May 9, 2024

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East County Regional Office


See What's Happening in East County

...and Elsewhere in Montgomery County

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The East County Regional Office links Montgomery County government with citizens and businesses in the Eastern areas of the County that include:

Burtonsville, Briggs Chaney, Burnt Mills, Calverton, Colesville, Cloverly, Fairland, Hillandale, Ashton/Sandy Spring (pt.), Spencerville and White Oak.


East County Citizens Advisory Board (ECCAB)


The ECCAB is an eighteen-member board appointed by the County Executive and confirmed by the Council to advise, advocate for and make recommendations to the Executive, Council and East County Regional Director on needs and issues impacting residents and communities of East County.



The Full Board and its Committees Meet Monthly Except in July and August at the

East County Regional Services Center, 3300 Briggs Chaney Road, Silver Spring, MD 20904.


Please Note: The next ECCAB meeting will be on Wednesday, June 5, 2024, 7:00 pm.


The ECCAB Planning/Economic Development Committee Will Meet Monday, June 10, 2024. Topic of Conversdation TBA


The ECCAB Quality of Life/Services Committee will Meet Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Topic of Discussion TBA


For questions about the board and full meeting agenda please contact-Eastco.citizens@montgomerycountymd.gov

240-777-8414

East County News


Grab and Go Food Distribution

Tomorrow Saturday, May 11, 2024

9:00AM - 11:00AM

While Supplies Last

Bring an ID or proof of address

Drive Up Only!

Other County News

IRA Direct Pay Webinar with UST & COM

for Maryland Tax Exempt Entities

Join the Office of the Comptroller of Maryland and the US Treasury to learn more about IRA Direct Pay tax credits for your tax exempt entity!

The Inflation Reduction Act is the largest investment in clean energy in U.S. history. Most of the investment comes through tax incentives. Under a novel provision known as “direct pay” or “elective pay”, tax exempt entities, like local governments, nonprofits and faith organizations – can benefit from these tax incentives. Tax credits can provide significant financial assistance as tax exempt entities work to transition their fleets and provide for solar, geothermal or other types of clean energy. These tax credits are generally uncapped and not subject to a competitive process.


You are invited to a Zoom webinar.

When: May 21, 2024 01:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Topic: IRA Direct Pay Webinar for Maryland Tax Exempt Entities


Register in advance for this webinar:

https://marylandtaxes.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_njTUA_FES0OYR1JjA0YSRQ

Montgomery County to Host Free ‘Resilience Hub Workshop’ to Address Climate-Related Risks for County, Nonprofit and Faith-based Partners on Tuesday, May 21, in Silver Spring

The impact of climate change is already being felt in our community, with more frequent heat emergencies, severe storms, flash floods, and droughts posing the greatest threats. Those threats can disproportionately impact some of our highest risk communities, those with a reduced capacity to adapt because of historical disinvestment and the marginalization of people of color, immigrants, refugees, and low-income residents. These communities can experience more exposure and risk from climate hazards with limited resources to mitigate the impacts. Resilience hubs can help.


As part of its efforts to address climate-related risks and reduce Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, Montgomery County will offer a free workshop on Tuesday, May 21, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Silver Spring Civic Building at 1 Veterans Place in Silver Spring on the role resilience hubs can play in helping our community adapt and thrive.


Resilience hubs are trusted gathering spaces that are enhanced with solar microgrids and energy efficiency improvements to ensure they stay operational during interruptions to the power grid. They support and engage residents, distribute resources, and reduce carbon pollution while enhancing quality of life and assisting communities before, during and after emergencies to minimize impacts and recover quickly. A resilience hub may be located at a recreation center, faith-based or nonprofit facility, or multi-family housing building. They are designed to help communities not just adapt to a changing climate but thrive.


The County’s Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, in partnership with the Maryland-National Capital Region Emergency Response System and with guidance from the Urban Sustainability Directors Network, will host the Resilience Hub Workshop.



The workshop will be a dynamic, participatory training to learn more about the underlying concepts and framework for building out effective resilience hubs. It will feature discussions with experts about what a great resilience hub looks like, and what is already happening locally. Panels will also focus on how to forge partnerships and maneuver logistical and financial hurdles in the development of resilience hubs. Participants from County agencies, as well as local nonprofit and faith-based partner organizations, are encouraged to attend. Learn more here about the workshop and register now.

Recreation Summer Program Registration

 Begins Monday, May 13

Registration for Montgomery County Recreation summer programs for toddlers, youth, teens, adults and older adults will begin at 6:30 a.m. on Monday, May 13, for most programs and activities. Registration for Bone BuildersDay Trippers and Senior Outdoor Adventures in Recreation (SOAR) will begin at 9 a.m.

MCDOT to Plant 1200 Additional Street Trees by 2025

MCDOT is entering the last year of a 3-year grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust titled “MCDOT Equity Greening.” Thanks to the grant, 1,200 additional street trees are being planted in equity emphasis areas within Montgomery County.

Street trees shade cars and houses, filter the air, make neighborhoods more walkable, and protect streams. Trees have been shown to improve both physical health by filtering air, as well as promoting mental well-being.

View this interactive map to see the visual impact of the 844 trees planted thus far under the grant. MCDOT is exploring future grants to expand on this effort.

Combined with MCDOT’s traditional planting program, over 2,400 new street trees were planted this fiscal year. MCDOT arborists also distributed nearly 1,000 tree seedlings comprised of 15 different species at this year’s GreenFest.

Learn more about how to request a tree planting in the right-of-way along your neighborhood road.

It is Paving Season


View MCDOT's paving and sidewalk reconstruction schedules below: 

To submit a request for road repair, drainage work, potholes, and more, click here.

Montgomery Parks receives $1.15 million in funding from the state of Maryland



Montgomery County Delegation was instrumental in securing funding for four projects.

WHEATON, Md. —  Montgomery Parks received $1.15 million in capital funding for four park projects from the state of Maryland during the 2024 legislative session. The funding will be used to renovate parks and playgrounds in legislative districts in Montgomery County.

 

“We appreciate the continued support of the Montgomery County delegation and the entire Maryland General Assembly. These grants will help us deliver needed projects across the county for all our residents to enjoy,” said Miti Figueredo, Montgomery Parks director.  

 

 Capital grant-funded projects for FY 24 include: 

  • Fairland Recreational Park – $500,000 for the design and development of a new skatepark to include accessibility improvements, stormwater management, and site furnishings – sponsored by Senator Craig Zucker and Delegates Anne Kaiser, Bernice Mireku-North and Pamela Queen (District 14)
  • Merrimac Neighborhood Park – $150,000 towards the renovation of the existing playground with new equipment – sponsored by Senator Ariana Kelly and Delegates Sara Love, Marc Korman, and Sarah Wolek (District 16)
  • Stonehedge Local Park – $350,000 towards renovation of the playground, repurposing existing athletic courts, relocating/renovating the fitness area, adding a community garden, picnic pavilion, and site furnishings, parking lot improvements, and improvements to the existing rectangular athletic field, accessibility improvements and stormwater management upgrades – sponsored by Senator Will Smith and Delegates David Moon, Jheanelle Wilkins and Lorig Charkoudian (District 20)
  • Centerway Local Park – $150,000 for the design of a new skatepark including accessibility, stormwater management, and site furnishings – sponsored by Senator Nancy King and Delegates Greg Wims, Lesley Lopez, and Gabriel Acevero (District 39)

 

About Montgomery Parks        

Montgomery Parks manages more than 37,000 acres of parkland, consisting of 419 parks. Montgomery Parks is focused on promoting physical activity, social connectivity, and environmental stewardship, especially in diverse and urbanizing areas, with an emphasis on teens, working-age adults, and seniors. 

Montgomery Parks is a department of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), a bi-county agency established in 1927 to steward public land. M-NCPPC has been nationally recognized for its high-quality parks and recreation services and is regarded as a national model by other parks systems. MontgomeryParks.org/

      

Accessibility          

Montgomery Parks, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, encourages and supports the participation of individuals with disabilities. Please contact the Program Access Office at 301-495-2581 (Voice/TTY), MD Relay 7-1-1 or 800-552-7724 or ProgramAccess@MontgomeryParks.org to request a disability modification. Visit Montgomery Parks Program Access for more information. 

FY 2025 Funding Opportunities

The Maryland Department of Health's Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities (MHHD) is inviting applications for three grant programs. MHHD will provide funding ranging from $25,000 to $200,000 to over 40 organizations. To learn more about these funding opportunities and how to submit an application, please visit our website. All applications must be submitted by May 20 at 2 p.m.

Pre-Application Webinars


MHHD will hold pre-application webinars for prospective applicants. Please register to attend a webinar.

Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities


health.maryland.gov/mhhd

MDH.HealthDisparities@Maryland.gov 

024 Pepco Sustainable Communities Grants for DC, Prince George's and Montgomery County Municipalities and Nonprofits

Sustainable Maryland, in partnership with Pepco, will offer Sustainable Communities Grant awards to eligible organizations. This program will provide $75,000 support to fund environmental stewardship projects and $50,000 for community resilience projects across the Pepco service area in Montgomery County, Prince Georges County, and Washington, DC.

 

Requests for 2024 Sustainable Communities Grant awards will be accepted from May 1 – July 12.

 

Environmental Stewardship Grants (awards up to $10,000 – up to 8 awards expected)

 

These grants will be awarded to projects focusing on open space preservation, improvements to park and recreation resources, and environmental conservation. The property and/or facility must be open to the general public and dedicated as open space or for passive recreation.

 

Eligible activities include: conservation; pollution prevention; community engagement; developing or updating open space plans; improving applicant-owned open spaces such as meadows, woodlands, and riparian buffers or capital improvements for passive recreation such as installing recreation trails, boardwalks, informational kiosks, and observation platforms; acquisition of parcels of land to be used for open space; and acquisition of conservation easements.

 

 

Resiliency Grants (awards up to $25,000 – up to 2 awards expected)

 

These grants will be awarded for projects that enhance a municipality’s or organization's capacity to prevent and respond to catastrophic events and other emergencies.

 

Eligible activities include: implementation of strategies to minimize the impact of severe weather events, natural disasters or other emergencies impacting the environment; emergency operations planning, training, and community outreach; and purchase of supplies and equipment needed to respond to emergencies including energy storage and stationary or mobile solar.

 

For more information click here, including grant application and May 14 informational webinar registration.

 

Applications must be submitted using the online application portal by 11:59 PM on Friday, July 12, 2024. At that time the portal will close. Only online application submissions will be considered for funding.

 

Questions? Email SMGrants@umd.edu

Happening Soon

Contemporary Conversations with Bao Phi

Footprints on Different Ponds: An Evening with Bao Phi

MCPL celebrates Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with a visit from Vietnamese-American children's author Bao Phi. Bao’s work has been featured in two collections from Coffee House Press, Asian American Literary Review, and in the Anthology The Spoken Word Revolution. His fiction and essays have also appeared in Octavia’s Brood: Stories from Social Justice Movements and A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota.

He is the author of the award-winning books A Different Pond, Song I Sing, Thousand Star Hotel, Hello Mandarin Duck! and My Footprints. Awards for his work include the prestigious Caldecott Award, Charlotte Zolotow Award, Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature, and a Minnesota Book Award from the Friends of the Saint Paul Library.

Bao was the first Vietnamese-American performer featured on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam and created the Loft Literary Center’s Equilibrium Writers series which won an award from the Minnesota Council of Non-Profits. He was a Visiting Critic in the English Department of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York during the 2021-2022 school year.

Q&A after the presentation, followed by a book signing reception featuring complimentary light fare.

Some of Bao Phi's books will be available for purchase at the event from the Friends of the Library Montgomery County (FOLMC) or by visiting https://bookshop.org/shop/folmc.

LEARN MORE ABOUT BAO PHI:

NBC TODAY Show:

https://www.today.com/video/vietnamese-american-author-bao-phi-tells-the-stories-of-refugee-families-in-his-children-s-books-113203781794

Ride On is partnering with Manna Food Center to host a food drive from May 26-June 1. Donate a non-perishable food item on any Ride On bus and RIDE FREE! Please consider giving even if you don’t ride. Just board any Ride On bus and donate.

Go to https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/DOT-Transit/food-drive.html for more information. If we all do our part, no one goes hungry in our county. #RideOnFoodDrive @MannaFoodCenter

Metro Red Line to Shut Down

from June Through August


The Red Line will be closed between Glenmont and Takoma from Saturday, June 1, through Saturday, August 31.


The closure will extend to Fort Totten through Saturday, June 29.


Free shuttles and dedicated bus lanes along Georgia Avenue will be implemented.


Learn more on WMATA’s website here. View Metro's recent Summer 2024 Red Line Construction newsletter here.

12th Annual White Oak Day

at White Oak Community Recreation Center

June 1st, 2024 - From 11AM - 4PM

Save The Date!

2024 Summer of Peace

Employment Opportunities

Visit www.WORK4MCG.com to see all job opportunities

Job Opportunities in the Office of Councilmember Sayles

Montgomery County Councilmember Laurie-Anne Sayles (D-At Large) is seeking to fill the following positions in her office:

 

For complete job descriptions and how to apply:

 

Business Resources

Find resources to grow your business in Montgomery County, MD

Online Open House: PROjections/Upcoming Solicitations


Wednesday, May 15, 2024

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Zoom meeting: NEW LINK

Vendor Resources


Minority, Female and Disabled (MFD) Program

To be considered for participation in the MFD subcontracting program, a firm must be certified by one of the five agencies:

  • NEW! U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
  • Capital Region Minority Supplier Development Council
  • City of Baltimore
  • Federal Small Business Administration
  • MD Dept. of Transportation
  • Women's Business Enterprise National Council

Save-the-date: Procurement Event Series


co-hosted with the Maryland Black Chamber of Commerce

Tuesday, May 14, 2024

Tuesday, May 21, 2024

All events in this series will be held in Rockville, MD. More details to come.

Who Do You Call to Get a Pot Hole Fixed?


MCDOT maintains more than 5,200 miles

of county roads in Montgomery County. 


Residents can report a pothole on a county road to the MC311 system – either online or by phone at 240-777-0311, Monday through Friday between 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. or on the social media platform X.


The Maryland State Highway Administration (MSHA) fills potholes and maintains state roads which have numbers, such as Rockville Pike (355) and River Road (190). Report potholes on state roads directly to MSHA online or by calling 1-800-323-6742.


Municipalities such as the cities of Rockville, Gaithersburg and Takoma Park handle their own pothole repairs.

Montgomery County

Resources Available for Individuals and Families:

Housing:

Resources on Homelessness

Housing Opportunities Commission – Adult and Family Programs

Bethesda Help - Emergency Financial Assistance

Mental Health: 

Everymind – Mental Health

InfoMontgomery Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services

Food:

211 – Food Providers in Maryland 

Montgomery County Food Providers

Applying for unemployment or SNAP benefits

Montgomery County Food Council Food Assistance Resource Map

Manna Food Center   

Food Distribution

Montgomery County has various food distribution events across the County this week, including in Rockville, Gaithersburg, Silver Spring and Olney. To find distribution events or food near you, click here. The website also has more information about food resources in multiple languages. For help with getting food, please call the Food Access Call Center at MC311.

 Links to Latest Information:


Department of Public Libraries https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/library

Department of Recreation https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/rec

Department of Transportation https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/dot/index.html

Department of Permitting Services https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/dps

Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center https://montgomerycountymd.gov/gilchrist/

Parks Department https://www.montgomeryparks.org/

Planning Department https://montgomeryplanning.org/

Department of Health and Human Services www.montgomerycountymd.gov/hhs

Social Media Directory https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/OPI/socialmedia.html

Montgomery County Government

Marc Elrich, County Executive

https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/exec


County Council:

 https://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/press_List.aspx?id=01



Montgomery County Eastern Regional Office


3300 Briggs Chaney Road, Silver Spring, MD 20904

240-777-8400/8411

www.montgomerycountymd.gov/eastco


Jewru Bandeh, Regional Director

Jewru.bandeh@montgomerycountymd.gov

240-777-8414


East County Citizens Advisory Board (ECCAB)

Eastco.citizen@montgomerycountymd.gov

240-777-8414