Around Maryland

The National Aquarium reopened its tropical rainforest exhibit Tuesday following a monthslong closure for the replacement of its massive, 684-pane glass roof. The glass panes were as old as the aquarium itself, which opened 41 years ago, and aquarium officials say the new glass brings a host of benefits for animals — both inside and outside of the aquarium. The new, etched panes will help control temperatures inside the exhibit for plants and animals and minimize the number of migrating birds that inadvertently strike the glass. Workers also added LED lights to the top of the pyramid structure, capable of turning blue to represent the aquarium, or purple and orange for the Baltimore Orioles and Ravens.

On one side of the Fort Meade gate, they are part of the nation’s secret-finding and -keeping apparatus. They’re on the front lines, however remotely, of global conflicts and nefarious threats. On the other side, they are just another tired worker who stops at Royal Farms for coffee — but with the weight of knowledge to which no one else in line is privy. One such Fort Meade worker told Tim O’Ferrall that he remembered thinking: “How are you all not screaming right now?” “It’s a stressor,” O’Ferrall says now, with some understatement. O’Ferrall is the general manager of the Fort Meade Alliance, a community group that supports the installation and partnered with it to create the Education and Resiliency Center that will have its grand opening Thursday.

As the world started shutting down in March 2020, Al Hutchinson, CEO and president of Visit Baltimore, began to prepare for a seismic shift in the business of marketing Charm City to potential visitors. The leader of the city’s tourism arm, a quasi-governmental agency, is responsible for “heads in beds,” or attracting visitors to spend time — and money— in Baltimore. Soon enough, the destination marketing specialist realized the work had hit a historic roadblock. Like so many others during the initial months of the coronavirus pandemic, Hutchinson learned to pivot. Before the Baltimore Convention Center transformed into a field hospital, he and his team showed up to what events were left and distributed hand sanitizer. When stay-at-home orders went into effect, he helped connect small businesses with financial resources to keep the lights on.

When Kia Jefferson received a renewed lease in June for her apartment in Laurel, she said it felt “like somebody punched me in the gut.” The monthly rent on her home of 17 years would be increasing from $1,311 to $2,050. “It’s gotta be a typo,” Jefferson recalled thinking at first. A new landlord had taken over the Patuxent Place Apartments and begun renovating some units so they could be rented at far higher rates. Even though Jefferson’s apartment hadn’t been renovated — or even, she said, received a new coat of paint since she’d moved in — she and other longtime tenants faced steep increases.

The Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office and defense attorneys for a 15-year-old who’s accused of shooting and killing a man who approached a group of squeegee workers have reached an agreement on a plea offer that would call for the case to be sent to juvenile court — over the objections of the victim’s family. A grand jury had indicted the teen in adult court on a charge of first-degree murder in the killing of Timothy Reynolds, which became a flashpoint in debate about squeegee workers in Baltimore.

Betty Fenner-Davis could yell for someone near her street as a kid and almost any of her neighbors living in one of the attached brick rowhouses in the Allendale neighborhood of West Baltimore would recognize her. More than four miles away in Little Italy in East Baltimore, Mary Ann Campanella remembers a similar camaraderie. She used to leave her home on High Street for school to the sounds of neighbors sweeping the steps to their homes as they greeted her and each other.

A vision for the Chesapeake Bay area to have a National Park Service designation is one step closer to reality Monday, as Maryland congressional leaders announced they have drafted legislation for the proposal. The Chesapeake National Recreation Area, as it would be known, could unify a number of existing parks and destinations around the nation’s largest estuary under a common umbrella, organizers say.

Harford County Public Schools and Harford Community College announced Thursday that eligible students who participate in dual enrollment courses, including those who are currently enrolled, will no longer be charged the cost of tuition, fees and textbooks. “We are thrilled to partner with HCPS to offer tuition-free college courses to our dually-enrolled students,” said Theresa B. Felder, president of Harford Community College.