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DANCE CARD

Comedian Engvall takes break from competition to stop by Strathmore. B-5

The Gazette BETHESDA | CHEVY CHASE | KENSINGTON

DAILY UPDATES ONLINE www.gazette.net

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

25 cents

Federal agencies in county closed Mass furloughs expected in Montgomery n

BY

KATE S. ALEXANDER AND KEVIN SHAY STAFF WRITERS

Thousands of federal jobs and employees call Montgomery County home, but many were not working Tuesday after Congress’ inability to compromise on the federal budget, shutting down most government operations. ExactlyhowmanyMontgomeryCounty

residents were forced to stay home was unclear, but most agencies in the county were slashing operations and mandating that most employees stay home. Employees who are furloughed are required to not work and will not receive pay. Montgomery is also home to many companies that contract with the government. Those companies could see employees furloughed and delays in contract bids and awards. Eighteen federal agencies and installations are in the county, including the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Energy, the Nuclear Regula-

County wants Apex building for ‘optimal’ Purple Line Station

tory Commission, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the National Institutes of Health. When Congress failed to pass legislation to fund the government Monday night in an impasse over the health care reform law, it triggered plans for agencies to halt all but essential operations. For the Silver Spring-based Food and Drug Administration, 45 percent of its 13,000-member work force was scheduled for furlough, spokesman Steven Immergut said. Most of those reporting to

Planners faced with possibility of not being able to tear down building n

BY AGNES BLUM STAFF WRITER

See CLOSED, Page A-12

Montgomery County has released renderings of what the Bethesda Purple Line Station will look like if the owner of the Apex building in downtown Bethesda doesn’t move out. The renderings show a 92-foot tall ventilation tower right outside the station, according to a presentation at a planning board meeting on Thursday. This wasn’t what county planners wanted, they said at the meeting, but a lack of cooperation from the Apex building owner may leave them little choice to create the “optimal” station for the western terminus of the $2.2 billion light-rail system. Not so, said the owner, the American Society of HealthSystem Pharmacists, through Holland & Knight, a Washington law firm. The society was approached late in the game about its role and has not had time to formulate its response, said David Silver, a lawyer with Holland & Knight. “We feel the pressure. We’re trying to be cooperative,” Silver said. “We need time to figure out what we need.” To help figure that out, the owner has hired a consultant and plans to hire an architect and engineer to evaluate what the best possible development at that spot could be, Silver said. The state has made it clear that it wants an answer on the Apex building by the end of the year, and Silver said his client is trying to accommodate that deadline. If the Apex building comes down, which houses the Bethesda Regal 10 movie theater, then the “optimal” future Bethesda station could be built,

Sweet memories

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Mercedes Bendeck, of Washington, D.C., helps Dominic Ximinies, 11, of Laurel, make a chocolate treat at her family’s Tasty Image chocolate store in Westfield Montgomery mall in Bethesda on Friday.

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hildren and families who have experienced the pain of homelessness, mental illness, substance abuse or other traumas may not have many happy memories to draw on and may not know how to provide them for their children, according to Victoria Karakcheyeva, the program director for a housing program with Volunteers of America Chesapeake.

To help them create happy memories they can keep, and to learn how to care for themselves and their children, Volunteers of America Chesapeake organized an outing for the participants of some of its programs to the chocolate store Tasty Image in Westfield Montgomery mall in Bethesda on Sept. 27. — AGNES BLUM

See STATION, Page A-13

Property owners joust for adjustments Town of Chevy Chase hoping expert can help persuade state to move light rail’s path n

BY AGNES BLUM STAFF WRITER

Looks like the squeaky wheel gets the grease when it comes to the Purple Line. In Chevy Chase, the Columbia Country Club has persuaded the state to shift the Purple Line’s proposed route to protect its golf course. In Lyttonsville, residents scored a victory when a Purple Line maintenance and rail yard facility was relocated away from a residential area. And now the Town of Chevy Chase wants to see its wishes incorporated into the proposed $2.2 billion light rail’s plans. To that effect, the board has allocated $25,000 to hire Sam Schwartz Engineering to analyze the voluminous environmental Purple Line impact study, released by the Maryland Transit Administration this September. The same company had done similar work analyzing reports for the town in the past. The town wants an at-grade crossing on Lynn Drive, where many Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School students cross the

See ADJUSTMENTS, Page A-13

New chapter looms in fight over required government ads in newspapers Sides disagree on most efficient ways Digital to get information to the public overnment n

The first in a two-part series

INSIDE n High-speed Internet access is available to more than nine of every 10 households in the county, making it one of the nation’s most connected communities. A-15

NEWS

TASTE THE TOWN

The Taste of Bethesda festival is slated to run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday in the Woodmont Triangle section of downtown.

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BY

ANDREW SCHOTZ STAFF WRITER

Lawmakers and government groups are resuming a fight with media representatives over a requirement to buy newspaper advertisements. Known as “legal notices,” the ads are mandatory an-

nouncements of certain government proceedings, such as public hearings and zoning requests. They are a revenue source for newspapers and a longstanding way to inform the public. The main questions: Are these ads the best way to publicize government workings?

SPORTS

Should government bodies be forced to buy the ads? The Maryland Municipal League and the Maryland Association of Counties argue that the current legal-ad system is inefficient and wasteful; government bodies have better, cheaper ways to reach constituents. But the Maryland-DelawareD.C. Press Association, a media

SIZE DOESN’T MATTER

Rockville High quarterback lacks traditional size, but is putting up impressive numbers.

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Automotive Calendar Classified Community News Entertainment Opinion School News Sports Please

DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE

Garrett Park’s official town bulletin board inside the post office.

See ADS, Page A-15

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RECYCLE

FALL HOME SERVICES INSIDE

FOCUS ON LAWN & TREE SERVICES LOCAL JOBS INSIDE ADVERTISING INSIDE B SECTION

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