Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Hallmark Store closes at Montgomery Mall; does your building allow contactless delivery?; 17 Metro stations closing Thursday

Hallmark Fonz Christmas
ornament from 2014
WHEN YOU CARE
ENOUGH NOT TO
SPREAD COVID-19

Banner's Hallmark Shop at Westfield Montgomery Mall is temporarily closing. The store said it decided to close to protect its employees and customers from the coronavirus, and that they hope to reopen soon. Gov. Larry Hogan ordered the closure of all non-essential businesses in the state on Monday.

17 METRO STATIONS TO
CLOSE TOMORROW

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has already warned residents that you shouldn't be on transit unless you are an employee of an essential business, or a frontline healthcare worker. Riding Metro will get even tougher tomorrow, Thursday, March 26, 2020, when WMATA closes 17 Metro stations.

Red Line stations closing that may impact Montgomery County residents most are Grosvenor-Strathmore, Cleveland Park, and Judiciary Square. 

In addition, the Jennifer Street entrance to the Friendship Heights Metro station will be closed. So will the SW corner of L and Connecticut Avenue NW entrance to the Farragut North station, the South Entrance at 19th St & Connecticut Avenue at Dupont Circle, and the 12th and F Streets entrance at Metro Center.

SHOULD RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
ALLOW CONTACTLESS DELIVERY
TO THE DOOR OF YOUR UNIT?

The coronavirus pandemic, and its national and worldwide impacts, have put us in uncharted territory. Another new controversy emerging from the outbreak is whether multifamily buildings should permit contactless delivery of food directly to a resident's unit, or bar deliverypersons from elevators and hallways, and require tenants to come down to the lobby to pick up their food.

A change in policy at The Palisades apartments in downtown Bethesda has ignited the online discussion. One resident expressed concern that the building's management has reversed its policy that allowed delivery of food to unit doors in the building. The new policy is that the deliveryperson must place the food package(s) down on a table in the lobby for that purpose. Then the resident must come down to the lobby and retrieve their delivery.

The resident noted that having to travel through the corridor, elevator and lobby would naturally increase her exposure to the coronavirus. She is requesting the management company change the policy.

Several residents agreed with her. However, some said a delivery person traveling the corridors and "touching all the buttons" in the elevator is a health risk, as well.

This is a tough call. Clearly, having to leave your apartment puts you at greater risk than staying in. At the same time, the delivery man or woman is also contacting numerous customers and restaurant staff throughout his or her shift. That multiplies the number of contacts. Of course, with contactless delivery, he or she theoretically is not making contact. 

What do you think about this? What is your building's policy, and do you think it should change? Give your two cents in the comments below, and maybe we can get a sense of what policies are in place around Montgomery County, and which of these two reasonable and compelling arguments is stronger from a medical and contagion standpoint.

TALBERT'S DELIVERS

Montgomery County landmark Talbert's, the longtime convenience store and beer/wine retailer at 5234 River Road in Bethesda, is reminding drivers on River Road that it always has made deliveries. A sign attached to the store's famous sign pole out front reads, "TALBERT'S DELIVERS: 301-652-3000." I can confirm that they have just about every snack or beverage you would need to survive the pandemic, and ice in case the freezer you stuffed full suddenly gives out.

NEW YORK IS THE EPICENTER;
WHAT ABOUT THE D.C. REGION?

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is warning America that New York City's increasing coronavirus death rate and spread is a preview of what's coming to other parts of the country in the next few weeks. Join Marsha Coleman Adebayo of Bethesda's Macedonia Baptist Church this morning at 9:00 AM on WPFW-FM 89.3 for a discussion with NYC activist Margaret Kimberly, the Senior Editor of the Black Agenda Report, and the author of Prejudential, and King Downing, JD, WBAI morning host.

SURVIVING CORONAVIRUS
IN ROCKVILLE

The same day that Montgomery County removed basketball hoops from some of its parks, Rockville Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton said basketball hoops had to be removed from city parks due to groups violating the governor's ban on gatherings of more than ten people, and of Hogan's order to maintain social distancing. In an ongoing series of video updates posted by the City, Newton encouraged residents to follow Hogan's directives. "We will get through this if we follow the rules, make smart decisions, and, above all, be kind and supportive of each other," she said.

6 comments:

  1. I wish Hogan had run for President against Trump. He might not have won, but I would be proud to have voted for him.
    Perhaps he can run in 2024

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous8:58 AM

    I also wish Hogan had run against Trump. He would have been humiliated, especially if Republican voters had observed his unbalanced and untargeted approach to the Coronavirus before they had a chance to vote in the primaries. Unlike government employees, most people working in the service sector -- restaurants, hair salons, etc. -- don't get paid if they can't go to work. Nothing like harming people who can least afford it. Folks like me who are most vulnerable to the virus because they are over 65 and have preexisting health conditions can choose to isolate themselves rather than putting poor people out of work so Hogan can virtue signal and play dictator for a day. If you thought taxes in Montgomery County were high before the virus, just wait.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey 8:58. Trump just signed a trillion dollar spending bill. Looking forward to paying for that?
      Have no fear though. Trump said everything will be fine, COVID 19 will go away quickly and all will be fine in Easter.
      Trump 2020

      Delete
  3. Anonymous9:32 AM

    I'll never vote for a Republican, but at least I can listen to Hogan speak without feeling like I've lost 15 points off of my IQ. He would have been 1000x better than Cheetolini.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous11:30 AM

    Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't all malls close several days ago? If so, why are we now hearing that Hallmark is temporarily shutting down?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous8:17 AM

    Hey Rose, I oppose the stimulus, but the spending bill is bipartisan and is good politics for millions of suckers like you who view the government as their surrogate Daddy. As usual with people who suffer from TDS, you misstate what Trump said. He never said all will be fine by Easter, but rather that it would be better to shift to a more targeted approach that controls the spread of the virus without devastating the economy. Many proposals have circulated as to how to do that. But hey, be my guest, come November pull the Donkey lever for senile Biden, the candidate who downplayed the threat that China poses to the US economy, rather than the one candidate who warned about the risks of outsourcing our manufacturing jobs (including pharmaceuticals) to a country run by the Chinese Communist Party. Good luck with that.

    ReplyDelete