Around Maryland

The U.S. Treasury Department will replace its main currency-printing plant in Washington, D.C. with a new facility in Beltsville, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. announced on Wednesday. The government will construct a new Bureau of Engraving and Printing production facility on the current site of the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Prince George’s County.

Consumers in search of affordable housing often find themselves in a “drive until you qualify” situation, moving farther from their workplace and public transportation. Urban Atlantic and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority recently announced that construction will begin soon on new transit-oriented housing at below-market rates as part of the transformation of the New Carrollton transit hub in Maryland. The 291-unit apartment building is supported by the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, which has committed $125 million to expedite development of affordable homes near Metro stations in Maryland, D.C. and Northern Virginia.

Johns Hopkins University students have created a sensor that can detect lymphedema in its early stage, which could spare thousands of people per year from experiencing some of the pain associated with cancer treatment, according to university staff. A group of six graduate students from the university’s Center for Bioengineering Innovation and Design program has developed a patch-like sensor that detects the gradual buildup of lymphatic fluid in the extremities, according to university staff. The patch-like sensor is called LymphaSense.

Maryland and 15 other states that want the U.S. Postal Service to buy more electric delivery vehicles are suing to halt purchases of thousands of gas-powered trucks as the agency modernizes its mail delivery fleet. Three separate lawsuits, filed by 16 states and environmental groups Thursday in New York and California, ask judges to order a more thorough environmental review before the Postal Service moves forward with the next-generation delivery vehicle program.

Caitlin Edmondson stepped to the podium during the Carroll County Board of Education’s public comment session earlier this month and urged board members not to adopt the state’s new health curriculum, which she said would “sexualize” young students. Other parents called the plan “sexual indoctrination.” The topic was not on the school board’s April 13 meeting agenda and no members offered comments on the issue. Jim Rodriguez, the school system’s supervisor of health and physical education, said the CCPS Family Life Advisory Committee will discuss the topic at its June 2 meeting.