Western Maryland town comes out against bike trail project by Youghiogheny River
The town of Friendsville has declared its opposition to building a durable bike trail through one of the most pristine areas of the Youghiogheny River, dealing a potentially fatal blow to a controversial project that had already lined up millions in state funding. Friendsville Mayor Spencer R. Schlosnagle and its town council urged state lawmakers to consider an alternative route that would keep the funds in Garrett County but avoid a stretch of the river that has been designated wild and scenic since 1976. “We cannot in good faith destroy this wilderness area which is unlike any other to be found,” Schlosnagle wrote. Friendsville’s letter caught supporters of the bike trail off guard, with some saying the town has done a turnabout.
Baltimore gets $2 million to help plan for redevelopment of Highway to Nowhere
Baltimore will receive $2 million in federal funds as a next step in planning for the redevelopment of the Highway to Nowhere, a controversial 1.4-mile stretch of roadway that forced the displacement of over 1,000 residents in a predominantly Black community when it was built decades ago. The funds, announced Tuesday by Maryland Congressional members, were requested by the city last fall for a planning study that will help advance redevelopment plans and “set in motion the next steps to finally deliver on those promises made,” according to its proposal. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program, which was established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and is dedicated to reconnecting communities cut off from opportunities due to transportation infrastructure decisions, according to the department.
Times have changed, but we still need a local newspaper
Early one Sunday morning more than 20 years ago, I traipsed downstairs to find one of my four children, my 12-year-old daughter, Alexandra, scribbling away at the dining room table. “What are you doing?” I sleepily inquired. “Writing a letter to The Washington Post!” she answered. The “Sunday papers” had been a fixture in our household for many years. Alexandra’s mother and I encouraged our kids to take an interest in current events by subscribing to several newspapers and by reading interesting articles from the papers out loud to them. So our “tween” had read the Sunday papers and taken offense at one of the news articles (about the content of books in schools). She was familiar enough with the Post’s op-ed page to believe a letter to the editor was in order. Her letter ran the next weekend.
Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan says he’d consider forgoing presidential run if campaign would help Donald Trump win
Still stepping shy of announcing a presidential run, former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said Sunday morning on “Meet the Press” that if his own candidacy were to contribute to helping former President Donald Trump win back the White House, it’d be “a pretty good reason to consider not running.” “I care about making sure we have a future for the Republican Party,” Hogan told Chuck Todd on the weekly NBC show. “And if we can stop Donald Trump and elect a great Republican, common-sense conservative leader, then certainly that would be a factor.” Since leaving the governor’s office a month ago, Hogan has ramped up his teases of running for president in 2024 but has not committed to a campaign. Earlier this month, Hogan said on Fox News he was giving “very serious consideration” to a presidential run.
BGE proposes gas, electric rate hikes starting in 2024
How Baltimore-based groups fight human trafficking in Maryland and across the U.S.
A young Colombian woman was told being an au pair was a “wonderful opportunity” in the United States — she could take classes and improve her English skills while working as a live-in nanny for an American family. However, after being matched with a family in Prince George’s County, the couple forced her to work long hours doing heavy housework, she alleged. She said they also gave her only cheap, mostly processed foods without permission to eat fresh fruits and vegetables they had purchased for themselves and monitored her every move through a network of surveillance cameras throughout the house. The woman faced abuse, isolation and threats of deportation as she was controlled, overworked and underpaid by her employers, according to a lawsuit filed on behalf of the Colombian woman and another au pair who claims that she faced similar working conditions with the same family.
Commentary: A roadmap for Montgomery County schools to address antisemitism
Chaperoning my 7th grade Hebrew school class on a recent trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., a featured quote from renowned survivor Elie Wiesel stood out: “The Museum is not an answer. It is a question.” As Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) continues to grapple with an explosion of antisemitic attacks against our children — one that mirrors a deeply troubling increase nationwide — Wiesel’s words resonate as much today as they did when he declared them at the Museum’s dedication 30 years ago. Nobody has the answer to combating antisemitism; if that answer existed, antisemitism would not fester across generations. But that doesn’t mean progress is impossible; we can and should do much better than we are now. To mitigate the damage antisemitism adherents inflict while’ making meaningful inroads toward prevention, MCPS must start by asking the right questions.
A tribute to Richard Belzer of ‘Homicide: Life on the Street’
Baltimore wears its weirdness, the grand and the shabby, on its star-spangled sleeve. We named a football team after a poem about a guy being haunted by a bird because its troubled creator died here. We obsess about crab seasoning. We know you don’t understand our accents, and we like it that way. In short, we’re the only kind of place that could have created a character as singularly and endearingly odd as Detective John Munch, played by comedian Richard Belzer, who died Sunday at age 78. For six years, he was the conspiracy theory-spouting soul of “Homicide: Life On The Street,” filmed in and around Baltimore and based on real-life Detective Jay Landsman from the David Simon book that inspired the series.
Moore administration halts Hogan attempt to scale back state’s vehicle emissions testing
As former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) was heading out the door a few weeks ago, his administration attempted to push through changes to the state’s vehicle emissions inspection (VEIP) program — over the objections of environmentalists and a legislative panel that examines proposed state regulations. But now the new regulation — and an accompanying procurement process designed to execute the Hogan administration’s plan to scale back emissions inspections — has been put on hold. Although state agencies under Hogan had sought to limit the number of vehicles that required an emissions test, the decision by the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) and the Department of the Environment to scotch the procurement and pause the implementation of the new regulation preserves the status quo for now: Vehicles that are 3 years old or older will continue to need $14 state emissions inspection every two years.
Maryland bill seeks to open jury duty to people formerly incarcerated
A Maryland bill under consideration for a fourth time in Annapolis would provide an avenue for people formerly incarcerated for a year or more to serve on juries. The legislation would also enable people to qualify for jury service who have charges pending that could result in at least a year’s imprisonment, according to a nonpartisan outline of the bill. Sponsors and supporters say it would help people formerly incarcerated better reintegrate into society and make Maryland jury pools more representative. “The status of a person’s current criminal charges and criminal history does not and should not determine their ability to serve on a jury for the rest of their lives,” state Del. Nicole Williams, the bill’s co-sponsor and a Democrat from Prince George’s County, said during testimony earlier this month.
