acquisition, Preserve Personnel
• 1-30-15 Bethesda Magazine:  County Planners Alter Height Limit Proposals in Bethesda Downtown Plan -- Changes made to residential area behind Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and near Bethesda Avenue at Wisconsin Avenue
• 1-30-15 Bethesda Now:  Bethesda Downtown ‘Feedback Loop’ Elicits Array Of Responses
• 1-30-15 Baltimore Sun:  Harford community speaks out on possible job cuts at Aberdeen Proving Ground
  • 1-30-15 WMAR/ABC2 TV:  4,300 jobs could still be cut from Aberdeen Proving Ground
  • 1-29-15 Baltimore Sun:  Editorial -- Failing to plan is planning to fail
• 1-30-15 Federal News Radio 1500 AM:  Cost doesn't factor heavily in military compensation panel recommendations
  • 1-29-15 Federal News Radio 1500 AM (Associated Press):  Panel recommending changes to military health care, benefits -- U.S. officials say an independent commission is recommending broad changes to the military's retirement and health care systems that could save more than $20 billion over the next four years
  • 1-29-15 Congressional Quarterly:  Panel Would Expand Military Pensions, Overhaul Health Care
• 1-30-15 Washington Free Beacon:  NIH Spent $27,500 on Bicycle Subsidies For Its Employees in 2014 -- $20 subsidy per month used at bike shops to ‘reduce greenhouse gases’
• 1-29-15 Washington Post:  Hogan’s acting transportation chief has ‘open mind’ about Purple Line -- Pete Rahn tells state senators he hopes to make recommendation to governor in next 90 days
  • 1-29-15 Washington Post:  Purple Line opponents, country club members hold Hogan fundraiser
• 1-29-15 Bethesda Now:  Friday Public Hearing Will Open Up Debate On MoCo Transit Authority
  • 1-29-15 Montgomery County Sentinel:  Residents blindsided by county move -- County residents say they feel blindsided by a state bill that would give the Montgomery County Council the power to create an Independent Transit Authority (ITA) that could be allowed to issue bonds, take on debt, collect special taxes and generally carry out transit-related functions.
  • 1-27-15 Washington Post:  Leggett seeks to create Montgomery transit authority for bus lanes, other projects -- The county executive is seeking the ability to fund mass transit projects without relying so much on the state
  • 1-26-15 Bethesda Now:  Council Has Concerns With Leggett’s Move For Transit Authority -- The Friday introduction of a state bill that would let Montgomery County create its own "Independent Transit Authority" caused quite a stir over the weekend
  • 1-23-15 Bethesda Now:  MoCo Moves Toward Its Own Transit Authority To Propel Rapid Transit Sysyetm (RTS)
    • 12-1-14 Bethesda Now:  Leggett Promises More Transit, Faster Approvals For Development
    • 1-23-15 Montgomery County Government:  Independent Transit Authority web site
    • 1-23-15 Montgomery County,Government:  Fact sheet on Independent Transit Authority
• 1-29-15 U.S. Department of Defense:  National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE) Garners Kudos for Data Collection System
• 1-29-15 NSA Bethesda Journal:  Solid Curtain/Citadel Shield Exercise to Test Installation, Tenant Readiness
• 1-29-15 Bethesda Now:  Montgomery Fire Chief Talks Protocol For Arcing Insualtor Metro Incidents
• 1-29-15 Washington City Paper:  Five Big Projects in Flux as Bowser Reviews Development Awards -- New community development on the Walter Reed campus along upper Georgia Avenue NW. says an administration official, is "under review" and could receive the same type of reworking later to which these five projects are now subject.
• 1-29-15 Belvoir Eagle:  Listening Session provides insight to Army force reductions
• 1-29-15 Belvoir Eagle:  Vickers: Defense intelligence enterprise poised for historic transition
• 1-29-15 Belvoir Eagle:  DoD housing pro describes privatization evolution
• 1-28-15 United States Army:  Army cyber defenders open source code in new GitHub project to help detect and understand cyber attacks
• 1-28-15 Southern Maryland News (Gazette.Net):  Nill to block wind turbines called unnecessary now -- Area legislators split on need to push measure vetoed last year
• 1-28-15 Southern Maryland News (Gazette.Net):  St. Mary’s County may take in Navy museum -- Commissioners agree to give more funding
• 1-28-15 Baltimore Sun:  Army to hear from Harford residents Thursday on possible APG cutbacks
• 1-28-15 Bethesda Now:  MoCo Says Capital Bikeshare Exceeded Revenue Projections In First Year
  • 1-28-15 Montgomery County Government:  Montgomery County Bikeshare Exceeds Participation Estimates During First Year
• 1-28-15 WNEW/CBS 99.1 FM (Associated Press):  Local Money for Roads Still Slashed in Maryland
• 1-28-15 Gazette.Net:  Environmental lawsuit over the Purple Line to go forward -- Foes still concerned about potential harm to endangered amphipods
  • 1-28-15 Gazette.Net:  Evidence shows that Purple Line could be ruinous -- Commentary by John Fitzgerald of Chevy Chase, an environmental lawyer among those suing the Federal Transit Administration, seeking to enforce the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act in planning the Purple Line
• 1-28-15 Gazette.Net:  White Flint Mall closed; no redevelopment timeline set -- Only Lord and Taylor remains open
• 1-28-15 Bethesda Magazine:  After PETA Protests, NIH Says It Supports Baby Monkey Experiments -- The animal rights group claims the tests are inhumane, but NIH maintains the research done on primates is important to understanding human health
• 1-28-15 Military Times:  Panel will propose new military retirement system
• 1-27-15 Bethesda Now:  Open Lawn Space, New Features Proposed For Bethesda Park
• 1-27-15 Bethesda Now:  Bethesda’s Parking Lot District On Verge Of Going Broke
• 1-27-15 Washington Post:  ‘American Sniper’ exemplifies a new kind of war film: The professional procedural -- Is “American Sniper” pro- or antiwar? The confusion is inherent to its genre: the professional procedural.
  • 1-25-15 The Daily Beast:  Mike Barnicle Column: What ‘American Sniper’ Gets Right -- Lost in the right/left debate over the new Clint Eastwood film is how few Americans fought this century’s wars, and how the suffering of their families has often gone unnoticed.
• 1-27-15 Maryland Capital Gazette:  Navy to share plans to slow erosion threat in Annapolis -- Shoreline around Severn River will be restored
• 1-26-15 Bethesda Now:  Possible Arcing Insulator Near Bethesda Metro Platform
• 1-26-15 Bethesda Now:  Bethesda Groups Create Local Military Discount Program -- Local leaders hope a new list of military discounts in Bethesda and Chevy Chase can foster a deeper connection between businesses and many who work at Naval Support Activity Bethesda base on Rockville Pike.
• 1-26-15 WTOP 103.5 FM:  One pedestrian killed per week in D.C. area
• 1-26-15 Association of Defense Communities:  European Consolidation May Not Put BRAC Request over the Top, Past DOD Officials Say
  • 1-25-15 Stars and Stripes:  DOD cutbacks in Europe boost case for domestic BRAC -- One motive behind the Pentagon’s plan to close more European installations is to strengthen the case for similar closures in the U.S., which officials say could save billions of dollars over time
• 1-25-15 Washington Post:  Robert McCartney Metro column -- Larry Hogan’s initial budget wasn’t nearly as bad as big Maryland suburbs feared
• 1-23-15 Bethesda Magazine:  Duball Is Purchasing 4990 Fairmont Condo Project --Lionsgate developer plans only “subtle changes” to upcoming 17-story building in Bethesda
• 1-23-15 Greater Greater Washington:  Where Maryland's big three transit projects stand in Hogan's budget -- Maryland governor Larry Hogan's proposed budget includes funding for the state's big three transit projects: the Purple Line, Baltimore Red Line, and Corridor Cities Transitway. But none of the projects appear to be out of the woods yet
• 1-23-15 Federal News Radio 1500 AM:  No sequestration cuts in 2015, OMB says -- A new report from OMB stated the discretionary spending budget caps for defense and non-defense categories matched or came in less than what's called for in the Budget Control Act
• 1-23-15 U.S. Department of Defense:  Proposed Virginia legislation could ease military transition to private sector -- Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe proposed legislation Jan. 9 that aims to strengthen the state’s economy with “common sense measures to strengthen our Commonwealth’s standing as the best place on earth for military personnel, veterans and their families to live, work and thrive,” according to a press release. -- "...in view of the recently announced proposed Department of Defense budget cuts and potential 2017 base realignment and closure activity, it has never been more vital for us to work hand-in-hand with our defense and military partners to ensure the continued vitality of these assets.”
• 1-23-15 Bethesda Now:  Temporary Road Changes Coming To Rockville Pike In Bethesda
• 1-22-15 Frederick News-Post:  26 turned away from Fort Detrick gate after criminal background check -- About 25 people have also been turned away from the gate at Fort Detrick’s Forest Glen Annex in Silver Spring since the criminal background checks began.1-23-15 Washington Post:  Crustacean found near planned Purple Line route not endangered, AU scientist says
• 1-22-15 Montgomery Sentinel:  Leggett makes changes to fund school and transportation projects
  • 1-15-25 Montgomery County Government:  Leggett Announces Amended Six-Year Capital Construction Budget; Full Schools Funding, More Affordable Housing & Road Maintenance Highlights
• 1-22-15 Bethesda Now:  New Website Will Provide History Of White Flint, Pike District
• 1-22-15 Baltimore Business Journal:  Even after making Larry Hogan's budget, the Red Line and Purple Line are in limbo
  • 1-22-15 Bethesda Now:  Purple Line Funding In Hogan’s Budget, For Now
• 1-22-15 Association of Defense Communities:  Monterey Paved the Way for Communities, Installations to Share Municipal Services
• 1-24-15 Washington Post:  Where We Live: Drummond, a little village just off Wisconsin Avenue
• 1-22-15 Belvoir Eagle:  Belvoir commuters can get cash for trying out carpooling
• 1-22-15 Naval Support Activity Bethesda Journal:  Warrior Transition Brigade Leadership Changes Hands, Important Mission Supporting Soldiers Continues
• 1-22-15 Newark (NJ) Star-Ledger:  Editorial -- A military base is not a jobs program
• 1-21-15 Military Times:  National Geographic looks at 'invisible' war wounds
  • 1-21-15 National Geographic:  Two Part Series: Healing Our Soldiers -- Unlocking the Secrets iof Brain Injury
• 1-20-15 Montgomery County Government:  Woodmont Avenue and New Capital Crescent Garage is Now Open; No Payment Required in Garage Until March 1
  • 1-20-15 Bethesda Now:  Woodmont Avenue, New Garage Open In Bethesda -- A section of Woodmont Avenue that’s been closed for more than two years reopened on Tuesday morning near Bethesda Row
  • 1-20-15 Bethesda Now:  MoCo Hopes 1,250-Space Garage Quells Bethesda Parking Concerns
• 1-19-15 Gazette.Net:  Leggett puts the brakes on Olney BRT study -- Community had opposed bus rapid transit system plans
• 1-18-15 Washington Post:   Md. continues to buy homes, land for Purple Line amid uncertainty about project’s future
• 1-17-15 Baltimore Sun:  Cost of transit commuting unpredictable for federal workers
• 1-16-15 Bethesda Now:  Budget Change Would Move Up Construction Of New ‘Pike District’ Road Grid
• 1-16-15 Military Times:  DoD: Military suicide rate declining
• 1-16-15 Bethesda Now:  Temporary Road Changes Coming To Rockville Pike In Bethesda -- Next week will bring a new traffic pattern to a busy section of Rockville Pike as State Highway Administration crews start work on a culvert replacement project. On or about Wednesday, Jan. 21, all traffic on Rockville Pike just north of Cedar Lane will shift to the west side of the road
• 1-16-15 Bethesda Now:  Montgomery County Says Judge Erred In Clearing Fence In Purple Line Path
• 1-16-15 WTOP 103.5 FM:  Report: Transportation in the region woefully underfunded
• 1-15-16 Montgomery County Gpvernment:  Leggett Announces Amended Six-Year Capital Construction Budget; Full Schools Funding, More Affordable Housing & Road Maintenance Highlights
• 1-15-15 Gazette.Net:  Several Montgomery County departments under new leadership
• 1-15-15 Association of Defense Communities:  Army Planners Look Ahead to Looming BRAC Round
  • 1-15-15 Association of Defense Communities:  Air Force Confirms Intention to Ask Congress for BRAC Authorization
  • 1-15-15 Association of Defense Communities:  No BRAC until Military’s Future Role Is Clarified, Thornberry Says
• 1-15-15 Baltimore Business Journal:  Washington region faces a $58 billion, 15-year infrastructure funding gap. Metro alone is $16 billion
• 1-15-15 Washington Business Journal:  Fuller: Greater Washington's economy is ‘being left behind’
• 1-14-15 Washington Post:  D.C., Maryland, Virginia advancing many high-impact transportation projects in 2015 -- Maryland: BRAC improvements
• 1-14-15 Bethesda Magazine:  Montgomery County Selects Developer to Construct New Apartment Building on Bethesda Parking Lot -- A 310-unit building is planned for Woodmont Avenue lot
  • 1-14-15 Montgomery County Government:  Leggett Announces Public/Private Partnership in Bethesda to Construct Mixed Use Development on Parking Lot 43; 20 Percent of Housing Will be Affordable
• 1-14-15 Bethesda Now:  MoCo Proposes Allowing Development On Bethesda North Hotel Site
• 1-13-15 United States Army:  Army researchers develop batteries that don't corrode -- New, lighter batteries are under development for Soldiers now, in-house, at the Army Research Laboratory here in Adelphi, MD.
• 1-13-15 Bethesda Magazine:  Bethesda Metro Tunnel Prone to Arcing Insulator Incidents -- Metro said in an October report one third of the system’s incidents of arcing insulators occur between Friendship Heights and Medical Center stations. An electrical arcing is believed to have caused the smoke in the fatal L’Enfant incident Monday
• 1-13-15 Bethesda Now:  When Will Woodmont Avenue Reopen In Bethesda?
• 1-13-15 Bethesda Now:  Town Of Chevy Chase Has Its Own Ideas For Bethesda Green Space
• 1-13-15 Federal News Radio 1500 AM:  A new era in DoD cyber defense begins -- The Defense Information Systems Agency will launch a new cyber defense organization this week. The Joint Task Force-DoD Information Networks will officially hit initial operating capability on Thursday
• 1-12-15 Gazette.Net:  School construction, transportation top Montgomery priorities in Annapolis -- Lawmakers fear budget cuts could present a challenge this session
• 1-9-15 The Hill:  Another BRAC round may be in the offing
• 1-9-15 Federal News Radio 1500 AM:  Pentagon to shutter 15 facilities in Europe, saving $500 million per year
  • 1-8-15 Association of Defense Communities:  Pentagon Unveils Consolidation Plan for European Basing
  • 1-8-15 Association of Defense Communities:  BRAC Lurks below Surface of European Infrastructure Initiative
• 1-8-15 Bethesda Now:  MoCo Moves To Next Stage Of Rockville Pike Pedestrian Tunnel Project
  • 1-8-15 Montgomery County Gpvernment:  MCDOT Issues Request for Proposals to Two Finalists for MD 355/Rockville Pike Crossing Project at Medical Center Metro Station; Project Expected to Improve Traffic Flow and Promote Pedestrian Safety along Congested Corridor
    • 1-5-15 Request for Proposals (RFP) for Multimodal Crossing Project at Medical Center Metro Station -- NOTE: Scroll down to, or search for, RFP #1039247  
• 1-8-15 Gazette.Net:  Montgomery’s first attempt at clearing Capital Crescent Trail deemed a success -- Pilot program deemed a success from Bethesda to D.C.
• 1-8-15 Baltimore Business Journal:  Red Line plans push forward despite uncertainty -- Speculation may be heavy that Gov.-elect Larry Hogan will put the brakes on Baltimore's Red Line light rail project after he takes office in two weeks, but Maryland's current transportation officials haven't heard anything about a change in plans. Consequently, they're moving forward with the $2.9 billion, 14-mile east-west light rail through Baltimore. Officials are also pressing ahead with the Bethesda-to-New Carrollton Purple Line
• 1-8-15 United States Army:  Demonstrating resilience: increasing mental and physical strength through adaptive reconditioning
• 1-7-15 Gazette.Net:  Montgomery Parks asks whether privately owned parks make sense for downtown areas -- Survey asks people to assess value as civic spaces, long-term stability
• 1-7-15 Montgomery County Planning Department:  Bethesda Downtown Plan Concepts To Be Presented at January 22 Happy Hour and January 29 Public Meeting
• 1-7-15 Gazette.Net:  Planning for county’s $5 billion operating budget uncertain as Hogan prepares to take office -- Leggett holds first of five budget forums in Germantown
• 1-7-15 WTOP 103.5FM:  Affluent Md. suburb named nation’s most educated -- The D.C. area is known for many things — its politics, its “mayor for life,” its football team with the controversial name. Now, it’s home to the nation’s smartest suburb, according to Business Insider. Last fall, the publication analyzed the nation’s most educated towns and found Chevy Chase, Maryland — at almost 93 percent — had the highest number of residents with at least a bachelor’s degree.
• 1-7-15 Association of Defense Communities:  Defense Bill Expected to Pave the Way for New Community-Installation Partnerships
• 1-7-15 Association of Defense Communities:  With OEA Support, Communities Pursue Varied Strategies to Prepare for Downsizing
• 1-7-15 Bethesda Magazine:  Supporters Would Have Little Recourse if Hogan Moves to Halt Purple Line -- Incoming governor ‘has enormous power to kill it’ says expert
• 1-6-15 Bethesda Now:  For First Time, Parks Plows The Capital Crescent Trail
• 1-6-15 Frederick News-Post:  Detrick labs' safety rules evolve after potential exposures -- Despite the growing list of safety precautions at Fort Detrick labs, researchers are still in danger of exposing themselves to biological agents and toxins
• 1-5-15 Association of Defense Communities:  Commission to Focus on Modernizing Military Benefits, Not Slashing Them
• 1-5-15 Grist:  Here’s the right way to make transit and density work in the suburbs -- Bethesda, Md., a suburb of Washington, D.C., is a great example of smart growth
• 1-3-15 Gaithersburg Town Courier:  Group to Bring I-270 Corridor Up to Speed -- The group discussed the many problems stemming from the inability of I-270 to adequately move traffic, as well as a variety of transportation initiatives, including spot intersection and other improvements, a “Bus on Shoulders” program, Virginia’s private investment/high occupancy lanes program and the Corridor Cities Transitway (CCT), currently in development to address the growing need
• 1-3-15 Baltimore Sun:  Biking advocates bemoan slow pace of promised safety improvements in Baltimore and Maryland
• 1-3-15 Washington Post:  Where We Live: Crystal City is not just underground anymore -- Crystal City has been going through a metamorphosis since Congress passed the Base Realignment and Closure Act of 2005 (BRAC), which authorized the Defense Department to reorganize its military base structure. As a result, Crystal City lost defense tenants leasing three million square feet of space. Moreover, it saw the departure of 13,000 defense and military jobs, which represented a nearly one-third of its total workforce.
• 1-2-15 Bethesda Now:  Planners Address Concerns About Westbard Redevelopment -- Montgomery County planners want to make clear that developers aren't guiding their master planning efforts for Westbard
• 1-2-15 Bethesda Now:  Judge Says Chevy Chase Man Can Keep Fence In Purple Line’s Path
• 1-2-15 Marine Corps Times:  Researchers want service members for leg brace study
• 1-2-15 Federal News Radio 1500 AM:  (AUDIO REPORT)  Art Kellermann, Dean, F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine -- Enlisted Navy and Marine Corps service members have a new, easier route to medical school. It's called the Enlisted-to-Medical Degree Preparatory Program. It puts them on equal footing with counterparts in the Army and Air Force. Dr. Art Kellermann is Dean of the F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. He joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin to explain how the new program works.
• 1-2-15 Baltimore Sun:  Home building slump continues in Harford, as new permit activity falls from 2013
• 1-2-15 Washington Post:  After bitter community pushback, Arlington County launches new planning process -- The County Board and School Board will launch a year-long study to repair fraying community agreement
  • 1-1-15 Arlington (VA) Patch:  New County Board Chair Aims to Ramp Up Community Involvement -- Hynes said the Arlington Community Facilities Study – a Plan for the Future will be her primary focus during her 2015 chairmanship
• 1-1-15 Carroll County Times:  Gas tax goes into effect, prices remain low --Maryland's new gas tax goes into effect today, potentially breaking a nearly 100-day streak of an uninterrupted downward trending of gas prices
   
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