Potomac residents can now watch county government meetings, MCPS school programming and community media from a single free app on their phones.

Montgomery County launched Connect Montgomery on Friday, Aug. 21, consolidating video from four public access channels into one mobile platform available around the clock. The app pulls content from County Cable Montgomery, Montgomery Community Media, Montgomery County Public Schools TV and Montgomery College Television, channels that previously required separate cable tuning or online searching across multiple sites.

"This collaboration allows us to make better use of our communication resources while expanding the reach of the important work happening across the County," County Executive Marc Elrich said in the county's announcement. "Residents can easily access episodes from shows like Montgomery Al Dia, Youth Talks Podcast, Unleashing Potential, and more."

Elrich described the initiative as a collaboration between public education and government access media producers, with the goal of creating hyper-local content that is easier for residents to find.

The app organizes programming into six categories: Arts, Communities, Education, Government, Spanish Language and Youth. Content will be updated twice a month, according to Montgomery Community Media.

Each channel serves a different slice of county life. County Cable Montgomery carries government proceedings, including County Council sessions and Planning Board hearings. MCPSTV focuses on school-related programming for MCPS families. Montgomery Community Media produces local community content, and Montgomery College Television covers the college system. For residents who follow the Council or Planning Board but have cut the cable cord, the app offers a direct path to those proceedings without navigating separate websites.

Chief Information Officer Gail Roper said the app represents a new approach to access media that capitalizes on the consolidated efforts of all county channels working together rather than separately.

The county's Technology and Enterprise Business Solutions department developed the platform. Residents with questions can contact Public Information Officer Nordea Lewis at 240-777-6527.

Connect Montgomery is available for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.