In today's edition of Purple Line NOW News, here's what you'll find:

• What's Happening at PLN?
  • Purple Line NOW Forum
  • Thank you!
• Happening Along the Purple Line Corridor
  • Impacted Small Business Grants Available
  • Purple Line Corridor Business Directory
  • Purple Line NOW Joins Coalition Effort to Increase Metro Funding
  • Items that Caught Our Eye
• Construction Updates and Project Features
  
  • Photos Around the Corridor

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WHAT'S HAPPENING AT PLN?

Purple Line NOW Forum

We are working to pull together a forum headlined by both the Prince George's and Montgomery counties' Planning Boards in September. Stay tuned and watch this space for more information!

Thank You!

A big THANK YOU to all who answered our call for financial support a few weeks ago! We had quite few donations from new supporters -- welcome aboard!! To all of our supporters, thank you for your continued help during these summer months -- we truly cannot do this without you.

If you don't see your name on our website list of sponsors, we hope you will consider a gift to Purple Line NOW. For those who may have missed it, we are reprinting our appeal below and ask for your help to continue our work:

We are making an appeal to those of you who have not contributed to Purple Line NOW in a while and to those who have never donated to our organization. For those of you who are new to us, you may not realize that Purple Line NOW does not do any special event fundraising, nor are we underwritten by any organization or company. Everything we do -- all the advocacy, newsletters, educational webinars -- is supported by our donors. We operate on a tiny budget (under $20,000 a year) and when our coffers get low, we ask our supporters to consider a donation to us.

To that end, we wanted to reach out to you with a quick update on the status of the Purple Line project and to ask for your support.

As you know, Purple Line NOW was established to promote the approval and funding of the Purple Line project. After more than 20 years of advocacy, we were thrilled when the project was finally approved. We had worked tirelessly to ensure that the Purple Line would become a reality, and we are proud of our efforts.

However, we have learned that since construction began, the challenges to completing the project have continued. Nevertheless, we remain convinced that the Purple Line will have an incredibly positive impact on the quality of life for commuters and travelers in our region. We believe that the Purple Line will provide a vital connection between neighborhoods, universities, and job centers, and will help to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution.

Despite the challenges, we here at Purple Line NOW have continued to work as a conduit between the community and builders so that questions and concerns can be addressed. We have advocated for a final product that is a real asset for the communities it will serve. We have also been working to raise awareness of the benefits of the Purple Line and to build support for the project.

However, we cannot do this work alone. We rely on the support of donors like you to help us continue our efforts. We are asking for your help once again to ensure that the Purple Line project is completed as planned, and that it serves the needs of our community.

Your donation will help us continue our advocacy efforts and ensure the Purple Line project is a success.

If you are a previous donor, thank you for your past gift to us and for your consideration of continuing your support into the future. If you are not sure whether you contributed to us in the past year, check out our current donors on our website. (All donors are listed for a year following their donation.)

If you are new to us, welcome! Please contact us with any questions you may have. 

The "DONATE" button below will take you directly to the donation page. Thank you in advance for your consideration and for all you do for our community!

HAPPENING ALONG THE PURPLE LINE CORRIDOR

Impacted Small Business Grants Available

This announcement comes from Montgomery County Councilmember Andrew Friedson's newsletter just this morning:

"Independently owned and operated businesses with 20 or fewer employees impacted by Purple Line construction can apply for County Phase III grants starting August 15th. The application will be posted here. The County’s Business Center will host informational webinars on the program on Aug. 29, 30 and 31 at 8070 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring."

Businesses are encouraged to apply, even if they do not have all the required information readily available. The County’s Business Center staff will assist all businesses throughout the process. If you have questions, please contact [email protected] or [email protected].

Purple Line Corridor Business Directory

While we are talking about small businesses -- do you want to return to an old favorite (or find a new one) along the corridor? Check out this Purple Line Corridor Business Directory!

Purple Line NOW Joins Coalition Effort to Increase Metro Funding

Purple Line NOW has worked in tandem with the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG) on joint efforts over the years and our leadership has just agreed to sign on to participate in their newest campaign aimed at winning support for sustained dedicated operating funding for WMATA. You can read more about the effort in their press release and you may see updates in the Purple Line NOW News from time to time.

Items That Caught Our Eye

Montgomery County Councilmember Balcombe retweeted and tagged Purple Line NOW in this fun post by Annie Tulkin:

CONSTRUCTION UPDATES & PROJECT FEATURES

From the Purple Line MD Team:

Photos From Around the Corridor

At Purple Line NOW's quarterly board meeting last month, we were pleased to hear a report from the Purple Line MDOT team about the progress crews are making throughout the corridor. With over 700 crew workers at more than 60 sites and 75% of the underground utility work done and dusted, the photos are getting more and more dramatic. It is nice to see progress happening above ground, too!

Photo Courtesy: MDOT MTA

Photo Courtesy: MDOT MTA

Photo Courtesy: MDOT MTA

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