Toys R Us tries a comeback, again
Toys R Us and its mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe are trying to make another brick-and-mortar comeback ahead of the holiday season, after the brand filed for bankruptcy and shuttered all of its 800 U.S. stores four years ago. From this month through mid-October, the brand is opening shops inside every Macy’s store in the United States, Macy’s said in a news release Monday. The Toys R Us shops will start at 1,000 square feet and can be 10,000 square feet at flagship locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco and San Jose.
Opinion: Here’s why you shouldn’t trust politicians who promise not to prosecute women seeking illegal abortions
About the only consolation pro-choice advocates could take in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in the Dobbs case, removing federal protection of abortion access, is that politicians and establishment pro-life groups were almost universal in saying that women choosing to have abortions will not be prosecuted in states where the procedure is now illegal. Take the words of the anti-abortion governor of South Dakota, Kristi Noem, who told “ABC News” that when her state’s trigger law making abortions illegal takes effect she didn’t “believe that mothers in this situation [should] ever be prosecuted. Now doctors who knowingly violate the law, they should be prosecuted.”
Deka Biosciences breaks ground on new Germantown facility
Deka Biosciences announced Tuesday it is breaking ground on a 14,000-square-foot office and lab in Germantown that will house a research and development, process development and manufacturing facility to further develop its novel cytokine therapies. This will be the first facility to house a dual targeted cytokine development lab in the Washington/Maryland/Virginia region and the only company in the U.S. developing a therapeutic of its kind. The new headquarters will be located at 20380 Seneca Meadows Parkway. Deka anticipates the move to be completed in the first quarter of 2023. The facility acquisition, design and construction are in partnership with Minkoff Development, CBRE, and Facility Logix.
Anne Arundel County Council approves $8.5M land purchase in Pasadena for fire equipment maintenance facility
Anne Arundel County will purchase two properties in Pasadena for $8.5 million to build a fire equipment maintenance facility. The County Council voted unanimously Monday to approve the purchase, which includes a two-and-a-half-acre parcel at 8300 Ritchie Highway and a 12-acre plot nearby, owned by Dynasplint Holdings. The county has been seeking a location for a fire equipment maintenance facility for several years and had explored building it on a mostly vacant property in Glen Burnie owned by the county. That location will instead become a housing and retail development.
Notes: Poll Shows Blair Closing in on Elrich, Mizeur Launches Ad, Perez Campaign Unionizes, and More
Four years ago, Marc Elrich and David Blair finished 77 votes apart in the race for Montgomery County executive. A poll released on Friday shows that — with the all-important Democratic primary just days away — the pair could be headed for another photo finish. According to Data for Progress, a San Francisco-based firm, Elrich and Blair are tied at 34%, with County Councilmember Hans Riemer at 20% and 11% undecided. Candidate Peter James, who ran for congress as a Republican in 2012, has one percent support. Early voting ended on Thursday and the primary is July 19.
Opinion: Maryland, we’re almost at the finish line, but don’t forget to vote.
The Maryland gubernatorial primaries have existed in a no man’s land of public consciousness lingering behind the consequential Supreme Court cases, recent national tragedies and an understandable desire to escape from politics altogether. Both polling and early ballot returns suggest that many voters remain wholly disinterested. But, as we approach primary election day, it would behoove voters to tune in and make plans to turn out. These primary elections will play a crucial role in determining the trajectory of Maryland state politics.
What Maryland’s governor can do about gas, inflation and the economy
Democratic and Republican candidates for governor are trying to woo voters worried about the economy and hit by budget-crushing inflation and gas prices. A June Goucher College Poll survey conducted in partnership with The Baltimore Banner and WYPR revealed the economy weighs heavy on the minds of voters in both parties. Eighty-four percent of Democrats and 83% of Republicans polled said the state business climate and economic condition were at least a minor concern, while 74% of Republicans and 41% of Democrats said they had a “mostly negative” outlook on Maryland’s current economic situation.
What you need to know about delayed election results in Maryland
Maryland’s July 19 primary features several highly competitive races. It could be days or even weeks before analysts declare winners and elections officials certify results. “We’re used to, in most contests, knowing who the winner is when we go to bed,” said Nikki Baines Charlson, deputy administrator at the Maryland State Board of Elections. “This election is different,” she said. “We’ve never had half a million people request a mail-in ballot.” That unprecedented number of mail-in votes cannot begin to be counted until two days after the election, and it may take weeks for elections officials to go through them all, officials said.
Banks offer tools, advice to help small businesses cope with inflation
Inflation has increased even more than expected. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the consumer price index, which measures the cost of everyday goods and services, rose 9.1% in June over the same month last year. The increase is the sharpest since November 1981. Already weary after two years of COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions, hiring difficulties, rising interest rates and supply chain snafus, small businesses now must deal with higher prices for goods and determine how much of the burden to pass on to their customers. “Like most changes to the economy, rising interest rates produce ripples that can impact business owners’ bottom lines,” said Chi Eze, vice president, small business banker manager for Bank of America in Owings Mills.
A century ago, Baltimore had a thriving sewing industry. This company is trying to revive the trade.
The pleasant hum of a sewing machine fills a busy workspace in Johnston Square, just off the corner of Greenmount Avenue and Preston Street. It’s an industrial sound that once reverberated all over this neighborhood when commercial sewing businesses thrived here and in other parts of the city. Jeremiah Jones and his wife, Cecilia Grimm, are on a mission to restore the sewing trade that is part of Baltimore’s working heritage. They founded SewLab USA, a teaching workshop for the fiber arts. They also manufacture specialty products.
