Week In Review: This Week in Takoma Park News

This week has been a busy one here at Takoma Park Patch HQ.

Burglaries are still a problem this month, with the county rising to 21 in just over a month and 87 for the year. Though the 21 burglaries are unsolved, two people were arrested Tuesday for first degree burglary and three more were arrested Wednesday, Takoma Park Police said. Police did not say if the five arrested had any connection to those burglaries.

The "We Are Takoma" arts series, which kicks off its inaugural season next weekend, hopes to compete in this artistically-rich landscape with a schedule of free concerts, dances, poetry readings and lectures.

"We Are Takoma" starts with a bang, literally, at 6 p.m. Sunday, September 19 at the newly renovated Takoma Park Community Center auditorium, where all events will be held. On tap that evening is Oreka TX, two friends from the Basque region of Spain who play the txalaparta. The instrument, roughly pronounced tal-uh-parta, resembles a xylophone and requires two people to play it with large sticks and other found objects, the result being a rousing, percussion-heavy sound.

In political news, candidates for the At-Large county council seat spoke out. The discussion ranged from job creation, the environment and code enforcement on rental housing. Four incumbents, five challengers answered questions in front of a full house at Brookside Gardens.

In sports news, Takoma Fire Softball, a travel softball program for females ages 8 and up, held a second round of tryouts at Montgomery Blair High School on Sunday after last week's preliminary practice. Sundayʼs auditions, held for the 16-year-old youth program, consisted of five girls.  In total, 26 individuals from various schools in the area competed for 15 roster spots for the fall league team.

The Fire team was created five years ago with a recreational squad. It lasted in that fashion until, according to Peter Ettinger, a parent and league board member, "we realized we were accomplishing a lot." This led the team to evolve into its current competitive state, in which many participants play softball year-round.