August is here.  Creeping closer to kids going back to school.  Early mornings, blah! Not ready to think about cold weather yet.  Enjoy the Summer as long as you can Maryland style on the water eating crabs!

We have lost a few box stores in the area but its not because we don't shop, its the whole company that is losing money as a whole.  Hopefully we can fill those spots back up.

"Don't worry about failures, worry about the chances you miss when you don't even try." - Jack Canfield

Edit date moved: Crumbl Cookies opens August 25th at 3728 Crain highway, Unit 102, Waldorf.

Splash In Car Wash is now open in La Plata next to McDonalds 6365 Crain Highway.

The Brass Tap opens September 4th at St. Mary's Marketplace in California, MD.  44949 St. Andrews Church Road.

Phoenix International School of the Arts will have its ribbon cutting August 8th at 95 Catalpa Drive in La Plata.  They are the first-ever tuition-free art and innovation middle school located in Charles County, MD.

Since this is asked about so much I figured I would mention it here.  Next to Aldi In La Plata they are building a total of 193 luxury apartments.  They were approved by the town of La Plata.  They are not section 8.  I have heard that they may be doing some low income apartments near the park and ride on Washington Avenue but I don't have any information on it.  

Charles County announced their new Waldorf Sports Complex to be built on St. Poplar Hill Road.  It will have five multi purpose fields, two full basketball courts, six three on three basketball courts, twelve pickleball courts, kids basketball half court, ADA accessible playground, and a 59,500 sf indoor facility set up for up to four courts for tennis, pickleball, or basketball. There will also be trails, pavilions, etc. so its a pretty exciting project.  The funding comes from the state of Maryland specifically for this type of use.  Please note this project is a different sports plex from the one proposed by a private group that wanted to partner with the county.

Harbor Freight opens August 22nd in the Laurel Glenn Shopping Center at 45315 Alton Lane in California, MD.

July 2023 Updates

How you feelin'? Hot, Hot, Hot!  We are starting off with rain and sun this July.  Hope you get thru the 4th with all your fingers and toes!

Hangry Joe's Hot Chicken is now open in the Waldorf Shoppers World Shopping Center next to Charley's Cheesesteaks.

The Farmhouse Café & Creperie coming soon to La Plata at 5695 Washington Avenue. 

One of my followers said that the Shoppers in Charlotte Hall, MD is set to open July 20th.  Waldorf is apparently going to open the same day.

In reference to the property at 22915 Hollywood Road in Leonardtown.  There appears to be a something called old town office and auto showroom. A tag and title office with a showroom for classic cars.   It's been in the works since 2019 and they seem to be running into issues getting it approved.

Construction on the new bigger Five Below location at the Shops at Waldorf Center (formerly known as festival) Five Belows current space and the vacant space next to it will become Old Navy. Five below employee said they move over in August. Old navy can then start construction on their space.

 

June 2023 Updates

First off I need everyone to take a breath and chill on some of the conversations that are going on here.  Everyone has opinions on why things don't come here and what the county needs.  But these conversations are going off the rails.  Lets please keep it civilized.  I haven't really moderated the comments and usually approve everything letting people say what they want, but if it starts to get out of hand I'm going to have to do something.  

I put this information up for fun and to inform because I don't like disinformation thrown out there.  Hopefully it helps people understand the process and the why and how things come to the area.  It seems to work because I notice it in the Facebook comments on other pages.  So that makes me happy.  Its time consuming as well getting the information, sometimes I spend a little too much time doing it.  I've always had a problem with time management, lol.

Congratulations to all of our new graduates.  I wish you the best of luck.  Stay focused on your goals and don't let anyone tell you that you can't achieve greatness.   

DSW is showing a June 8th opening date at their new spot in the Shops at Waldorf Center.  People ask why are they moving?  Probably higher visibility, but they did downsize to focus on higher end shoes.

Jersey Mike's is showing a new location coming to the corner of Dares Beach road and Solomon's Island Road.  They don't give an address so we will have to see if its in Calvert Village or across the street somewhere.

Kaiser Permanente was in town to give a small update on their future plans for the area. They are looking at a late 2025 early 2026 competition date for their first phase which will have 90,000 sf of next gen medical space. Included in this are 50 doctors offices, primary care, optometry, X-Ray, Imaging, MRI and 24 hour urgent care and 24 hour pharmacy. They mentioned that they have 16,000 members in the area already, and that they are working as fast as they can to bring these services closer to you. More services to be added in the second phase. We look forward to seeing work begin.

M&D Chicken and Fish now open in the Bryans Road Shopping Center. 3091 Marshall Hall Road.

May 2023 Updates

Happy May!  Happy Mothers Day!  Its also national hamburger, salad and barbecue month!  Anyway I hope we can get some weekends that are all sunshine.  Its hard to get all the yardwork done in one day. Watching the comments on the local news lately drives me crazy.  Have pride in your community.  Work to improve it.  Talk to your kids about being upstanding citizens and not following things you see on social media.  All actions have consequences.

Harbor Freight has signed up to lease a portion of the former Weis space at the Laurel Glenn Shopping Center on Alton Lane in California, MD.  No proposed opening date yet.

Dodah's Kitchen is now open in the Smallwood Village Shopping Center serving Vegan soul food and deserts.  #152 Smallwood Village.  This is their forth Maryland location.

Standard Sweets is set to open May 20th at 29251 Three Notch Road in Mechanicsville.

The Brass Tap is showing an August 1st opening date at the St. Mary's Marketplace. 44940 St. Andrews Church Road, California, MD

Raising Cane's now open in Waldorf at 3295 Crain Highway.

Hangry Joe's Waldorf location is planning to open mid June at the Waldorf Shoppers World next to Charlies Cheese steaks.  They have another location planned in Brandywine Village in front of the Chaddsford neighborhood.

Peri Peri Original and Kallisto Steakhouse taking over the former Heavenly Chicken and Ribs at Dunkirk Gateway.  10812 Town Center Blvd.  They have locations across Maryland and Virginia.

Bath and Body Works has signed on at the Fox Run Shopping Center in Prince Frederick between GNC and H&R Block.

April 2023 Updates

Hey April give me some sun and less wind!  Is everyone is having a good start to Spring?  Hope everyone is getting in some family and friends time.  Its always important to stop and make some memories.  Take pics and videos too.  Take a little vacation to get away from work.  Cherish the time and get your face out of that screen!

UPDATE: Crumbl cookies has started construction in Waldorf!

Raising Cane's in Waldorf now has an opening date of May 23rd.

DSW Shoes will be moving from its location at Waldorf Marketplace over to The Shops at Waldorf Center in the former Modell's spot next to the pop up and grow space right on the corner.  No word on a move in date yet.

There are a few construction sites on Rosewick road currently.  The one closest to Radio Station Road is a new storage facility.  The other is closer to the railroad tracks and that is the other entrance to the Piney Grove residential development.

I was going thru some construction site bids and we have two new O'Reilly auto parts stores coming to St. Mary's County.  One is next to the Dollar General in Hollywood at 23836 Mervell Dean Road and the other is planned to be in Lexington Park at 21400 Suburban Drive and Great Mills Road.  

I know how you love car washes so here's a new Tidal Wave Auto Spa planned at the corner of Rt. 235 and Rt. 4.  There will be two other pad sites at this location for other businesses.

EDIT: Burnbox Waldorf is showing May 5th as an opening date.

California Tortilla now open in the St. Charles Town Center Mall in Waldorf.

A new drive thru concept Rita's is now open at 22168 Three notch Road in California, MD

April 27th two of the Shoppers locations will open in St. Mary's County.  Patuxent Crossing (formerly san souci plaza) 22599 MacArthur Blvd, California and Brenton Bay at 40845 Merchants Lane in Leonardtown.

Hobby Lobby in Waldorf opens May 8th at 3009 Waldorf Marketplace.  

March 2023 Updates

Happy March!  Spring is quickly approaching.  Sunshine, easter, daylight saving time, and warmth are on the way.  We have had a mild winter so it hasn't been that bad but I would rather have non jacket weather.

Still no movement in the Waldorf Crumbl cookies space.  They say they are having issues getting equipment. 

Firepan Korean BBQ is coming to Waldorf.  It will be located int he Charles County Plaza in the former Pier 1 Imports space at 3237 Plaza Way.  Firepan has al-la-carte and all you can eat dining options and you can grill right at your table!  They offer a varied menu including both unmarinated and marinated meats, seafood and vegetarian selections.  Firepan has three locations currently in VA and MD with several more on the way.  No opening date announced yet. 

A new Splash In Eco tunnel car wash is now under construction in La Plata.  It will be located at 6365 Crain Highway next to Mc Donald's.

Rosewick Crossing

Rosewick Crossing in La Plata has a bunch of new tenants coming soon.  Elite salon for men, Rosewick tobacco and vape, Coffee Bean XYV, Webster Insurance and Sparkle and Sass Dance Company.  No word on opening dates.  

Chick-fil-A and ALDI are officially approved in Charlotte Hall.  They will be located on the front section of where the current farmers market is.  The farmers market will be relocated.

Evolve Med Spa has leased space at Waldorf Park which is located at the corner of Crain Highway and Smallwood Drive over by the new Chic Fil a.  The specialize in weight loss planning, cryoskin, Laser hair removal, Botox, restylane, Juvéderm, chemical peels and more.  No opening date announced.

February 2023 Updates

January felt like two months!  I cant wait to get thru the cold, wet season as quickly as possible.  Bring on the sun!  Cava finally opened in the Waldorf area which was highly sought after by our community.  Keep sending your requests to these places you want.  They need to hear from the consumers.  Remember some of these stores have to have a franchiser that wants to put a store in the area. Not everything is corporate owned.

Brandywine has got a lot going on recently.  New retail is popping up in front of the Chaddsford neighborhood at the Brandywine Village project.

New tenants include Pizza Hut, Jersey mikes, Tropical Smoothie Café, Navy Federal Credit Union.

 

Saladworks has been in the business for a while longer.  They began in 1986 and have over 110 locations in 15 states.  Besides a large array of salads they also carry sandwiches and paninis. This will be their third location in Maryland.  They will be located over by the Green Turtle and UPS

The Brass Tap craft beer bar is officially signed at the St. Mary's Marketplace in California, MD. It will take over the former Café Rio space. The space will have indoor and outdoor seating. This is the forth Brass Tap in Maryland. They are a franchise with over 40 locations in the United States. 

I have conformed that shoppers will return to Waldorf in June this year at the St. Charles town Plaza.  Also Shoppers is reopening in California at the Patuxent Crossing Shopping Center but I don't have an opening date for that one.  I would assume around June as well.

Baynet confirmed that Shoppers is returning to Leonardtown and Charlotte Hall.  That's a lot of stores coming back online. EDIT: And no they will not be run by McKays.

Fiesta TexMex will have its Grand opening February 13th at the Waldorf Marketplace.  They are located next to Grille 13 on an endcap space.  Fiesta TexMex is locally owned and operated and specializes in made from scratch foods.  3010 Waldorf Market Pl. in Waldorf.

Aldi had its grand opening in La Plata at 155 Rosewick Corner Place.  They are located across the street from Rosewick Crossing Shopping Center.

Panda Express is now open in La Plata at the corner of Route 301 South and Route 6.

Planet Fitness now open in La Plata next to Outback Steakhouse. 6655 Crain Highway.