POTD: Farm

The community garden at King Farm, aka Thomspon Dairy (see the silo?)

Contributor Opinion by Steve Cavallo: Remember Thomas Farm

The following contributor opinion is by Steve J. Cavallo, who blogs at Down By The River. He was kind enough to offer it for publication at Rockville Central. Thanks Steve!

I thought to write you in the hope of bringing to light an issue that a few (certainly not very many it would seem) of your readers may be outraged or at least dismayed over. I am sure you are familiar with the development known as Fallsgrove at old Rt 28 and Shady Grove Road. However, do you know what was there before Fallsgrove? It was a farm — the last of a dieing breed in Rockville and from what I could gather as a kid roaming around it, rather old. The area now known as Fallsgrove used to be the Thomas Farm. Unlike King Farm where the City has made an attempt to retain some of the historic value, Rockville seems to have forgotten the Thomas Farm. In the City’s haste to allow developers to build Fallsgrove, they allowed this important part of Rockville history to be lost. I grew up across 28 from the Thomas Farm. My grandparents still live in that house on Glenora Lane.

In 1999 the City began the process of building Fallsgrove against the wishes of the last owner’s will (she died in the mid ’90s). There is a 1999 Gazette article about this and the subsequent law suit-this is, by the way, one of only two articles mentioning the Thomas Farm I could find at the MCHS library. That same year I went to college. Upon my return my now wife and I were looking for apartments nearer to work and discovered Post Fallsgrove. This is built on what was the Thomas Farm. My love of history and Rockville sent me on a search for records of the farm and family. Much to my surprise I found next to nothing save the aforementioned article.

It seems that Rockville is willing to let a part of our history slip quietly away. In my opinion, the City has done a great disservice to its residents by allowing this part of Rockville’s past to be lost. I’m not saying that Fallsgrove should not have been built. However, to build it and not bother to research and try to preserve some of the Thomas Farm’s history is unthinkable. How can Rockville pride itself on its history and the preservation of that history if we pick and choose what to preserve. Peerless Rockville makes mention of King Farm on it’s website but not the Thomas Farm. Why? We cannot decide to document and preserve one historical landmark and ignore another. That is not historical preservation.

In closing, for my part, I will continue to research the Thomas Farm in the hopes of digging up enough of the history of it to present to the City Council during a public comment period. At least in that way the City will be made aware of the historical value they allowed to be lost. Also, what’s left will be preserved so that future residents of Rockville and Fallsgrove will know what sat at the corner of 28 and Shady Grove Road long before the houses, the apartments, and the shopping center were even thought of.

Steve J. Cavallo

Rockville Central runs occasional, edited opinion pieces by contributors as well as other guest columns. Their views are not necessarily those of Rockville Central. We encourage you to join the growing list of contributors! To submit your piece for consideration, contact us.

King Farm Shooting Suspect To Face Murder One Charges

According to the Montgomery County Police, the suspect in Friday night’s shooting in King Farm, Michael Wayne Adams, yesterday waived his right to an extradition hearing (he is being held in Fairfax, Virginia, where he surrendered).

When Wayne returns to Maryland, which will happen “at an undisclosed time this week,” he will face stiffer charges than originally thought:

Detectives had originally obtained a warrant . . . charging [Adams] with second-degree murder. After consultation with the State’s Attorney’s Office, the charge in the arrest warrant has been changed to first-degree murder. Adams will not be officially served the warrant and charged until he returns to Montgomery County.

Stay tuned.

Homicide In King Farm; Suspect In Custody

According to the Montgomery County Police, Friday night in King Farm, a murder occurred:

At approximately 10:15 p.m. on February 8, Montgomery County Police received the report of a shooting in the 200 block of King Farm Boulevard. Rockville City Police and Montgomery County 1st District officers responded and found an adult male lying on the ground suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. The victim was transported to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead from the injuries he received.

The victim was identified as Jason David Hadeed, 33, of the 1000 block of Reserve Champion Drive in Rockville.

Detectives say the suspect, currently in custody in Fairfax, Virginia, is Michael Wayne Adams, age 44, of the 200 block of King Farm Boulevard in Rockville. He will be charged with second-degree murder. Police had received a 911 call saying he wanted to turn himself in.

UPDATE: According to the Examiner, police say the two men knew one another, but the motive for the killing is not yet clear.

Piotr Gajewski, City Council Candidate

Campaign photo.

Piotr Gajewski is music director & conductor of the National Philharmonic at Strathmore.

From the Rockville Central Interview with Candidates:

It’s fair to say that Piotr Gajewski has the most interesting day job of all the candidates for City Council. He’s the musical director and conductor of the National Philharmonic at Strathmore. He’s lived in Montgomery County more than 20 years. Born in Poland, he grew up in the Boston area. Now he lives in King Farm. Asked why he’s running for City Council, he says “I love this city. My children go to school here, and I look forward to providing leadership.”

Piotr — who goes by “Peter” to his friends, like Rockville Central readers — says there are “a number of issues” facing Rockville that he plans to work on if elected. “Effective and efficient government” tops the list, “but not at the expense of quality government services.” Among the biggest challenges facing the city is the task of “balancing growth with road, transit, and school capacities.”

Peter says Rockville has a “special challenge” when it comes to Town Square. “We have seen a string of failures in that area, we can’t afford another one. We need to aggressively market our Town Center and make it a destination for people outside of Rockville.”

People should vote for Peter, he says, “becuase I bring a fresh perspective and a new face.” Furthermore, in his position as director of the National Philharmonic, “I have had much experience articulating a creative vision for the future, molding partnerships, proposing creative solutions to complex problems, successfully getting funds from government, and responding to public concerns.”

Peter’s favorite restaurant is the same one as me — Il Pizzico on the Pike near Gude. He says his offices used to be right above it and he watched it grow from a stand to the 4-star powerhouse it is now. (I promise, just because we share the same favorite restaurant I am not biased!)

And, like most of the candidates for Mayor, Peter favors Mattie Stepanek Park…but he has the added benefit of living right near it.

(Click here for full audio of the interview — large file, 4MB)