Jun Lee from Washington Glass School in Mount Rainier, MD
Gateway Open Studios Tour
Four Towns, One Community, 250 Artists
By PRESS OFFICER
Gateway Arts District
GATEWAY ARTS DISTRICT, Md. (March 27, 2025)—The public is invited to explore the vibrant art community located in the four towns of Mount Rainier, Brentwood, North Brentwood, and Hyattsville that comprise Maryland’s Gateway Arts District. On this one day, the artists have their studios open at the same time and visitors can explore the depth and breadth of this unique community.
The 2025 GATEWAY OPEN STUDIOS TOUR happens on Saturday, May 10, 2025 from 12–5 p.m. The event is FREE and open to the public. Visit https://www.gatewaycdc.org/ost2025 for a map of participating artists and studios to plan your self-guided tour.
The Gateway Arts District is the largest in the region, but it is easy to underestimate as many of its artists work in spaces tucked away or without public hours. An exciting element of this event is that visitors can see spaces not always open, view artists’ work and workspaces, and talk to the artists about their practice on this special day of open houses.
The district roughly encompasses a two mile stretch from Mt. Rainier to Hyattsville with most locations on or around Route 1/Rhode Island Avenue. While some intrepid art goers choose to walk, Free shuttles will be operated along the corridor to help people cover more ground. Street parking is available as well at Lots 1, 3, and 4 in Hyattsville. Shuttle routes and a parking map will be available on the OST website.
In addition to visual art, many neighboring businesses will be poised to welcome visitors for food, drink, and further discovery of the many small and creative places within the Gateway Arts District.
After the open studio tour, all are welcome to the outdoor afterparty from 5–7 p.m. hosted by Broken Square and featuring music, skateboarding, and a food truck at 3698 Wells Ave, Mount Rainier, MD.
Thank you to our sponsors Prince George’s Arts and Humanities Council, MiXT Food Hall, M-NCPPC, and Gateway CDC.
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Edward Burroughs Makes History as Youngest Prince George’s County Council Chair
By PRESS OFFICER
Prince George’s County Council Media
The Prince George’s County Council has elected District 8 Council Member Edward Burroughs III as Chair and District 7 Council Member Krystal Oriadha as Vice Chair for the remainder of the 2025 Legislative Year.
At age 32, Council Chair Burroughs is the youngest Chair, based on known records, to serve on the Prince George’s County Council. In 2010, he became the youngest elected official in Maryland when was elected to represent District 8 on the Prince George’s County Board of Education. Burroughs, a life-long Prince Georgian, spent thirteen years serving as a Board Member, starting in 2008 when he was selected by his peers as a student member when he was a sophomore. He went on to work in the Office of the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney, leading the youth court division and developing innovative ways to steer young people away from the criminal justice system. He was sworn into his seat on the Council in Feb. 2022.
Council Vice Chair Oriadha was sworn into her seat on the Council in Dec. 2022. Her previous career accomplishments combine more than a decade of professional experience within the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. She is co-founder of PG ChangeMakers, a grassroots organization addressing housing, food insecurity, healthcare, LGBTQ+ rights, police reform, education, and systemic racism. She was the youngest Junior Project Manager for Hewlett Packard’s Global Enterprise Management Team, employed as a federal government Senior Communications Consultant, building national campaigns around issues including human trafficking, domestic violence, and adolescent pregnancy prevention. She was the recipient of the 2019 Innovation Fund 40 under 40 Award for Public Service and the 2018 Howard University Alumni MoveMakers Award. She also served on the 2019 Clinton Foundation’s 20|30 Leadership Council.
Chair Burroughs and Vice Chair Oriadha issued this joint statement:
“We look forward to working together and with our Council colleagues to advance policies that uplift our communities. Together, we will focus on expanding economic opportunities, improving public safety, and ensuring every resident can access quality services. We are committed to fostering collaboration, transparency, and equity in all we do.”
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Playing for charity: How athletes give back and gain from philanthropy
Frances Tiafoe Gives Back to College Park Youth Tennis Center via Charitable Fund
By MATTHEW KIRAS
Capital News Service
At age 4, Frances Tiafoe began playing tennis. At age 27, he is one of the world’s most talented and successful players, winner of three ATP titles and a semifinalist at the U.S. Open in September 2024.
Tiafoe hasn’t forgotten where he grew up—at the Junior Tennis Champions Center (JTCC) in College Park.
In 2023, Tiafoe launched the Frances Tiafoe Fund with the United States Tennis Association Foundation. In April 2024, the fund directed $50,000 to the JTCC as one of its first gifts.
“Growing up here and seeing all the great things that have been done not only for me but my peers before me, after, and still to this day,” Tiafoe said. “I definitely want to get back to this place very much.”
Tiafoe’s support of the tennis center is an example of how athletes’ philanthropy connects with their passions and communities. His life story is rooted at the center.
Tiafoe’s parents emigrated to the United States from Sierra Leone. His father came to the U.S. in 1993 while his mother followed in 1996 amid civil war in their home country. In 1999, Tiafoe’s father got a job working on a construction crew at the tennis center in College Park. When the project was completed, he remained at the center as a custodian during the day and as the person who rolled the clay courts at night.
Tiafoe literally grew up on the tennis courts at JTCC stoking his passion for the game and helping him to develop into a world-class player.
Ray Benton, CEO of the Junior Tennis Champions Center, said that the gift from Tiafoe’s fund will support tennis programs in county parks and schools in Prince George’s County.
“Frances has been very vocal that he wants to see more kids who look like him coming out of Prince George’s County and getting college scholarships,” Benton said.
Tiafoe’s fund launched with $250,000. The U.S. Tennis Association Foundation contributed $150,000. Clif Bar, the energy bar brand that Tiafoe works with as an endorser, donated $100,000.
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Purple Line Schedules Spring 2025 Community Advisory Team Meetings
Virtual Meetings will Provide Construction Progress Updates and Future Construction Plans
By PRESS OFFICER
Purple Line Project
RIVERDALE, Md. (March 31, 2025)—The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration has scheduled the spring 2025 Purple Line Community Advisory Team (CAT) virtual meetings to be held from April 22 through May 8. Participants in these virtual meetings will include CAT members, many appointed by neighborhoods, as well as local residents, civic leaders, business owners, associations and representatives from local governments. This round of CAT meetings will provide neighborhoods along the 16-mile alignment within Prince George’s and Montgomery counties localized progress reports and a look ahead to upcoming construction activities.
“2025 is a year of transformation for the Purple Line with the project currently more than 76% complete,” said Senior Project Director, Ray Biggs II. “Our team is eager to share details about recent project achievements, including the current status of testing for the light rail vehicles, as well as progress of track installation and station construction.”
The Purple Line project team presenting during the CAT meetings includes representatives from Maryland Transit Administration, the concessionaire Purple Line Transit Partners, construction partner Maryland Transit Solutions and operations and maintenance partner Purple Line Transit Operators. Time is
provided at each meeting for CAT members and the public to ask questions. Virtual CAT meetings for the Purple Line project are hosted on Microsoft Teams, offering captioning services in multiple languages. The full meeting schedule and instructions on how to enable live captioning is posted to the project website meetings and event page. Past CAT meeting presentations and recordings can also be found on the project website.
All CAT meetings will take place 6–7:30 p.m. Microsoft Teams links will be posted at https://www.purplelinemd.com/public-meetings-events/ by March 31. The schedule is as follows:
• Tuesday, April 22 College Park
• Thursday, April 24 Long Branch
• Tuesday, April 29 University Boulevard
• Wednesday, April 30 Lyttonsville/Woodside
• Thursday, May 1 Riverdale Park/New Carrollton
• Tuesday, May 6 Silver Spring
• Thursday, May 8 Bethesda/Chevy Chase
The Maryland Transit Administration is one of the largest multi-modal transit systems in the United States. The Purple Line is a 16-mile, 21-station light rail line that will extend from Bethesda in Montgomery County to New Carrollton in Prince George’s County. It will directly connect to the Metrorail's Red, Green and Orange Lines at Bethesda, Silver Spring, College Park and New Carrollton. The Purple Line will also connect to MARC, Amtrak, and local bus services. To learn more, visit purplelinemd.com, and follow Purple Line on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, X/Twitter and YouTube.
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