MOUNTING WORK Metro adds to Bethesda station to-do list. A-4
NEWS: Educator’s Open House connects teachers with outdoor opportunities. A-6
The Gazette BETHESDA | CHEVY CHASE | KENSINGTON
SPORTS: Georgetown Prep graduate recovers from injury for successful college career. B-1
DA I LY U P DAT E S AT G A Z E T T E . N E T
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Braces-themed jewelry puts fun in orthodontics n
Company also raises money for charity
BY
ELIZABETH WAIBEL STAFF WRITER
PHOTO BY YOUNGHO KANG
Violinist Chee-Yun is scheduled to play with the National Philharmonic at the Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda on Oct. 18 and Oct. 19.
A 345-year-old violin finds its voice n
Violinist Chee-Yun to play in North Bethesda BY
ELIZABETH WAIBEL STAFF WRITER
When Chee-Yun bought her antique violin in 1991, she knew little about it other than the fact that she loved the quality and sweetness of its sound.
Chee-Yun Kim, who in her career as a professional violinist is known as Chee-Yun, knew that the violin was made in 1669 by Francesco Ruggeri, a master Italian violin maker. She knew that it had belonged to one family for generations, and that although it was more than 300 years old, it looked brand new. “I really wanted to know the history of it, but nobody could really tell me anything about it,” she said.
Last year, during a question-and-answer session at a concert in Israel, a man in the audience said his father used to play a Ruggeri violin too, Chee-Yun said. The man said his father used to wonder about the 1669 Ruggeri violin — the only violin Ruggeri made that year — which belonged to a man in a Scandinavian country. “He said the owner of the violin loved
A product developed by Chevy Chase dentists and their family is designed to make having braces a little bit more fun. Bracket Ears are earrings designed to look like braces, complete with interchangeable colors. Dr. Casey Crafton, a dentist who runs Crafton Dental in Columbia with his wife, Dr. Lisa Crafton, said he and his daughters started talking about Bracket Ears more than two years ago. His son Christopher was taking part in a bike ride to raise money for autism advocacy, and his daughters, McKenzie and Gigi, had the idea to create a product that could also raise money for good causes. “Somehow, an earring that looks like braces kind of stuck,” Crafton said. Instead of a gem, the post earrings have brackets that look just like the ones orthodontists put on teeth. Colored rubber bands allow people to change the look. “The plan was to sell it to dental practices, and we figured we’d
PHOTO FROM BRACKET EARS
The original Bracket Ears earrings are designed to look like orthodontic braces and come with different colored bands to change up their looks.
try to do it that way and then donate a portion of the proceeds to autism [advocacy],” Crafton said. To date, Crafton estimates that the company has raised close to $40,000 for various nonprofit organizations. A dental manufacturing company now distributes Bracket Ears to dentists. Bracket Ears also sells the earrings at cost to nonprofits that want to use them for fundraisers, Crafton said. “As they were doing the dental side, we started reaching out a little bit more to the nonprofit side,” Crafton said. Stores can sell the jewelry too if they pledge to give a percentage of the profits to a charity of their
See JEWELRY, Page A-14
See VIOLIN, Page A-14
County to consider alt-taxi rule changes Getting down to n
Council also looking to ease some regs on cab companies BY
KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER
Popular taxi alternatives like Uber and Lyft could soon face regulations in Montgomery County. Councilman Roger Berliner said Thursday that he plans to draft legislation to regulate transportation network companies
like Uber and also ease the regulations that cab companies say prevent fair competition in the market. “And our county should not be driving Uber and Lyft out of the county,” said Berliner (D-Dist. 1) of Bethesda. “Instead, we should welcome the innovation, consumer satisfaction and driver incomes that they have created — and also provide appropriate safeguards. We can do both.” The Maryland Public Service Commission in August determined a portion of Uber’s offerings are considered “common
carriers” and are subject to state regulation. Berliner said he will not wait for the state to decide if it wants to claim jurisdiction over the rest of Uber’s offerings and said he wants to see the county act quickly to pass legislation. The end of the calendar year, or at least before the Maryland General Assembly concludes its business in April, should be plenty of time, he said. Lee Barnes, president of Blue Star Group Inc., which includes Barwood Taxi,
See TAXI, Page A-14
Judge to rule soon on tree cutting in Potomac Residents seeking injunction to halt Pepco n
BY
KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER
A Montgomery County Circuit Court judge is expected to rule this week on a request by group of Potomac residents to temporarily stop Pepco from cutting down trees on their property. Judge Michael D. Mason agreed to hear only four hours
right to remove the trees under a 1950s document, known as an “inquisition,” an easement which gives it the right to remove trees at its discretion that are within 75 feet of its property line. Plaintiffs’ attorney Jeffrey Goldstein argued that Pepco has shown a lack of good faith and fair dealing in with his clients — the owners of four properties in the Potomac Crest development — and that the court should grant the injunction to allow for a full case on the issue. Plaintiffs
B-14 A-2 B-10 B-6 A-13 A-16 B-1
OH, DANNY BOY!
Play delves into the big life of a little person.
B-6
1932788
questions the legality of the inquisition and Pepco’s claims that the trees must be removed not simply pruned. Several plaintiffs testified during the hearing that none of the titles to their homes mentioned the easement, and that every time they tried to work with Pepco on the issue, they were told that state law, not the easement, gave the utility no choice. Goldstein asked several
See JUDGE, Page A-14
A&E
INDEX Automotive Calendar Classified Entertainment Obituaries Opinion Sports
of oral arguments and testimony on Oct. 8 in the case, in which residents are seeking a preliminary injunction against the utility to prevent it from removing the trees until the court can decide their case. Mason said he plans to rule on the motion for the injunction on Thursday. Eight residents filed the case to stop Pepco from moving forward with a plan to cut down about 50 trees on their properties. The utility claims it has the
Volume 3, No. 35, Two sections, 36 Pages Copyright © 2014 The Gazette Please
RECYCLE
business side of medical marijuana n
BY
Draft regulations discussed
ELIZABETH WAIBEL STAFF WRITER
Earlier this year, lawmakers voted to allow some doctors to prescribe medical marijuana. Now, a Maryland commission is working to nail down specific rules for licensing marijuana growers and dispensaries, as well as other rules governing medical marijuana use in the state. The Medical Marijuana Commission released draft regulations last month detailing how growing and distributing medical marijuana might look in the state. Those regulations were among the topics discussed at the Maryland Canna-Business Seminar on Wednesday in Bethesda. The draft regulations cover issues such as how doctors pre-
scribe medical marijuana, qualifications for people who grow marijuana and what information dispensaries have to provide on prescription marijuana labels. Rachelle Yeung, a legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project, said at the seminar that security was a problem for licensed marijuana facilities in the early days of Colorado’s medical marijuana legalization, so Maryland’s draft rules require facilities to have security plans. She also said facilities must comply with training procedures and submit to inspections. The draft regulations are available on the commission’s website. The formal comment period has not yet begun, but people can submit informal comments on the draft regulations, the website says. Maryland Sen. Jamie Raskin, who supported the medical
See MARIJUANA, Page A-14