Laurel Lost One of Its Own This Week 🖤

Brian Bennett grew up in Laurel. He went to Pallotti. He joined the city's Department of Public Works in 2017, worked his way up to Street Maintenance Supervisor, and was the kind of person who would still be out in the field alongside his crew even after he got the promotion. He was a husband and a father to two girls. He was 38 years old. On Sunday, April 19th, he was killed in a car crash in Pasadena.

This week, as flags flew at half-staff across the city, Laurel grieved one of its own — a man who kept this city running in ways that most residents never think about until something breaks. The streets you drove on this morning, the potholes that got filled after last winter's storms, the infrastructure that keeps daily life moving: that was his work, and it was work he was proud of. Mayor Sydnor said Bennett embodied "quiet dedication" and that his contributions strengthened Laurel "in ways that often go unseen but are deeply felt every day." His Public Works director called him simply "a good man."

This newsletter is not going to rush past that. Brian Bennett is the top story this week, as he should be.

There's also significant news that deserves your attention: 126 units of affordable senior housing at 501 Main Street have been secured for another 30 years, Siemens Corporation is bringing 110 employees to a Sweitzer Lane office building in June, and 23 cars were hit by an airbag theft crew operating across ten Laurel neighborhoods overnight earlier this week. The 45th Annual Main Street Festival is this Saturday — and it is going to be a good one. Here's what's in this week's edition:

Brian Bennett — a Laurel native, a City of Laurel public works employee, a husband, and a father of two daughters — was killed in a car crash in Pasadena on Sunday, April 19th. He was 38 years old.

Bennett joined the City of Laurel's Department of Public Works in 2017 and, over nine years, built a career defined by the kind of consistency that makes a city function. He advanced from equipment operator to street maintenance supervisor, and by all accounts led the way he lived — showing up, staying present, and doing the work. Even as a supervisor, he was frequently found out in the field alongside his crew. Public Works Director Tim Miller described him as someone the entire team could count on: a person who led by example, took pride in his work, and earned genuine respect. "More importantly," Miller said, "he was simply a good man."

Outside of work, Bennett was known throughout the community as someone who checked in on the people around him, who was always ready to help, and who made others feel seen. His obituary describes a standout student-athlete at St. Vincent Pallotti High School who carried those same qualities — the smile, the attentiveness, the warmth — into every chapter of his life. In honor of his service, Mayor Keith Sydnor ordered city flags to be flown at half-staff. "Brian Bennett represented the very best of public service," the mayor wrote. "We grieve with his family, and we honor a life that made a lasting difference in Laurel."

A fundraiser has been established to support his wife and two daughters as they navigate this loss. If you can give, please do. If you knew Brian — from the job, from the neighborhood, from Pallotti — we'd love to hear a memory. Hit reply anytime.

Selborne House of Laurel — the 126-unit senior affordable housing community at 501 Main Street in the heart of downtown — will remain affordable for an additional 30 years, following a preservation deal announced by the Prince George's County Department of Housing and Community Development. Originally developed in 1998, Selborne House was approaching the expiration of its affordability restrictions in 2028. Without intervention, those units could have converted to market-rate housing, pricing out the seniors who depend on them. Instead, DHCD used its Right of First Refusal Loan Program to partner with developer Urban Atlantic to acquire the property and lock in affordability through 2058. Comprehensive renovations are planned for later this year, once Urban Atlantic closes on a new tax credit financing package.

For Laurel residents, the "so what" here is concrete and significant. One hundred and twenty-six households — seniors living within walking distance of public transit, healthcare, and Main Street amenities — now have certainty about where they will live for the next three decades. That's 126 families who don't have to wonder whether their building will be sold out from under them. In a city where affordable housing is under pressure across the board, this is not a small thing.

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development also participated in the deal, with Assistant Secretary Gregory Hare calling the acquisition a model for supporting aging residents and preserving a diverse and inclusive housing stock. This transaction, he said, reflects the kind of proactive approach that prevents affordable housing from being lost to market conversion before anything can be done about it.

What we still don't know is what the renovation scope will look like from the resident perspective — specifically, whether existing tenants will be temporarily displaced during construction and what relocation support, if any, is being planned. Those details matter enormously to the people who live there now.

Siemens Corporation, the U.S. arm of global technology giant Siemens AG, has signed a lease for 26,891 square feet of Class A office space at 14400 Sweitzer Lane in Laurel and plans to move approximately 110 employees into the building in June. The lease is with St. John Properties, which has owned the 120,904-square-foot four-story building since 2020 and has invested nearly $1.5 million in upgrades, including a renovated lobby, a new fitness center, and an onsite food market. The building sits one exit off the Intercounty Connector at Konterra Drive, adjacent to MD Route 198 — less than 15 minutes from Fort Meade/NSA, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and the FDA headquarters.

Siemens isn't coming to Laurel randomly. According to Rickie Golden, the company's Asset Management Head for Real Estate Americas, the building's all-electric configuration was a decisive factor — it aligns directly with Siemens's corporate decarbonization goals. The combination of sustainability profile, modern design, and St. John's reputation made the address, in the company's words, its new flagship office location in the Greater D.C. area. Siemens operates across industry, infrastructure, transport, and healthcare sectors, providing digitalization, automation, and sustainable infrastructure solutions.

For Laurel, 110 professional employees relocating to Sweitzer Lane is meaningful economic activity — lunch spots, services, and retail options in the immediate corridor all stand to benefit. And Siemens joining the building alongside Relative Dynamics (which moved its aerospace engineering headquarters there in 2022) continues a pattern of high-quality employers choosing this specific Laurel address. The question worth asking: as the Konterra corridor fills with employers of this caliber, what intentional planning is in place to ensure Laurel's existing small businesses and residents benefit from the growth, rather than just watching it happen around them?

Laurel Police are investigating after thieves struck 23 vehicles overnight earlier this week, smashing windows and stealing airbags across ten separate neighborhood locations. Most of the targeted cars were Hondas. Airbags retail for over $1,000 installed but can sell on the black market for as little as $50 to $200 — making them attractive, fast targets. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, it can take less than a minute to steal one.

The ten locations hit were: the 15000 block of Haynes Road, the 200 block of Eleventh Street, the 1100 block of Snowden Place, the 600 block of Prince George Street, the 700 block of Park Avenue, the 900 block of Nichols Drive, the 500 block of Ninth Street, the 700 and 300 blocks of Laurel Avenue, the 900 and 1000 blocks of Phillip Powers Drive, and the 14200 block of West Side Boulevard. If you live on or near any of these streets and have a home security camera, police are actively asking you to share that footage with investigators — a QR code is available through the department.

A similar theft cluster hit seven cars in Howard County the night before, and Laurel Police are investigating whether the incidents are connected. If you park a Honda on the street — especially in the neighborhoods above — this is worth knowing. An alarm system or garage parking are the best deterrents, though as a Laurel PIO noted, the thieves this week came in knowing exactly what they wanted. Reporting tips to Laurel Police can help investigators identify whether this was a coordinated crew.

If you haven't been to Catherine's Restaurant at Corridor Marketplace yet, this is your notice. According to Voices of Laurel columnist Brenda Zeigler-Riley, the Italian-Caribbean restaurant — owned by Donovan Vassell — is already packing the house, particularly on weekends. Zeigler-Riley, a retired educator and longtime Russett resident, visited recently for a 6 p.m. dinner reservation and described an experience that transported her: a welcoming atmosphere, attentive service, and a menu built on fresh, locally sourced ingredients that bridges two culinary traditions with real confidence.

Standouts from her visit included a cream of crab soup with lump crab, island spice plantain chips with mango salsa and avocado mousse, and a grilled jerk chicken with Jamaican spices over rice and peas. Others at her table raved about the spaghetti alla vodka burrata and a red snapper escovitch. The restaurant also features live music. Reservations are strongly advised — especially on weekends, when the wait without one is real.

For Laurel residents in the Russett, Maryland City, and Corridor area, this is a genuine neighborhood win: a locally owned, full-service restaurant with an ambitious concept and an already-loyal following. Go see what Vassell has built.

Brian Bennett spent nine years maintaining the infrastructure that keeps this city running — streets, equipment, the daily operations that most of us never see. His work was exactly the kind that goes unseen until it stops.

This week, we want to hear from you: did you know Brian? Do you have a memory of him — from the neighborhood, from Pallotti, from seeing him out on the job? And more broadly: is there someone in Laurel's city workforce — a sanitation worker, a parks crew member, a road crew supervisor — whose work you've noticed and appreciated?

Hit reply and tell us. We'll be reading every message.

⭐ 45th Annual Laurel Main Street Festival 📅 Saturday, May 2 · Parade at 9:00 AM · Festival 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM 📍 385 Main St, Laurel, MD 20707 | This is the one. The 45th edition of one of the longest-running community events in the region — a full day of vendors, live music, a parade down Main Street, and thousands of your neighbors all in one place. It's three days from now. If you go to one thing this weekend, make it this. Rain or shine, Main Street comes alive on the first Saturday of May.

⭐ Arte Flamenco 23rd Annual Recital 📅 Sunday, May 3 · 6:00 PM 📍 Slayton House, 10400 Cross Fox Ln, Columbia, MD A Laurel-area flamenco school's annual showcase — 23 years running, which means this is a production with real depth and continuity behind it. A Sunday evening well spent for anyone who loves live performance.

Planning ahead? Here are 4 more events coming up through May 10th.

⭐ Spartan Singers Spring Concert 📅 Thursday, May 7 · 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM 📍 Laurel High School, 8000 Cherry Ln, Laurel, MD Laurel High School's choral program performing their spring showcase. Live student performance, right in the community — this is the kind of event that deserves a full house.

⭐ Mother's Day Yoga Retreat 📅 Sunday, May 10 · 1:00 PM 📍 The Mansion at Laurel, 13910 Laurel Lakes Ave, Laurel, MD A yoga retreat at one of Laurel's most beautiful venues, timed perfectly for Mother's Day weekend. A genuinely thoughtful gift idea if you're looking for one.

Other noteworthy events:

Thanks for reading Edition #24 of the I Love Laurel Newsletter.

This week held the full weight of what it means to cover a city honestly — grief and growth, loss and arrival, a theft ring working its way through neighborhoods and a restaurant packing its dining room on the same block of time. Brian Bennett's death sits at the center of this edition not because it's the most dramatic story, but because it's the most human one. The city he helped maintain goes on. But it's worth pausing, for a moment, to know who was doing that work — and to say, clearly, that it mattered.

Got an event, story tip, or business we should feature? Just hit reply — I read every response.

See you next week!

— Mike Mondy Founder, I❤️LAUREL

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