Thursday, December 6, 2007

Work Starts on Fire Station

Montgomery County officials last week broke ground for the construction of the first new fire station in Germantown since 1980.

The $10 million Germantown/Kingsview Fire Station No. 22 will be located at the intersection of Route 117 and Route 118 and is scheduled for completion in late 2008.

In recent years, residents of the Upcounty area have complained about the lack of fire stations in the fast-growing area.

"I have been working with the community since before I was elected to get this issue addressed," said council member Michael Knapp (D-Upcounty) in a statement. "This groundbreaking signifies a huge step forward in the protection of our residents and is only the first of four groundbreakings we will have for fire stations in the Upcounty area in coming years."

Currently, the Germantown area has only one fire station.

Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville this week celebrated the opening of its new patient tower, which will add 144 private patient rooms, marking the first major expansion since the hospital opened in 1979.

The tower, part of a four-year, $100 million expansion project, also will house the Surgical Services Department, scheduled to open in February. The new surgical area will include 16 operating rooms, private consultation rooms and new technology such as flat-screen televisions in each room.

The tower's second floor also will feature a healing garden, intended to provide a place for patients, visitors and staff to relax. The hospital's foundation is working to cover the cost of the garden, which is scheduled for construction by the end of 2008.

The tower also houses expanded space for several patient care units, including oncology, maternity, orthopedics, medicine and pre- and post-surgical patients.

The Montgomery County Affordable Housing Task Force is sponsoring a series of work sessions this month to get community input on plans to address affordable housing. The first meeting was Tuesday. The five remaining sessions will be held over the next two weeks.

¿ 7-9 p.m. today. Wheaton Community Center, 11711 Georgia Ave.

¿ 2-4 p.m. Tuesday. Rockville Library, 21 Maryland Ave.

¿ 7-9 p.m. Wednesday. Eastern Montgomery Regional Services Center, 3131 Briggs Chaney Rd., Silver Spring.

¿ 7-9 p.m. next Thursday. Long Branch Community Center, 8700 Piney Branch Rd., Silver Spring.

¿ 7-9 p.m. Dec. 17. Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center, 4805 Edgemoor Lane.

County residents can safely dispose of sensitive personal documents as part of a community shred event at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds on Saturday from 8 to 11 a.m.

Residents are advised to shred all documents that they are not required to keep for records or tax purposes. Recommended items for shredding include credit card bills, summaries and receipts, ATM receipts, bank statements, cancelled and voided checks, employment pay stubs and expired identification cards.

Residents can bring a maximum of five boxes of materials to be shredded. No business or commercial materials will be accepted.

For more information, call 240-777-8000.

Montgomery County parents will be able to get their child-safety car seats inspected at a free car seat checkup from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Dec. 13 at the Fitzgerald Auto Mall in Rockville.

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) will be joining the event. No appointment is necessary.

County residents can also have child-safety seats inspected for free by appointment at one of three inspection stations operated by the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service according to the following schedule:

¿ 7:30 .m.-noon Tuesdays and Thursdays and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. the first Saturday of each month. Safe Kids Montgomery County, 14111 Georgia Ave., Aspen Hill.

¿ 7-9 p.m. Thursdays and 1-4 p.m. the first Saturday of each month. Criswell Chevrolet, 503 Quince Orchard Rd., Gaithersburg.

¿ 8 a.m.-noon Wednesday and 8 a.m.-noon the second Saturday of each month. Great Beginnings children's store, 18501 N. Frederick Rd., Gaithersburg.

To schedule an appointment, call 240-777-2223.

Parking fees at Rockville's downtown Town Square development will be waived during the holiday season in three garages owned by the city. The parking garage on North Washington Street has 224 public spaces, the Maryland Avenue garage has about 120 spaces and the Rockville Pike garage has more than 620 public spaces.

Patrons will still have to pay for street parking at meters in and around Town Square. In January, city officials will announce a date when parking fees will be charged again in the garages.

-- Compiled by MICHAEL TUNISON