Baltimore County Councilwoman Cathy Bevins said Tuesday that she is withdrawing a proposed bill that would have exempted waterfront restaurants and marinas from some environmental requirements, following criticism from residents and environmental advocates. The bill would have allowed restaurants and marinas in Chesapeake Bay Critical Areas in the county to add new structures up to the water’s edge, exempting them from laws requiring a vegetation buffer to separate certain developments from bodies of water.

Even though more than 12 million Marylanders have received at least one COVID-19 vaccination, immunization rates for other communicable illnesses have dropped, leaving particularly vulnerable communities — such as children, college students and seniors — susceptible to a host of preventable illnesses. With Maryland students returning to classrooms this month, this is an important opportunity to ensure that all family members are protected from potentially fatal illnesses, including measles, polio, meningitis and pneumococcal disease. Vaccines are the most effective protection against stopping the spread of a broad range of contagious illnesses. However, outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases that were once thought to be well controlled, including measles and whooping cough, are still occurring.

Michael E. Hickey of Columbia, Maryland, died on August 28, 2022, at age 84. Born 1938 in Iron Mountain, Michigan, his family moved to Walla Walla, Washington, in 1942 where he grew up. He was an Eagle Scout who joined the Marines following high school graduation. Following his honorable discharge from the Corps he completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Washington, taught high school English for two years and then returned to the U of W, completing his master’s and then Ph.D. with highest honors in 1969. He was then recruited to work as the Special Assistant to the Superintendent of Seattle Public Schools where he led the team that successfully desegregated the schools voluntarily and, at the age of 34, he was named the system’s Deputy Superintendent.

The University of Maryland, College Park, will be increasing its minimum wage for student workers to $15 an hour beginning in 2023, the school’s president said. President Daryll Pines announced the pay increase in a welcome message to the campus at the start of its fall 2022 semester. The University System of Maryland increased its minimum wage to $15 an hour for nearly all its employees at the beginning of 2022, but the increase did not include student workers. “This is a significant multimillion-dollar investment in a key pillar of our strategic plan: to invest in people and communities,” Pines said in the welcome email, which was sent out on Monday, the first day of the university’s semester. 

Patagonia Inc. will open its first Maryland outdoor clothing and gear store this summer in Baltimore. The Ventura, California-based brand is currently in the process of building out its 15,000-square-foot space at 700 S. Caroline St. between Fells Point and Harbor East, and is aiming for a September opening, said Kira Nissley, leasing manager with Harbor East Management Group. A specific date has not yet been confirmed as the company is waiting on some final deliveries and finishing touches. Patagonia’s Baltimore location will be the company’s first and only Maryland store, with the next closest in Washington, D.C. and Alexandria, Virginia.

Commercial real estate firm Edge Capital Markets on Monday announced it brokered the sale of 154 N. Market St. and 8 E. 2nd St., a portfolio consisting of a two-story building comprising 24,195 square feet of Class “A” commercial office space, and the 8,875-square-foot Maxwell Street Garage, both in historic downtown Frederick. 154 N. Market St. was 91% leased and occupied at the time of sale and the projects combine for 33,070 square feet of space. Joe Friedman, Partner, Edge Capital Markets and Joshua Norwitz, Senior Associate, Edge Capital Markets represented the seller, MP Fund I North Market, LLC.

There was widespread disappointment when the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) was lost as Build Back Better eventually became the Inflation Reduction Act. Included in last year’s American Rescue Plan, the expanded CTC, now expired, raised the maximum value of the credit, increased the number of families that were eligible and provided payments on a monthly basis. It made a real difference, particularly for lower-income families, who reported spending much of the money on their children as well as using it to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table.

When organizers outlined the scope of the Maryland Cycling Classic in Baltimore, one called it “the Preakness on wheels.” That might be an apt description if the Preakness were the only portion of horse racing’s Triple Crown held in the United States, said Joe Traill, owner of Joe’s Bike Shop in Mount Washington and Fells Point. “It would be like getting a Formula One race here,” Traill said. “This is rare for anywhere in the United States, let alone Baltimore. Some people have worked really hard to get this done. … I hope people in Baltimore realize what a huge deal this is. People are going to come to watch this race, and it’s not just Baltimoreans.”