THE CUTTING EDGE How Pepco makes its tree-trimming decisions. A-8
SPORTS: Whitman lacrosse looks to build on success of last season. B-1
The Gazette BETHESDA | CHEVY CHASE | KENSINGTON DA I LY U P DAT E S AT G A Z E T T E . N E T
Cheering: Their ‘favorite thing to do’ Special-needs team has eye on World Games MARGIE HYSLOP
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BY ELIZABETH WAIBEL AND ROBERT RAND STAFF WRITERS
See CHEERING, Page A-10
Council approves spending $5 million for classrooms n
TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
(From left) Jason Johnstone-Yellin of the Jewish Whiskey Co. chats with Dan Lands Berger of Potomac and Pat Pattison of Gaithersburg as they enjoy Scotch and ribs at the fifth annual Guys Night Out and Seder Summit on Sunday at Beth Sholom Congregation in Potomac.
Seder Summit: New twist on ancient ritual ‘Guys’ flock to Potomac synagogue for Scotch, ribs and camaraderie BY AGNES BLUM SPECIAL TO THE GAZETTE
Single-malt small-batch whiskey, gooey ribs and raucous conversation among hundreds of men: This is not your grandfather’s temple. It sounds more like a bachelor party or high-end steak-
house, but the setting Sunday night was Beth Sholom Congregation, a modern Orthodox synagogue in Potomac. About 500 men — mostly Jewish, but not all — showed up to eat, drink, be merry and then learn a little something about Passover at the fifth annual Guys Night Out and Seder Summit, held from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Passover, which begins this year at sunset on April 3, is an eight-day festival that celebrates
See SEDER, Page A-10
INDEX Automotive Business Calendar Classified Entertainment Obituaries Opinion Sports
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B-11 A-11 A-2 B-8 B-4 A-9 A-12 B-1
Volume 4, No. 10, Two sections, 28 Pages Copyright © 2015 The Gazette Please
RECYCLE
BY
LINDSAY A. POWERS STAFF WRITER
The Montgomery County Council’s Education Committee has recommended approving four construction projects that would add classrooms where overcrowded schools could affect residential development. Two projects would add capacity at Einstein High School in Kensington and Northwood High School in Silver Spring. Another project would add classrooms at either Loiederman Middle School or Parkland Middle School in the Wheaton cluster. A fourth project would add space to address elementary school enrollment in the Gaithersburg cluster. If approved, the projects would act as placeholders, said James Song, the director of the school system’s Department of Facilities Management.
The school district has not yet determined what the projects will be and how much they will cost. The Montgomery County Planning Board can’t approve new housing developments in school clusters projected to reach a certain level of capacity, if there are no plans or funding to add classrooms to those areas within five years. To potentially trigger a housing moratorium, a cluster’s enrollment must be projected to exceed 120 percent of its capacity at the high, middle or elementary school level in the next five years. The cities of Rockville and Gaithersburg have their own ordinances governing school overcrowding and moratoriums. The school district is aiming to develop more concrete plans to place in the school system’s fiscal 2017-22 Capital Improvements Program, Song said. The placeholder projects’ current price tags are in “the ballpark realm” of what actual
See SCHOOL, Page A-10
SPECIAL SECTION
SUMMER CAMPS GUIDE II 2015 Find the right camp for your child. ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT INSIDE SELECT EDITIONS
See WMAL, Page A-10
WMAL PROPERTY FOR SALE A 75-acre property at 7115 Greentree Road in Bethesda is up for sale. WMAL currently owns the property. Democracy Boulevard
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not classified as athletes for the World Games, Joy and other cheer teams will have to provide their own housing, meals and transportation. Fundraising is off to a somewhat slow start, Packard said,
development land in Bethesda.” The property is zoned R-90 and could have roughly 300 singlefamily houses or townhomes, according to CBRE. Of those, about 15 percent, or 45, would have to be moderately priced dwelling units under county regulations. CBRE, which has listed the property for about six weeks, said it received more than 10 bids by its March 12 deadline. “They came in at our expectations,” or about $1 million an acre, said John T. Sheridan Jr., a senior vice president with CBRE, on Monday. That’s about $75 million for one of the choicest remaining parcels of residential real estate in Bethesda. WMAL’s owner, Cumulus Media of Atlanta, or one of its predecessors has owned the
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its kind in Los Angeles since the 1984 summer Olympic Games. “It will be like cheering at the Super Bowl,” said Packard of Chevy Chase, a University of Southern California alumna who also serves as volunteer cheer commissioner for the Games. Because cheerleaders are
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cheerleaders are preparing to become the first squads to cheer for athletes at the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles from July 25 through Aug. 2. With about 7,000 athletes from 177 countries competing in 25 events, the games are expected to be the largest event of
Neighbors are warily watching the possible sale of an unusually large piece of almost-empty prime real estate in Bethesda. The property has four operating WMAL radio towers, but may now be sold to become a housing development. The property at 7115 Greentreee Road is just under 75 acres and is just north of the Capital Beltway where it intersects with the Interstate 270 spur. CBRE, which is handling the sale, is marketing it as an “extremely rare in-fill development opportunity” on the “largest tract of
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TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Michelle Andrade, 18, cheers during a Joy special-needs cheerleader practice Saturday at Shockwave Allstars in Rockville. The team is raising money to travel to the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles this summer.
More portables in schools may mean more new houses
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WMAL site, valued at about $75M, could have 300 houses
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Darian Packard and her daughter Joelle, and Marci Ruderman and her daughter Carly have a lot to cheer about these days. The girls, both 14, are among the 63 members of Montgomery County Special Olympics’ Joy cheerleading team, formed more than four years ago to give individuals with special needs another opportunity to be part of conventional sports. “This squad means so much to us,” Marci Ruderman said. Cheering is Carly’s “favorite thing to do,” her mother said. And being part of the Joy team has meant big changes for a child who is autistic and highly sensitive to noise. Carly “used to have to use earmuffs and earplugs” but now uses them only occasionally at competitions, her mother said. No longer does Carly need to be “coaxed out of the corner — now she’s in front and likes to lead,” said Ruderman, of Bethesda. And lead is exactly what the Joy team and its manager, Packard, plan to do. Along with 12 other teams from across the country, the Joy
Prized parcel in Bethesda draws big bids
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BY
SPECIAL TO THE GAZETTE
25 cents
Fernwood Road
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
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A&E: Highwood thespians join college peers to raise mental health awareness. B-4
HEATHER LIPINSKI REEVES/THE GAZETTE
GreenFest expands on Silver Spring events Festival to include movies that are part of D.C. environmental filmfest n
BY
KEVIN JAMES SHAY STAFF WRITER
Silver Spring has hosted environmental festivals before, including the Silver Spring GreenFest and H20 Summit. But the inaugural Montgomery County GreenFest on Saturday figures to be the biggest yet, organizers said.
There are more partners involved, more speakers and fresh activities, such as films that are part of the 23rd annual Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital, said Elisabeth G. Feldt, director of the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection. That department, along with Montgomery Parks, which is under the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, and other entities, are hosting GreenFest.
See GREENFEST, Page A-10