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Happy Wednesday, Westminster!
Be sure to support the local sponsor of today’s newsletter, Union Mills Homestead and the Maryland Microbrewery Festival, happening this Saturday, Sept. 26. Advertise here to reach the same audience they did with their sponsorship.
In the news, Carroll County's 20-year-old robotics team, the Robo-Lions, has to find a new home by June 2027 and is asking the community for leads. Meanwhile, downtown gets ready for Westminster After Dark this Friday as part of Fallfest weekend, and the county's Department of Recreation and Parks wants residents' input on where trails, ballfields and open space go over the next five years. And don’t forget Thursday night’s Fallfest Parade downtown at 7 p.m.
Let's get into that and more below.
👀 Around Town
☕ Dark Horse Roasters' opening has been delayed, per its own storefront sign and Facebook post — no new date yet. The roastery will be located at 66 W. Main St. next to American Ice Company Café, which has the same owner. Stay tuned.
👻 The Westminster Halloween House is back — a decorated home display with lights typically running 5ish–10ish p.m. Sunday–Thursday and 5ish–11ish p.m. Friday–Saturday, per its Instagram. The house is located on Bennett Avenue near Carroll Hospital. See photos and video.
🍔 The small yellow building at the corner of Main Street and Washington Road, most recently home to Burger Land (2 Washington Rd.), is for sale. A "Commercial Property For Sale" sign is now posted on the building. See post.
⚽ Coppermine's new Play Collective launches drop-in, co-ed adult soccer Tuesdays, 7:30–9:30 p.m., Oct. 6–Dec. 22, on the indoor turf at 4 Seasons — $10 per player per night, first 30 signed up each week, no pre-registration needed. Details.
🏀 Westminster Rec Girls Basketball is holding travel tryouts at West Middle School for grades 5–8 between Oct. 4 and Oct. 11 (times vary by grade); players must attend two of their grade's three sessions and register beforehand. Program info.
🏐 Looking for local high school sports results? CCPSCORES is a go-to spot for Carroll County Public Schools scores — cross country, field hockey, soccer and more get posted. Join the group.
🍺 Update on the Maryland Microbrewery Festival (Saturday, Sept. 26, Union Mills Homestead): Brewery Fire and Farmacy Brewing have been added to the lineup Westminster Wire listed on Facebook this week, joining BC Brewery, Pub Dog, 1623 Brewing Co., Ruhlman, Oliver Brewing, Flood Zone, Monocacy Brewing/Brewer's Alley, Adoree Beer, Mystique Barrel Brewing and Lager House, and RavenBeer. Tickets and details.
🥗 Chicken Salad Chick in Westminster (255 Baltimore Blvd.) will start serving guests on Sundays beginning Sept. 27, in addition to its regular schedule. Location info.
🍂 The 2026 Westminster Fallfest Parade is this Thursday, Sept. 24, at 7 p.m. and organizers have posted a map (see below). According to the Fallfest website, the parade begins at Monroe Street and Pennsylvania Avenue (1) and heads south to West Main Street. It follows West Main to Longwell Avenue, turns left past the judges' area (J), and ends at East Middle School (2).
Map from https://westminsterfallfest.com/parade/ for the Thursday, Sept. 24, 7 p.m. parade.
Sponsored by Union Mills Homestead
Join us on Saturday, September 26 at the historic Union Mills Homestead for the Maryland Microbrewery Festival, a fun-packed festival for the whole family!
Featuring continuous live entertainment and the best of Maryland's handcrafted and distinctive craft beverages, this unique event will be held at one of the region's most beautiful venues, at the 21-acre Union Mills Homestead park, centered on the historic Shriver Grist Mill. Come join the fun of Maryland's premier beer festival! Celebrating craft Maryland beverages and history!
All proceeds benefit the operation and preservation of the historic Union Mills Homestead. Get tickets here.
🗞️ News
🌃 Downtown stays open late for Westminster After Dark
Nineteen downtown businesses stay open until 11 p.m. or later this Friday, Sept. 25, for Westminster After Dark, part of Fallfest weekend. Look for red carpets and new up-lighting outside participating businesses; buy something and get an event keychain, then collect charms around town. Live music runs roughly 6–10 p.m. at six spots, including Kerplung at City Park Gaming & Brew Room and karaoke at the Sentinel lot. Fallfest itself opens Thursday evening and runs through Sunday at City Park.
🤖 Robo-Lions need new home by June 2027
The Robo-Lions, Carroll County's FIRST Robotics team, have to be out of their Finksburg building by June 30, 2027 — their landlord needs the space back. PIE3, the nonprofit that runs the team, says the next home needs to be at least 1,400 square feet; board president Thomas Milnes says the TownMall of Westminster is still under consideration and welcomes leads from anyone with a space that might work. The team marks its 20th year with an open house Oct. 24, 11 a.m.–4 p.m., at its current location.
🩺 Collision Course looks to help an employee's family
Collision Course, the restaurant at 61½ E. Main St., is asking the community to help support one of its employees, whose young daughter is scheduled for her third open-heart surgery on Sept. 28 at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) in Baltimore. The restaurant explained in a Facebook post that as a small, independently owned business, it can only do so much when an employee needs extended time away, so it is sharing the family's GoFundMe with its social media followers. The fundraiser will help cover medical costs and lost wages. As of Sept. 23, it had raised about $6,400 of its $8,000 goal from more than 120 donors.
🌳 Carroll County wants your ideas for the next parks plan
The Carroll County Department of Recreation and Parks wants input for its 2027 Land Preservation, Park and Recreation Plan, which sets the county's priorities for trails, ballfields and open space over the next five years. Two listening sessions: Tuesday, Sept. 29, 7–8 p.m., at the Eldersburg Library, and Tuesday, Oct. 6, 7–8 p.m., at the North Carroll Library in Hampstead. The current plan found trails were residents' top-requested amenity by a wide margin.
🏗️ "Coming Soon" sign goes up for Green Street condos
A "Coming Soon" sign is now up on the vacant lot at 222 E. Green St., advertising A1 Urban Living, a planned four-story building with 64 for-sale condominiums. The developer's website says the project is "in design and permitting" and that construction timing will be confirmed once permits are in hand. The developer is advertising 30 one-bedroom units (about 750 to 825 square feet, starting at $275,000) and 34 two-bedroom units (about 1,050 to 1,100 square feet, starting at $325,000). The homes would be on the second through fourth floors.
See the video below for a look at the property.
@westminster.wire This is the site where the 64-unit one- and two-bedroom A1 Urban Living Condominiums are planned for 222 East Green Street in downtown Westminster.
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— Westminster Wire