Around Maryland

On a busy weekday afternoon, cars and taxis clog the pickup loop in front of the main entrance of Baltimore’s Penn Station as luggage-carrying passengers squint in the hot sun looking for their rides. If Amtrak gets its way, however, that pickup loop will disappear in a few years. The passenger rail company wants to turn the south side of the station into a pedestrian plaza as part of its ambitious reimagining of the 113-year-old landmark and its surrounding area.

In the months after the March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, state and federal officials maintained a website that posted regular updates of the response to the catastrophe. Now, state officials are directing the public to a new site: Key Bridge Rebuild. “It’s a great website for everybody. We talk and we have information there for communities. We have information for industry.

Nearly 6,000 Maryland higher education employees will see increased salaries and enhanced benefits after a “historic” statewide union contract was approved Friday. The three-year agreement will cover about 95% of unionized employees at nine universities across the state, according to officials with Maryland Council 3 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

The Maryland Department of the Environment held a public hearing Thursday along with the Maryland Transportation Authority regarding demolition work at the site of the Key Bridge collapse. The hearing and public commenting period are part of the MDE review process of an application, submitted by MTDA, to allow the demolition work.

The Montgomery County Council is considering a proposed bill that aims to reduce vehicular noise emissions by installing “noise camera” devices throughout the county. The bill is based on enabling state legislation passed earlier this year by the Maryland General Assembly session that was sponsored by Del. Julie Palakovich Carr (D-Dist. 17), who represents Rockville and Gaithersburg and chairs the Montgomery County House delegation.

Cases of Islamophobia are on the rise in Maryland and nationwide, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The Council on American Islamic Relations detailed what can be done about the disturbing trend. “Definitely, it comes in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attacks,” said Zainab Chaudry, director of CAIR Maryland.

Frederick County residents and business owners intensely criticized representatives for a proposed transmission line project across Maryland during a town hall on Wednesday, alleging they didn’t care about the project’s potential impact on communities. Linganore High School’s auditorium was packed by 6 p.m. on Wednesday for a town hall discussion organized by Frederick County’s District 4 delegation in the Maryland General Assembly on the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP).

High school students in Montgomery County will have a new sport option this fall: pickleball. Montgomery County Public Schools will be adding pickleball as a varsity sport to 25 high schools following a successful pilot program. The program was offered in 11 high schools last fall, and its success led Dr. Jeffrey Sullivan, the director of system wide athletics for MCPS, to expand the program for the upcoming school year.

The Humane Society of Wicomico County (HSWC) is at a tipping point with an influx of rescues and is asking pet-loving neighbors for their help in homing a rapidly growing number of animals. According to the Humane Society, they are currently over capacity for dogs and at capacity for cats. Kim Nock, director of the HSWC, tells WBOC this is the most animals they’ve ever had and attributes the influx to economic and medical surrenders, as well as landlord rules.