In late 2021, Dana Henson made a panicked, late-night phone call to the CEO of the Housing Authority of Baltimore City, expecting to drop a major bombshell that would almost certainly spell disaster for both women.Henson, principal and vice president of The Henson Development Company Inc., told Janet Abrahams that their plan to bring a full-service grocery store to East Baltimore to serve as an anchor tenant for an ambitious development project and provide relief to an area long classified as a fresh food desert would not work.

Motivated by soaring rental and home prices in the region, Howard County Executive Calvin Ball unveiled Wednesday a collection of housing proposals designed to ease the cost burden on county residents. Nicknamed the HOME Package, the policy bundle includes local legislation designed to curb Howard County rent prices; a bill that would help grow the area’s stock of moderately priced housing units by allowing the Howard County Housing Commission to partner with organizations to convert existing rental units to affordable units; and a state-level proposal that would enable the county to offer tax credits to property owners to incentivize new affordable units.

Resort officials this week agreed to convey air rights above an alleyway to the developer of an oceanfront hotel, but not before a lengthy discussion on a revised site plan. On Monday, the Mayor and Council voted to adopt the second reading of an ordinance conveying air rights above a portion of Washington Lane for the development of an oceanfront Boardwalk hotel between 13th and 14th streets.

Curtis Bay Energy, the nation’s largest medical waste incinerator, which operates in South Baltimore, has been fined $1 million as a criminal penalty for improper disposal of biohazardous materials following a lengthy investigation by Maryland’s Office of the Attorney General’s Environmental and Natural Resources Crimes Unit, according to Attorney General Anthony Brown.

 

With the Anne Arundel County Board of Education nearing its vote Nov. 15 on a final redistricting plan, parents and students shared their concerns at a hearing Monday evening at the Parham Building in Annapolis. The board is reviewing two redistricting plans that would both redraw boundaries at 48 of the 58 schools in the northern part of the county.

RCM&D has acquired a Hunt Valley insurance firm, the first in what the company says will be a string of purchases after three years without a major deal. The deal for Consolidated Insurance + Risk Management closed this month and gives Towson-based RCM&D, a large risk management, insurance and employee benefits company, a portfolio of small and midsize businesses that it didn’t previously have as clients, firm executives said this week.

Maryland will create a new council within the next few months to convene state leaders on technology issues, state Chief Information Officer Katie Savage told StateScoop on Tuesday. Savage said the committee will include IT leaders from various agencies with the aim of centralizing technology conversations. She said initial conversations will center on the projects that each agency wants to invest in and each agency’s long-term vision for technology in Maryland.

 

The Montgomery County Council is likely to approve the purchase of two police department drones after the Public Safety and Government Operations committees voted unanimously to greenlight a new program after a work session Wednesday. Drones will be deployed after a 911 call if the dispatcher and drone pilot believe there is a use for the drone to respond.

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball introduced a package of legislation and initiatives Wednesday aimed at lowering the cost of housing in a county that is becoming too expensive for many residents. One of the wealthiest counties in the nation, Howard County has top-ranked schools, low crime, leafy parks and a convenient commute to both Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. It also has the highest median home sales price of any county in the Baltimore metropolitan area.

Baltimore is rehiring its embattled former director of the Department of Public Works on a contract basis for up to $72,000, according to an agenda for the city’s spending board. Jason Mitchell, who led the department for less than two years before departing in July, is being hired for a six-month period as a contract services specialist. He’ll be responsible for advising the department on modernization efforts, streamlining processes and automating and improving work with the use of technology, according to the Board of Estimates agenda for Wednesday.