Around Maryland

Baltimore Police and city leaders are not in a rush to shut down a pro-Palestinian protest at Johns Hopkins University unless it gets out of control. Police said in a statement that the "City of Baltimore strongly stands with every person's First Amendment rights." Protesters set up an encampment and organized rallies on Monday and Tuesday on the Homewood campus.

A transportation project along Frederick's Golden Mile has received a $485,000 federal grant to promote safer pedestrian and bicycle transportation in the city. The multi-modal project along the section of Frederick's West Patrick Street known as the Golden Mile has received the grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Baltimore City Public Schools is rolling out weapons detection scanners at more high schools this week. This comes after the district piloted the systems at four high schools, including Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High, Patterson High and Carver Vocational-Technical High schools and the Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School.

The police chief in Prince George’s County, Maryland, now has the authority to create and enforce additional youth curfew zones under a resolution passed Tuesday by the county council. Under the resolution, business owners throughout the county can request Police Chief Malik Aziz to create and enforce a curfew for kids aged 16 and under, just like the one established last week at National Harbor by County Executive Angela Alsobrooks’ emergency declaration.

Montgomery County residents living near or along the future Purple Line can find out the latest information about the project to build the light-rail line that will travel from Bethesda to New Carrollton during virtual community meetings scheduled in May, according to project officials. “Progress of the Purple Line has reached an exciting period, and our team looks forward to sharing this progress with the public,” Purple Line Senior Project Director Ray Biggs II said in a press release.

At the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, crews plan to refloat and remove the grounded Dali container ship within roughly the next 10 days, allowing more maritime traffic to resume through Baltimore’s port. The ship, which lost power and crashed into one of the bridge’s supporting columns, has been stationary amid the wreckage since the March 26 collapse.

Baltimore set a record high Monday as temperatures reached 92 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. The sweltering heat broke the previous record of 91 degrees in the region, set in 1974. Washington, D.C., also reached a new high: Dulles International Airport reached 91 degrees, topping the 89-degree record set in 2017, the NWS said.

The Black Health Equity Coalition of Frederick has received $153,000 in grants to fund trainings and programs, including conducting Frederick County’s first comprehensive Black health survey this summer. Earlier this month, the coalition announced that it received money from multiple sources over the last year, including $128,000 from the CDC Foundation, according to a news release from the coalition.

A monthslong project to demolish four historic buildings in Old Ellicott City is nearly complete, a crucial part of the county’s plan to protect the city from dangerous flash floods while also preserving its history. The four buildings were long the first many visitors saw as they headed west into Ellicott City down Main Street. They previously housed The Phoenix Emporium, Bean Hollow, Great Panes and Discoveries. Their exteriors are almost fully removed.