Around Maryland

Last year, as summer gave way to fall, a Maryland State Police barrack commander in Charles County didn’t like what he was seeing from his troopers. The barrack’s supervisors had agreed to require at least 100 traffic stops per month, as well as a handful of arrests, from every trooper. But the La Plata Barrack commander wasn’t getting the results he wanted, and he demanded more: more traffic stops, more citations, more arrests for driving under the influence.

Millions of dollars owed to individuals and entities that have lost their Baltimore properties through tax sale foreclosure has sat untouched in city coffers— some of it for years— with few of those entitled knowing of its existence. More than 2,100 of those who lost properties after becoming delinquent on city taxes are currently owed a share of the $6 million pot of money, according to a Baltimore Banner analysis of Department of Finance records.

The family of Renardo Green, a former Annapolis employee whose 2021 death in police custody was ruled a homicide, has until Wednesday to respond to the city’s request to dismiss their $75 million lawsuit. The federal complaint, filed in December on behalf of Green’s wife and four children, lists 20 counts against the city, including gross negligence, excessive force and wrongful death. In the early morning of June 1, 2021, Green was in Annapolis Police custody, restrained face down on a stretcher, when he suffered cardiac arrest. He was placed on a ventilator before dying in the hospital three days later.

Summer may be the best time to visit the beach, but winter is my favorite time to visit Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Through the loblolly, many of them becoming spindlier by the day because of intruding saltwater, drivers can see the creeks, necks and rivers that define this landscape. They are the waters from which many men and women eked out a living, and which provided the tools to camouflage an escape to freedom.

Virginia lawmakers are making their final push to build a new FBI headquarters in their state, while Maryland officials try to persuade the federal government to put it in Maryland. The Washington Post reports that the jockeying is happening as the General Services Administration gets closer to a decision in the decade-plus-long effort. In a letter to the GSA and FBI submitted Feb. 3, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, and most of the Virginia congressional delegation made a detailed case in hopes of swaying the federal government to prefer a site in Springfield, Virginia, instead of locations in Landover and Greenbelt in Maryland.

A sweeping vision to revitalize south Baltimore’s shoreline and 19 adjacent communities has been officially endorsed by the city. Baltimore’s Planning Commission voted 7 to 0 on Thursday to adopt a master plan developed to improve 11 miles of shoreline along the Middle Branch of the Patapsco River in south Baltimore. The commission meeting was the culmination of a multi-year effort led by a consortium of stakeholders from the public and private sectors. Its vote means the Reimagine Middle Branch Plan now has the formal backing of Baltimore’s government, affirmation that will assist in both funding and implementation. No other public body has to vote on the plan, and no legislation must be signed into law for it to take effect.

Summer may be the best time to visit the beach, but winter is my favorite time to visit Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Through the loblolly, many of them becoming spindlier by the day because of intruding saltwater, drivers can see the creeks, necks and rivers that define this landscape. They are the waters from which many men and women eked out a living, and which provided the tools to camouflage an escape to freedom. In 1850, Maryland had a split personality, with parts of the Black population enslaved and parts living in freedom. In Dorchester County, on the Eastern Shore, half of the population was enslaved, and half free. Through close family ties and alliances, they helped each other find paths through the water and the woods to freedom in Philadelphia and beyond.

A trail expected to connect 75 neighborhoods throughout Baltimore needs more funding and community support before it can be completed. The 35-mile trail loop called Baltimore Greenway Trails Network will connect existing trails, including the Gwynns Falls, Herring Run and Jones Fall trails, by adding 10 additional miles. The extended trail will welcome biking, scooter riding, walking and other non-automobile travel. Many in the communities it will touch are excited about the recreational enhancement the trail will bring, but wonder how long it will take to complete. The simple answer: Nobody knows.

Wednesday’s snack for residents of The Terraces at Westminster — “dirt” cups made with chocolate pudding, crushed chocolate cookies and gummy worms — was especially fitting, as a new indoor herb garden program made its debut at the facility. In an event designed to introduce residents to the Eldergrow D-I-Y Culinary Herb Garden program, some residents got their hands dirty Wednesday afternoon, with an initial planting of fragrant mint, lavender and rosemary. “This is going to bring the gardens inside for everybody,” said Terraces Executive Director Laura Holden. “So that way everybody’s able to enjoy it.” Eldergrow, a Seattle-based company, offers therapeutic gardening programs to seniors in residential and skilled nursing facilities across the country.