Around Maryland

With newfound cooperation, or at least conversation, with online rental hosting platforms, resort officials this week approved on second reading an ordinance requiring all rental properties acquire the appropriate rental license and remit room tax. For the last couple of years, Ocean City has been working on code changes that will help ensure all rental properties are paying for rental licenses regardless of how the properties are rented, whether it is through a traditional rental agency, online or through a third-party hosting platform such as Airbnb, VRBO or Expedia, for example.

Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine works in babies, toddlers and preschoolers, the company announced Wednesday — a development that could pave the way for the littlest kids to be vaccinated by summer if regulators agree. Moderna said that in the coming weeks it would ask regulators in the U.S. and Europe to authorize two small-dose shots for youngsters under 6. The company also is seeking to have larger doses cleared for older children and teens in the U.S.

Howard University is advancing plans to replace the hospital on its Northwest D.C. campus — and is set to receive $100 million from the federal government to help get it done. The $1.5 trillion spending bill signed into law March 15 by President Joe Biden includes more than $344 million for the university, with $100 million of that specifically devoted “to support construction of a new hospital,” according to Congress’ joint explanatory statement on the legislation.

Traveling back in time: it’s 1910 in Baltimore, and construction is underway on what would soon become a bustling transportation hub. Penn Station was then called Union Station and it was built for the Pennsylvania Railroad. Over time, Baltimore had multiple railroad stations serving different lines, but when cars came into the picture, some of the private railways closed. Penn station, though, remained, and quickly became one of the busiest train stations in the country.

The subvariant of omicron, BA.2 is starting to spread across the country and officials in Anne Arundel County said they are ready. Anne Arundel County Health Officer Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman said another surge could be on the horizon, but they are more prepared with tools like the COVID-19 vaccine and COVID-19 pill to help combat against it. “We are in a different landscape,” Kalyanaraman said. “We’ve obviously gone through the omicron surge and unfortunately a lot of people were infected but that provides some level of immunity for the short term as well in addition to our vaccination.”

Scores on standardized academic proficiency tests taken during the COVID-19 pandemic have dramatically fallen since Maryland students were last tested in spring 2019. Only 15% of the state’s public school students in grades 3 through 8 and high school achieved scores showing competency in math and 31% passed English on the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program this fall, according to a presentation that Maryland State Department of Education officials made to the Maryland State Board of Education on Tuesday.

A Patterson Mill Middle High School junior is the recipient of the 2021 Hershey Heartwarming Project Action Grant. The $250 microgrant is awarded to youth ages 13 to 17 for initiatives benefiting their community, mental wellness and advocacy, according to a news release. Ashlee Brockwell, 17, of Abingdon will launch her winning “Deck the Doors” project this spring with the help of the Harford County based, youth-led nonprofit We Cancerve Movement, Inc. Brockwell said her project promotes inclusivity and mental wellness among children that are hospitalized or critically ill.

Developers plan to build luxury townhomes to replace the former social hall of St. Brigid Catholic Church in Canton, the latest redevelopment project for the Southeast Baltimore community. The former church social hall at 901 S. Ellwood Ave. sits near O’Donnell Square and is set to be razed in the coming weeks, according to a city permit for the Berg Corp. pasted to a fence outside the red brick hall. A project to replace the hall with nine townhouses will then break ground in May, said Chris Cooke, of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Homesale Realty, the listing agent, on Tuesday.