Riversdale House Museum in Riverdale Park unveiled its first portrait of an enslaved resident, the latest step in the museum’s new mission to deal more directly with the legacy of slavery.

As part of a recent celebration of Maryland Emancipation Day, the museum publicly showed a portrait of Adam Francis Plummer, whose personal journal is an important part of the post-Civil War historical record.

The portrait is a mosaic by Chanel Compton, a former executive director of the Prince George’s African American Museum and Cultural Center now working in Annapolis.

The mosaic, which shows Plummer in a blue suit and tie, fits with her other works, which often use the same technique to create portraits of American historical figures such as Nat Turner and Martin Luther King Jr.

It is the first time that a portrait of an enslaved person is being permanently displayed at a place of enslavement in Prince George’s County.

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College Park is moving ahead on a project to build shops and apartments on a stretch of land off Campus Drive near the airport.

Known as “Aviation Landing,” the 1.3 million-square-foot project will include restaurants, shops and around 900 apartments when completed.

Currently home to parking lots and a small handful of industrial businesses, the land has become more valuable with the growth of the nearby Discovery District research park, new apartments and shops around the College Park Metro station and the upcoming Purple Line.

Aviation Landing is currently planned to be completed by 2026, when the light-rail transit line is expected to open.

“We’re making a place in Prince George’s County for our residents to gather without putting more cars on the road,” County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said at a recent event.

The project is being handled by the Terrapin Development Co., a partnership between the University of Maryland and the nonprofit University of Maryland College Park Foundation.

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Lola Schnoodle of University Park recently released a new book, “Lola’s Rules: Lessons on Living Your Best Life From A Real Bitch,” a charming tongue-in-snout take on the self-help guide.

Wishing to spread self-confidence and personal fulfillment, Lola shares her advice on getting the most out of life. In 12 beautifully illustrated mini-chapters, she covers topics such as demanding what you deserve, never settling for second-best, and barking back if need be.

“As a mutt, it’s very special to become an independent author,” Lola barks. “I’m honored that so many humans will get a chance to hear my take on the world.”

A frequent walker in the Hyattsville-Riverdale Park-University Park corridor, Lola hopes to inspire all the human friends she encounters each day as well as dog lovers around the world. Convinced dogs and humans make each other better, she also aims to boost human-canine interaction.

She will donate 10 percent of her profits to charity (Our Companions Animals Rescue, Animal Haven or Puppies Behind Bars, all given 100 out of 100 points by Charity Navigator).

A great gift, “Lola’s Rules” is available on Amazon under “dog humor” and “self-help.” For more information, you can also check out Lola’s website at lolasrules.com.

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Construction is underway on a long-delayed Peruvian chicken restaurant coming to an empty building at the northern edge of Hyattsville’s Arts District.

Suya’s Pollo a la Brasa, owned by Takoma Park resident Patrick Kamgang, was long planned to move into the former Jey’s Auto building at 5731 Baltimore Ave. in Riverdale Park, across from DeMatha Catholic High School.

But construction, which was on hold during the coronavirus pandemic, has been going on in earnest in recent days. Workers expect to finish by the end of the year.

A type of blackened rotisserie chicken, pollo a la brasa has become a trendy “cheap eat” in the Washington area in recent years, with Beltsville’s Sardi’s Chicken in particular attracting a lot of attention.

Latin American restaurants have also done well in the area, and the chicken place will be literally next door to Taqueria Los Perez.

Property owner Jey Edward of Silver Spring previously ran a gas station on the site. In 2008, he had the gas tanks removed and the soil remediated to allow it to be used for other purposes, but it sat vacant long enough that the town of Riverdale Park threatened to take it by eminent domain at one point.

In 2018, Edward cleaned up the property to attract new tenants..

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Construction work is beginning on a crucial missing link to the Rhode Island Avenue Trolley Trail in Hyattsville.

Orange barrels have been set up around Rhode Island Avenue and Charles Armentrout Drive where the bike path will be extended, and the city is telling drivers to prepare for occasional lane closures up to Farragut Street over the next several months.

The long-planned half-mile segment of the trail will start at its current endpoint near Franklins, across from Arrow Bicycle, and head south towards the Melrose Skate Park.

The project is important because it will directly link the Trolley Trail to paths along the Northwest Branch of the Anacostia River, which heads towards Montgomery County, and the Northeast Branch, which leads to D.C.

Trail users would also pass by Streetcar 82 Brewing Co. as well as Pizzeria Paradiso, Art Works Now, Maryland Meadworks and Shortcake Bakery.

You can track progress on the construction online at the Maryland Department of Transportation here.

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Now in its 18th consecutive year, the Utopia Film Festival is set to take place in Greenbelt during the weekend of Nov. 19–21.

Thirty-four films are scheduled in three venues — the Old Greenbelt Theatre, the New Deal Café and the Greenbelt Municipal Building — all in the center of historic Old Greenbelt, with plenty of free parking.

The screenings start at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, and end on Monday, Nov. 21, with a free “Reel & Meal” show at the New Deal Café at 7:30 p.m.

Many filmmakers will be present, including Hyattsville’s own Matt Carl, whose documentary “Trees: The Lungs of Our Community” about Hyattsville’s notable tree canopy loss will be shown at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

Most screenings will be followed by a Q&A session and discussion. Tickets for each two-hour show/block are available for $7; the all-weekend pass, which allows entry into all film blocks, costs $20.

The festival program features 34 films from 17 different countries: Ten feature-length films of about an hour to 90 minutes, six at about 30 minutes, and the remainder short films. Topics ranges from unity to environment, gardening to politics, death and hope. Art and music, including drumming, are also featured.

The film festival’s website has the full schedule, short descriptions of each film, and access to the link to purchase tickets online.

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A new rock opera debuting in November at Joe’s Movement Emporium retells the history of the infamous Mount Rainier-area exorcism.

“The Haunted Boy,” which will run for six shows starting Nov. 11, is centered on the story of a local family that brought in a priest to fight what they believed was a demonic possession in the 1940s.

A news account of that incident inspired William Peter Blatty’s 1971 horror novel, which was made into the movie “The Exorcist.” The local connection was in the news again last year when a couple, not knowing the history, bought a house just off Route 1 that was associated with it.

The rock opera uses the story as a jumping off point for a different fictional account, which was the brainchild of musician Tom Liddle, who lives in Mount Rainier not far from the home where the events are supposed to have taken place.

Liddle, who plays in the band Run Come See, asked other D.C.-area musicians to contribute songs for the rock opera, including members of the bands Stranger in the Alps, The Bumper Jacksons, Fellow Creates and Ugly Purple Sweater, giving a mix of musical styles, ranging from show tunes to Americana ballads and epic rockers.

The show will play Nov. 11-13 and 18-20 at Joe’s Movement Emporium in Mount Rainier. Tickets are available online here.

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