Around Maryland

Last October, a few days before he won a second term in office, Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley said he hoped four more years would give him a chance to see through the completion of several capital projects initiated when he first was elected in 2017. Completion of the $63 million construction of Noah Hillman Garage and redevelopment of City Dock, which together represent represent the largest infrastructure project in city history, would cement his legacy as a mayor who pitched big ideas and followed through on them, he said.

The Worcester County Commissioners will host a public hearing Tuesday, April 19, to discuss a proposal to purchase 95.521 acres of property. The parcel of land, located in the Berlin area, would be purchased using a portion of the proceeds from general obligation bond funds and used to construct a top-tier athletic complex.

Baltimore’s spending board is set to consider a $345,000 payment to the parents of Elijah Gorham, the Baltimore high school football player who died last year after suffering a traumatic brain injury during a game. The payment would settle a wrongful death claim filed by the family, according to a Baltimore City Board of Estimates agenda. It will be considered during the board’s April 20 meeting. Additional information about the payment was not immediately available Wednesday afternoon.

Maryland’s access to counsel program for low-income renters facing eviction has won two years of funding, a victory for advocates who have been anxious to offer stronger legal support to tenants amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is set to receive $12 million allocated as part of the coming fiscal year’s budget. Another $14 million is planned for the 2024 fiscal year, an amount that lawmakers set aside from the state’s abandoned property fund.

Environmental groups are calling for third-party oversight at Baltimore’s Patapsco Wastewater Treatment Plant after an inspection conducted last week found continuing equipment problems resulting in high levels of bacteria and nutrients released into the river. It comes a few weeks after the Maryland Environmental Service took charge of Baltimore’s other wastewater facility, located along the shores of Back River in Dundalk, citing declining conditions after months of failed inspections.

Two developers are advancing a shared plan to buy and redevelop religious institutions’ transit-accessible property in North Bethesda as a “multigenerational community.” The proposed 15-acre community, located at 4910 and 4920 Strathmore Ave., would include a 145-bed senior assisted-living facility and 125 single-family homes, of which about 115 would be attached and 10 detached. Brandywine Living, a New Jersey-based senior care company, would build the former facility on the eastern part of the site.

Howard County’s offer to purchase Camp Ilchester in Ellicott City from the Girl Scouts of Central Maryland will allow the beloved camp’s land to be preserved for years to come, instead of being converted to a residential development, according to County Executive Calvin Ball. “It would be a great tragedy if this wonderful space was lost to bulldozers plowing over a legacy of the Girl Scouts,” Ball said during a news conference Wednesday.

The federal transportation mask mandate is being extended for another 15 days, meaning individuals traveling aboard airplanes, trains and on public transportation in the United States will be required to wear a mask until at least early May. The mandate, the federal government confirmed on Wednesday, is now set to expire on May 3. The Associated Press was first to report the extension. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday that it was keeping its mask order in effect, and the Transportation Security Administration announced it was extending the mandate for an additional 15 days.