Business

After November’s elections, recreational marijuana could be legal in nearly half the country. The decisions in Arkansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota and South Dakota will come just a few weeks after the Biden administration said it would pardon thousands of people with federal felony convictions for simple marijuana possession. With the landscape around marijuana evolving across the nation — and coinciding with the rise of remote work that disperses a company’s talent across the nation — experts say employers need to stay abreast of marijuana law changes and update their policies to avoid running afoul of shifting laws. Employment law attorneys say many companies are softening their stance on marijuana or tweaking drug-testing policies.

Blaze Pizza, a fast-casual pizza chain that earned early backing from LeBron James, said Thursday it is opening three new locations in Prince George’s County. The Pasadena, California-based chain specializes in customizable made-to-order pizzas created in a brick oven. The three new locations will join four other Blaze restaurants already in Maryland — College Park, Laurel, Towson and Westminster. Kevyn Scott of Gome Restaurant Group is the franchisee of the new Prince George’s restaurants. The exact locations of the new restaurants were not revealed in an announcement from the chain. Scott also operates two Charleys Philly Steaks restaurants in Maryland. Ed Yancey, chief development officer at Blaze Pizza, said in a statement the company is looking to add qualified franchisees to continue growing the brand.

The Greater Baltimore Committee and the Baltimore Development Corporation Friday selected 12 businesses to receive the 2022 Mayor’s Business Recognition Award, which honors organizations that have demonstrated significant leadership and service to improve the quality of life in Baltimore. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott will be a featured speaker at the 48th annual event, scheduled for Dec. 14 at 11:30 a.m. The event will be held in-person for the first time since 2019 at Renaissance Hotel Baltimore. The annual awards are given for specific activities that have significantly benefited Baltimore. Examples of projects and activities this year’s award winners initiated include: hosting STEM events for future engineers; providing free internet access and other tech resources to families during the pandemic to assist with medical needs; and developing collaborative community efforts to support critical food distribution programs.

T. Rowe Price Group Inc. continued to feel the impacts of a volatile market in the third quarter as investors pulled nearly $25 billion out of the firm’s funds. The Baltimore-based money manager reported on Thursday that it saw $24.6 billion in net client outflows during the quarter That number is greater than its outflows for the first two quarters of 2022 combined. Despite the outflows, T. Rowe Price’s revenue and profits beat Wall Street expectations, though both figures were down significantly compared to the year-ago period.

Brian Leibowitz eyes the newcomers on the courthouse steps with skepticism. They come every Thursday to bid on foreclosed homes at public auctions, pulling up properties on their cellphones and raising their hands if they see a deal that looks good on paper. Leibowitz, the director of acquisitions for a Baltimore real estate company, knows that making money here takes more than just adding up numbers.

Patagonia will open its Baltimore store — the outdoor clothing and gear retailer’s largest location yet — in early November. The company will celebrate its arrival in Charm City with a two-day grand opening celebration on Nov. 5 and 6, with the goal of introducing both the brand itself as well as Patagonia’s community engagement efforts, which are already underway.

Elon Musk attempted to soothe leery Twitter advertisers Thursday, a day before a deadline to close out on his $44 billion acquisition of the social media platform, saying that he is buying the platform to help humanity and doesn’t want it to become a “free-for-all hellscape.” The message appears aimed at addressing concerns among advertisers — Twitter’s chief source of revenue — that Musk’s plans to promote free speech by cutting back on moderating content will open the floodgates to more online toxicity and drive away users.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority still has a $184.7 million gap to fill in the upcoming fiscal year’s operating budget, which is in the early stages of being developed. At a finance and capital committee meeting Thursday, officials from Metro’s financial office told board members of a few ideas they have about how to fill that gap in the fiscal 2024 budget, for the period starting in July 2023.