Dear Friends,
I visited Montgomery County’s newest Family Involvement Center last week to read to kids and their families during story time, video of which you can see here. I got to see firsthand the powerful impact these centers have on our young ones and their families.
We now have centers in Rockville, Gaithersburg and Silver Spring serving 250 families. We plan to add two more soon.
I am proud of our County’s collaboration to uplift all children and remove barriers some kids and families have to early education. We know that early childhood education makes a huge difference for their entire school experience and beyond. There have been many studies that demonstrate the importance and effectiveness of this program including those outlined by Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child.
Every child deserves the best start in life, and with the combined efforts of County Government, Montgomery County Public Schools and Montgomery College, we are working diligently to make that a reality for all.
I encourage you to visit our childcare support services website by going to montgomerycountymd.gov/ccss. In our reports section, you can see what we hope to accomplish over the next four years by focusing on equity, multilingual learning, helping children with special needs and creating sustainable projects that prepare all children for school successfully.
Inspector General Will Review Sexual Harassment Allegations and Process Issues at MCPS
The County Board of Education last week released a summary of a report by outside law firm Jackson Lewis that detailed issues regarding the June 2023 promotion of middle school principal Dr. Joel Beidleman and sexual harassment complaints against him. The report also raised concerns about processes involved with sexual harassment allegations generally. I was pleased this week when the County’s Inspector General announced two investigations to further explore these issues. You can read my statement from last week here. You can listen to my comments on this week’s media briefing here. I am deeply troubled that this is likely not the only time that sexual allegations have not been addressed, and it appears that several people involved in this particular incident were aware of allegations and did not feel an obligation to follow up. I hope these investigations will produce a more trustworthy process and accountability for people.
Celebrating BioHealth Industry Growth: We Moved Up to No. 3 in the Country
We have an innovative industry cluster whose companies continue to receive venture and NIH funding. Additionally, companies pointed out that our lab space and housing costs are lower than the other top life sciences regions in the country ranked ahead of us.
Montgomery County has fully embraced the opportunity to grow with the industry. We have seen commercial development add millions of square feet of lab space over the last few years. Our Montgomery County programs supporting business growth in this sector include our wet labs incubator, biotech investor tax credits and Small Business Innovative Research matching programs.
We also have robust training programs through Montgomery College and the Universities at Shady Grove that are putting graduates to work. Within our government, permitting and business center leaders are making it easier for companies to obtain permits allowing companies to get to work quickly.
Montgomery County will continue to be a growth area for life sciences because of our efforts to add a research facility in North Bethesda. The University of Maryland Board of Regents approved funding for the first office for the UM - Institute for Health Computing in North Bethesda. This space will be used by the Institute until a permanent office is completed at the North Bethesda Metro Station.
Health computing and artificial intelligence (AI) technology are revolutionizing life sciences and this institute will bring top AI and computing talent that will focus on innovative breakthroughs and solving the medical industry's toughest challenges. This will be the County’s first graduate level academic facility—something that is long overdue. Its presence along a Metrorail line and in the heart of our region’s life sciences cluster will draw more companies and create more jobs in our County and State.
As Dr. Mohan Suntha, the president of the University of Maryland’s Medical system said, the IHC could make Montgomery County “the Silicon Valley of health computing.” Maryland Matters stated this point in “Partnership seeks to make Montgomery County ‘the Silicon Valley of health computing”
You Too Can Drive Electric
National Drive Electric Week begins today and runs through Oct. 1. Montgomery County has seen a sizable increase in the number of electric vehicles on the road. Over the last year, 15 percent of all newly registered cars in the County were electric.
Our County is embracing the switch to electric. There are more than 600 publicly available EV charging plugs at 233 different locations in Montgomery County. The Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) now manages 64 charging ports at parking garages in Bethesda, Silver Spring and Wheaton. MCDOT has been partnering with Pepco to increase this number.
Federal resources should help us greatly expand community charging once grant money is approved. I want to thank the Montgomery County Congressional delegation and the Maryland Department of Transportation for supporting our Federal grant application.
We hope to receive this grant this fall, which will allow us to add chargers to dozens of additional locations, including parking garages, MCPS schools, parks and other public facilities.
Montgomery County also is making it easier to purchase EVs. Last year, we launched the EV Purchasing Co-op – an effort to engage and educate residents that are interested in making the switch to electric vehicles. More than 1,100 residents have already joined this co-op and have pledged to go electric.
As a result, local dealerships are lining up to offer incentives on the County’s EV Purchasing Co-op Dealership Incentive website. This is a great resource to check if you are in the market for a new car. This month, seven dealerships have advertised offers. Some of these deals let you take advantage of Federal tax credits at the time of sale, instead of waiting to receive a rebate on your taxes. With up to $7,500 available from the Federal government and $3,000 from the State of Maryland, there has never been a better time to go electric.
Poolesville Day Will Bring Out EV Enthusiasts
I appreciate the work of Poolesville Green in helping our community better understand electric car ownership.
I am excited to see more zero emissions vehicles on the road in the next few years. To learn more about the Co-op and other ways to make environmentally friendly changes in your life, visit montgomerycountymd.gov/green.
We Are Reimagining Ride On to Improve the Ride
We have worked closely with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA, or Metro) through the Better Bus initiative to create a comprehensive plan that integrates a regional network of transportation systems. These would help users reach shopping centers and areas where many people work. Improved public transit helps address inequality by increasing transportation access, and in turn opportunities, to historically marginalized populations.
The community will have several chances to learn more and offer feedback through pop up events in October. The events are scheduled for:
- Monday, Oct. 2, 7-10 a.m., at Germantown Transit Center
- Thursday, Oct. 5, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., at Rockville Metro Station
- Tuesday, Oct. 10, 7-10 a.m., at Bethesda Metro Station
- Wednesday, Oct. 11, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., at Shady Grove Metro Station
- Tuesday, Oct.17, 7-10 a.m., at Silver Spring Transit Center
- Thursday, Oct. 19, 3-6 p.m., at Wheaton Metro Station
- Monday, Oct. 23, 3-6 p.m., at Lakeforest Transit Center
- Wednesday, Oct. 25, 7-10 a.m., at White Oak Transit Center
More information on the Ride On Reimagined study and details on how to register for the virtual open house can be found on this website.
Community Health Update
There is some good news about COVID-19 in our community this week. For the first time in more than six weeks, our case rate has stopped going up. The percentage of positive cases compared to overall tests is also down across Maryland. These are encouraging signs that the wave of cases we saw begin late this summer may have peaked.
Over the past week, the new COVID vaccines started to arrive in our community. They are recommended for anyone 6 years old and older regardless of if that person has had a previous Pfizer or Moderna vaccine before.
The distribution of these vaccines will mostly be provided via pharmacies and private medical providers, the County will not be the primary provider. You should contact your medical insurance company because they will help patients identify how to avoid out of pocket costs.
For those without medical insurance, there will be options like the Bridge Access Program that only covers adults. Two Montgomery County clinics have also been given $200,000 in Federal money to help. The Community Clinic, Inc. and Mobile Medical Care will have extra resources to reach more people with the vaccine than they normally would.
The State is sending us more rapid test kits and facemasks. We will make them available at libraries that have run out of them. Starting Monday, Sept. 25, you can request COVID test kits from the Federal government at covidtests.gov.
Weekend Activities
Food will be provided with Kosher, Halal and vegetarian lunch options available. There will be a wide range of activities for children and adults including music, dancing, moon bounce, face painting, a petting zoo, the carousel and rides on the park’s miniature train.
The event is free, but registering ahead of time is encouraged. You can do that by following this link. Please check the County’s website to determine whether it is canceled because of weather.
We are also approaching the holiest day of the year on the Jewish calendar. Yom Kippur is a solemn time of reflection, fasting and prayer. It begins at sundown on Sunday. I want to wish a meaningful day to all who observe.
As always, my appreciation for all of you,
Marc Elrich
County Executive
