A group of more than 600 doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center voted to form a union, according to a preliminary vote tally. The tallied vote came in Thursday night as 628 voting for and 19 against. To win union certification, they needed just a simple majority of those who chose to vote. Ari Goldstein, a third-year family medicine resident, called it an “emotional day” for the doctors at medical centers, adding that organizers put “countless hours” into the union effort.
The National Weather Service has upped its tornado count to 13, nearly double its initial report, after doing an additional survey of damage from storms that blew through the D.C. area last week. One day after storms blew through, NWS’ offices based in Sterling, Virginia, confirmed seven tornadoes had touched down on June 5 throughout the broader D.C. region; the weather service groups parts of Maryland, Virginia and D.C. in with West Virginia in its forecasts.
The Montgomery Planning Board unanimously passed an Attainable Housing Plan that would allow residential land in Montgomery County zoned for single-family homes to be used for duplex, triplex or fourplexes. The plan heads to the County Council later this month. “I want to be clear on something. This proposed zoning change is not a mandate for people to turn their properties in to duplexes or townhomes or small apartment buildings,” said Planning Board Chair Artie Harris.
In an effort to stave off development that could interfere with operations at Frederick Municipal Airport, Frederick County Council President Brad Young is drafting legislation modeled after the city’s airport overlay zoning district. During a joint meeting of the council and the city’s Board of Aldermen on Wednesday, Young said the idea to create a Frederick County version of the airport overlay came out of discussions with the city’s Airport Commission, of which he and Alderwoman Katie Nash are members.
Federal leaders met Thursday afternoon with business and industry partners following the reopening of the Port of Baltimore. On Wednesday, 11 News Investigates reported exclusively that U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and White House officials would meet Thursday with companies about the port since the reopening of the Federal Channel.
A heat wave is expected to hit the Tri-State area next week before summer officially arrives. Heat indexes could reach 100 degrees next week, according to National Weather Service meteorologists for the region. The stretch of hot, humid days is forecast to start Monday, though the main concern for heat is expected to be mid to late next week, meteorologist Jeremy Geiger said.
Former President Donald Trump is backing Larry Hogan for Maryland’s open U.S. Senate seat — a potentially polarizing move in the competitive race. Trump’s support was first reported by Fox News on Thursday afternoon, and came after the former president met with Republicans on Capitol Hill. Fox reporter Aishah Hasnie asked the former president if he would support Hogan’s run. Trump responded: “I’m about the party and I’m about the country.
Facing pressure from housing advocates, state policymakers and local developers, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. on Thursday vetoed a contested County Council bill that sought to mitigate overcrowding in some county schools. Olszewski said he wants to work with Baltimore County Public Schools and the council to come up with a better bill.
His latest mayoral bid may be over, but Thiru Vignarajah is not going away quietly. This week, the Baltimore City Board of Elections cleared Vignarajah to begin collecting signatures on a petition for a ballot question that could undermine the current plan to redevelop Harborplace. The question, which was reviewed by the board’s attorney for legal sufficiency, would ask voters to establish under the city’s charter a system of city parks dedicated in perpetuity in hopes of protecting them from “certain private, commercial development.”
Tenants will move into a handful of rehabbed rowhomes in Baltimore’s Johnston Square neighborhood this summer as part of a $100 million wave of development. The five three-bed, three-bath homes starting at 430 E. Biddle St., across the block from St. Frances Academy on East Chase Street, are the first of 15 rowhomes undergoing rehabilitation specifically to house teachers.