Door to Door - August Update

​Dear Friend:
Happy first day back to school for all of the Montgomery County Public School students, including my daughter who started second grade at Bethesda Elementary this morning. Time flies!
Every year I knock on doors in District 16--although during the height of COVID I just left constituent service guides on doorsteps. Occasionally, a social media troll barks that this is a waste of time and voters won't remember I was at the door the next time that I am on the ballot. But I am not just knocking on your doors to earn votes--although I will take them! This year, I am sharing information about Angela Alsobrooks--my candidate for Maryland's next U.S. Senator--and ballot question 1, which will place reproductive health protections in the state constitution. But I also knock on doors to hear directly from you about what issues you care about and want to see the Maryland General Assembly working on. So if you see me at your door, please open up and say hello! 

LEGISLATIVE UPDATEDistrict 16 has a new state legislator. State Delegate Teresa Woorman has been sworn in as my new colleague. Watch her swearing-in here.

PUBLIC SAFETY UPDATE
There has been some recent coverage of shoplifting trends in Downtown Bethesda. Overall, our area is very safe and has low crime but there has definitely been a post-COVID change that requires our attention and vigilance. I wrote about some of these public safety trends in a recent social media post and plan to update these statistics going forward. You can read the post here.
Our community also celebrated National Night Out last week and my thanks to local law enforcement, county government, and the Bethesda Urban Partnership for a successful event.

Dear Friend:
Happy first day back to school for all of the Montgomery County Public School students, including my daughter who started second grade at Bethesda Elementary this morning. Time flies!
Every year I knock on doors in District 16--although during the height of COVID I just left constituent service guides on doorsteps. Occasionally, a social media troll barks that this is a waste of time and voters won't remember I was at the door the next time that I am on the ballot. But I am not just knocking on your doors to earn votes--although I will take them! This year, I am sharing information about Angela Alsobrooks--my candidate for Maryland's next U.S. Senator--and ballot question 1, which will place reproductive health protections in the state constitution. But I also knock on doors to hear directly from you about what issues you care about and want to see the Maryland General Assembly working on. So if you see me at your door, please open up and say hello! 

 


 
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
 
District 16 has a new state legislator. State Delegate Teresa Woorman has been sworn in as my new colleague. Watch her swearing-in here.

 
PUBLIC SAFETY UPDATE
There has been some recent coverage of shoplifting trends in Downtown Bethesda. Overall, our area is very safe and has low crime but there has definitely been a post-COVID change that requires our attention and vigilance. I wrote about some of these public safety trends in a recent social media post and plan to update these statistics going forward. You can read the post here.
Our community also celebrated National Night Out last week and my thanks to local law enforcement, county government, and the Bethesda Urban Partnership for a successful event.

 


 
 

 
COMMUNITY EVENTS
-On Wednesday, September 4 at 6:30pm, Montgomery County Department of Transportation will host an online forum related to improvements at Bradley Boulevard and Wilson Lane. You can register here.
-Montgomery County Planning is continuing their work on the Bethesda Downtown Plan Minor Master Plan Amendment. As a reminder, the County's 2017 Bethesda Downtown Plan required a "check-in" when the area got to 30 million square feet of development--approaching a cap of 32.4 million square feet. The Planning Board recently approved the scope of work for that check-in (known as a Minor Master Plan Amendment). Another series of meetings is coming up on that process:
Wednesday, September 11, at 7 p.m. in the large meeting room at the Connie Morella Library (7400 Arlington Road, Bethesda, MD)
Tuesday, September 17, at 7 p.m. (Virtual). RVSPs are required to receive a meeting link.
Saturday, September 21, at 11 a.m. at Chevy Chase Town Hall (4301 Willow Lane, Chevy Chase, MD)
-The Montgomery County Council is taking up Planning Board recommended Attainable Housing Strategies. You can read more about the proposals here. The Council is holding a series of listening sessions on this plan, including one in our area on Wednesday, Sept. 25, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center (4805 Edgemoor Lane, Bethesda, MD – Wisconsin Room).

 
COMMUNITY NEWS
-Congratulations to our State Senator, Sara Love, on being named a Maryland League of Conservation Voters Changemaker.
-The Friendship Heights Alliance has issued its 2024 Market Report. Learn about all of the action and activity in Friendship Heights here.
-Congratulations to District 16 Democratic stalwarts Gene Granof and Eliot Greenwald on being named the Montgomery County Democratic Party's Jack Dean and Helen Peacock Precinct Officials of the Year and Devang Shah on being named the Democrat of the Year.
-Congratulations to Vivian Bass on winning the Kipnis-Wilson/Friedland Award for her decades of volunteer and philanthropic work in the Jewish community. Read more here.
-Congratulations to District 16's Deb Miller on being appointed by the Maryland Attorney General to the Maryland Hate Crimes Commission.
-District 16's Chris Palmer has published a new book: Achieving a Good Death: A Practical Guide to the End of Life. Learn more and pre-order a copy here.