The Arrival of New Businesses in Montgomery
Matthew Qi | January 31, 2022
The Covid-19 Virus has caused a significant impact on all our lives for nearly two years. Even with the pandemic, Montgomery residents continued to remain resilient as we continued as a community in a renewed hope
One major initiative is the construction of new businesses and homes in our community. For decades, Montgomery has been a culturally rich and diversified community. Now the introduction of new businesses will continue to expand on the diverse balance between local favorites and well-known names.
Montgomery Promenade is an upcoming outdoor mall located on Rt. 206. This mall has already signed leases with Whole Foods and L.L. Bean, both major companies in the grocery and clothing industries. The size of this new mall is approximately 300,000 square feet, making it one of the largest shopping locations in Montgomery. The aim of this mall is to provide a premium shopping, entertainment, and dining experience in one location. This is very exciting for those in the Montgomery area as residents will see many new stores in this location, and it is a new location to shop and socialize with friends and family. Some examples of the entertainment coming to this mall is an Imax movie theater and a twelve-lane bowling alley. The convenience in location for everyone in Montgomery is fantastic, making it a great one-stop option for shopping. The inclusion of more green spaces and trees allows the shopping mall to feel more incorporated into the green of Montgomery and allows it to feel more natural in general. Overall, this mall is being visioned as more of a general space to hang out, diverting from the sterile feeling of a typical mall and bringing more open space and green to make it a unique mall with various new restaurants and stores.
Another location that is seeing an expansion is the Village Walk shopping mall. This mall is also located on Rt. 206 and will be expanded to accommodate a variety of new stores and restaurants. Renovation is currently being done on this location, while many of the already existing stores such as Subway and Mooyah remain. Stores such as Starbucks and Jersey Mikes have already been said to be in this mall when it opens.
There are numerous benefits to the residents of Montgomery with these new malls and businesses being built. The property value of homes in the Montgomery area will increase with these new stores due to the convenience of homes in the area of these new shopping malls. This also means that the population of Montgomery will increase, making it more recognized and well known. Another benefit is the influx of tax dollars from these businesses. This will allow for more funding regarding the school systems, healthcare, and entertainment. And of course, residents will benefit from the vast variety of new restaurants and stores to visit, and the convenience that comes from the location of them.
Overall, these new businesses will prove to make Montgomery a greater community with more to provide to its residents.
Mask Mandates being Lifted in Montgomery Schools and Russian Alcohol Faces Boycotts in New Jersey in Response to the Invasion of Ukraine
Matthew Qi | February 28, 2022
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has implemented the end of the mask mandate in all New Jersey school systems, following a swift decline in cases of the Omicron variant.
Governor Phil Murphy has come out to speak in regards to this decision. He believes that while the health of public safety is of utmost priority, a sense of normalcy must be obtained at some point.
This decision has resulted in a wave of controversy. While some view this lifting of the mandate as a necessary move in order to return to normalcy in our society, others view this as a time too early to make this large of a decision as the virus continues to linger.
The current seven-day average for confirmed cases in Montgomery is 1,043 cases, a stark contrast to the number of cases just a month ago, where cases now have dropped 84% from then.
This controversy over the personal choice to wear a mask through these times has involved the school administration, students, as well as parents as we continue to work through these difficult circumstances and begin to return to a life of normalcy.
Masks have proven to be an absolutely vital aspect of the battle against Covid-19. Masks have been scientifically proven to significantly decrease the transmission rate of Covid-19. While the Omicron variant is significantly more transmissible, the usage of a mask maintains to be one of the most important tools against the Omicron variant next to vaccination.
While this mask mandate certainly isn’t an invitation to disregard the Omicron variant, it is without a doubt a big step as we still cope with this pandemic in the third year and the road to a normal world once again.
While we are anticipating this big change of ending the mask mandate, the invasion of Ukraine was certainly a shock to the entire world when news had been broadcasted. With the President’s response of a multitude of sanctions against the Russian Government, people in the United States have united against this injustice done against Ukraine.
An example of this is the boycotting of Russian Vodka in the state of New Jersey. This act is a direct symbol of the resistance against the Russian Government and the funding of the terror it is causing against the people of Ukraine. While the boycotting of Russian Vodka alone may not do much in regards to the invasion of Ukraine, it represents an alliance against the actions of the Russian Government and brings the trade sanctions imposed on Russia to a more personable perspective. Small steps such as these unite our country against horrific acts this invasion imposed onto the innocent citizens in Ukraine and it demonstrates our support to the heroic Ukrainian people.
Overall, New Jersey continues to face changes in this unprecedented period in human history.