Local News. Real Impact.
About The Westphalia Gazette
What we do
The Westphalia Gazette exists to answer one question: What is happening in Westphalia?
We are an independent local news publication focused on Westphalia in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Our coverage is deliberately local: the development taking shape around our neighborhoods, the roads we travel, the businesses serving our community, and the people who live here.
We cover broader county issues when they directly affect Westphalia. Our purpose is to give this community consistent attention—and to keep following important stories beyond the first announcement.
If you live in Westphalia, or you are deciding whether to, this is a place to find out what is actually going on: what is being built, what is changing on the roads you drive, which businesses are opening and closing, and what your neighbors are talking about.
What we cover
- Development — New construction, site plans, zoning applications, and what they mean for the neighborhoods around them.
- Traffic & Transportation — Road changes, construction delays, and the decisions that affect how residents get around.
- Local News — The day-to-day developments and public decisions that matter specifically to Westphalia.
- Business — New openings, closings, and the people behind local businesses.
- Community — The people, events, and everyday life that make Westphalia more than a collection of subdivisions.
How we work
Our process is simple: find, verify, localize, explain, publish.
We do not simply repost press releases or county notices. For every story, we ask what happened, how we know, why it matters here, and what happens next.
We use primary sources wherever possible, distinguish reporting from opinion, credit other outlets when we build on their work, and correct our errors openly. When we do not know something yet, we say so rather than guess.
Independence
The Westphalia Gazette is an independent local news publication. Our editorial decisions are guided by accuracy, fairness, and what matters to Westphalia residents. We distinguish reporting from opinion and disclose relevant conflicts of interest in our coverage.
Who’s behind it
The Westphalia Gazette was founded by Blake Hemphill, a Westphalia resident who saw that the information residents needed—about development, roads, local businesses, and community life—was scattered across Facebook groups, county records, and word of mouth.
The goal is simple: bring that information together, explain what it means locally, and make it easier for residents to stay informed about the place they call home.
Got a tip?
Have a story idea, a question worth investigating, or something happening in Westphalia that residents should know about? Tell us.
Tips help guide our reporting. We review them and verify information before publishing a story.