Sidney A. Katz

Sidney Arnold Katz (born March 24, 1950) [5][6] is an American politician and businessman. He currently is a member of the Montgomery County Council representing District 3.

For the physician, see Sidney Katz.
Sidney Katz
Member of the Montgomery County Council
from District 3
Assumed office
December 1, 2014[1]
Preceded byPhill Andrews
ConstituencyGaithersburg, Rockville, Washington Grove, Leisure World, and parts of Aspen Hill, Derwood, Potomac, and North Potomac.
Mayor of Gaithersburg
In office
November 1998 – November 10, 2014[2]
Preceded byW. Edward Bohrer, Jr.
Succeeded byJud Ashman
Personal details
Born
Sidney Arnold Katz

(1950-03-24) March 24, 1950
Gaithersburg, Maryland, U.S.[3]
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseSally Katz[4]
Residence(s)Pheasant Run
Gaithersburg, Maryland, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Maryland (BA)
OccupationPolitician
ProfessionBusinessman
Websitewww.sidneykatz.com

Early life and education

Katz is a lifelong resident of Gaithersburg.[4] His family was the only Jewish one in Gaithersburg.[7] He attended Gaithersburg Elementary and Gaithersburg Middle School.[4] He graduated from Gaithersburg High School in 1968.[8] He attended the University of Maryland, where he received his bachelor's degree in public administration.[4]

Career

Katz was a member of the City of Gaithersburg Planning Commission from 1976 until 1978.[9] He served as a Gaithersburg council member beginning in 1978.[5]

After Mayor W. Edward Bohrer died in office of a stroke in 1998, the Gaithersburg Council appointed Katz the new mayor.[10]

In 2008, Katz supported a law to prohibit seeking work or hiring someone to work while on most city streets, sidewalks, and parking areas.[11] The law was declared unconstitutional by Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler.[11][12] Gansler said the law regulated speech in public without being narrowly designed to increase public safety and traffic flow.[11][12] The City of Gaithersburg accepted the opinions expressed in the Attorney General's letter and the specific Gaithersburg law was not tested in court. Katz said he would find other ways to regulate day laborers.[11]

In 2008, Katz was elected president of the Maryland Municipal League, the association that represents Maryland's 157 cities and towns.[13]

In 2014, Montgomery Council Council Member Phil Andrews announced that he would not run for re-election and would run for County Executive instead.[14] Katz announced he would run to replace Andrews on the County Council representing District 3.[14] Katz's campaign focused on early childhood education, after-school programs, and career and technical training.[15] Katz won the Democratic Party primary election.[16] With no opponent on the general election ballot, Katz won the general election in 2014.[17] His term began on December 1, 2014.[1] He sits on the government operations and public safety committee.[18]

Personal life

He was the co-owner, along with other family members, of Wolfson's Department Store on East Diamond Avenue in Gaithersburg from 1971 until he closed the store on October 26, 2013.[19][20] The business was started by his grandparents, Jacob and Rose Wolfson, in 1918.[20]

Katz is married to Sally Katz, a pupil personnel worker for Montgomery County Public Schools, and is the father of two adult children.[4] He lives in the Pheasant Run neighborhood of Gaithersburg.[21]

References
  1. Turque, Bill; Hernandez, Arelis R. (December 2, 2014). "Deja vu for Leggett and Baker". The Washington Post. p. B1.
  2. Davis, Jenn (September 3, 2014). "Longtime Gaithersburg mayor submits conditional resignation: Move comes in anticipation of Katz joining County Council". Gazette.Net. Archived from the original on September 4, 2014.
  3. "Sidney A. Katz". Maryland Manual On-Line. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  4. "Voter Guide: Montgomery County Councilman District 3". WAMU. 2014. Archived from the original on November 17, 2014. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
  5. Kaiman, Beth (March 30, 1989). "Montgomery County Notes: No Opposition for Bohrer". The Washington Post. p. GMD11. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  6. "Montgomery County Council District 3". Bethesda Magazine. February 13, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  7. Holzel, David (November 30, 2022). "5 miles of separation with Sidney Katz". Washington Jewish Week. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  8. Perlstein, Linda (October 9, 2003). "A Teacher's Gift Backs Her Advice; Md. Couple Left School $1 Million for Scholarships". The Washington Post. p. B4. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  9. "Community Invited to Katz Open House". City of Gaithersburg. October 8, 2014.
  10. Burke, Sonya. "Gaithersburg Mayor Katz is Running For County Council". ...appointed the Mayor of Gaithersburg on September 8, 1998, following the death of Mayor Ed Bohrer
  11. Rucker, Philip (February 29, 2008). "Gaithersburg Ordinance Ruled Unconstitutional". The Washington Post. p. B4.
  12. Gansler, Douglas F.; Varga, William R. (February 27, 2008). "Opinion of the Attorney General of Maryland" (PDF). Attorney General of Maryland.
  13. Marimow, Ann E. (July 3, 2008). "Pension Board Membership Bill Stalls in Council". The Washington Post. p. T3. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  14. Turque, Bill (January 21, 2014). "Nancy Floreen tops Montgomery County Council at-large incumbents in campaign cash: The Montgomery County Council member is in the strongest financial position of the four". The Washington Post.
  15. Turque, Bill; St. George, Donna (May 11, 2014). "Montgomery candidates grapple with school concerns: Board of Education, superintendent are the ones in position to make the decisions, but voters look to county". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  16. Turque, Bill (June 27, 2014). "Anti-incumbent push by Montgomery labor unions comes up short: MoCo unions push for payback from incumbents fizzles on primary day". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  17. Turque, Bill (November 5, 2014). "Leggett and Baker reelected: Term-limit changes are defeated". The Washington Post. p. A32. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  18. Turque, Bill (November 14, 2014). "Elrich, strong critic of development policies, moved off of influential Montgomery panel (Posted 14 November 2014 18:47:07): Elrich, a frequent critic of county growth and land-use policies, is removed from planning committee". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  19. Davis, Jenn (October 31, 2013). "Wolfson's Department Store in Olde Towne Gaithersburg shuts its doors: Owner Sidney Katz said he lost the spark to run the business". Gazette.net. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014.
  20. Davis, Jenn (November 14, 2013). "Wolfson's ends a century of business". The Washington Post. p. T18. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  21. "Sidney A. Katz". The Washington Post. November 3, 2005.
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