Business

With Juneteenth approaching, some Black restaurateurs in Maryland are optimistic the day will bring increased profits, while others say there is still more work to be done to spread awareness of the holiday. “Awareness comes first, understanding comes second,” said Keyia Yalcin, owner of Fishnet, a restaurant in downtown Baltimore. “I can’t tell you what St. Patrick’s Day is about, but I do know that I go out and celebrate and hang out at Irish bars.”

Marriott International Inc. is committing $50 million to help more women and diverse entrepreneurs own and develop hotel properties under the Marriott banner. Under the three-year program, the Bethesda-based hotel giant will offer financial and other incentives to owners and franchisees from historically underrepresented groups who will have a controlling equity interest in select projects within Marriott’s portfolio of 30 hotel brands.

As FIFA prepares to announce the 2026 World Cup sites on Thursday — and make high-profile cuts — Alan Rothenberg thought back to when stadiums were picked for the 1994 tournament he headed in the United States. “They gave the rights to the host country, and the host country basically ran the whole thing,” he said. “Here, everything is done in-house by FIFA. So it’s been a really long and arduous process. The terms have been incredibly difficult for cities to cope with.”

Georgia Angelos, the wife of Orioles majority owner Peter Angelos, released a statement Wednesday saying there is no truth to speculation that the team could be leaving Baltimore. “In light of the false and painful claims that have been alleged in the lawsuit that my son Louis has brought against me and my older son John, I want to set the record straight,” said Angelos’ statement, which comes in response to suggestions by her younger son, Louis, that his brother could move the Orioles to Tennessee.

Another downtown office landmark — an office tower built as part of the city’s Charles Center renaissance in the 1960s — is heading to the auction block. The 28-story Class A tower at 201 N. Charles St. will be sold in foreclosure on the front steps of the Clarence M. Mitchell III Courthouse on June 29 at 11 a.m. The 303,841-square-foot tower has been a mainstay downtown since it first opened in 1968 and has several law offices as tenants with ground-floor retail. Last year, law firm Silverman, Thompson, Slutkin & White moved from the tower into 400 E. Pratt St. near the waterfront, where its name now adorns the building.

After a two-year drought in nationwide employment, employers across Maryland are eager to recruit more workers and get their businesses back on track. John Hickman, director of BEACON at Salisbury University, has noticed more advertisements in recent months. Perdue Farms, a long-standing top employer in Wicomico County, has begun advertising sign-on bonuses on billboards as a way to entice incoming employees. Similarly, Chesapeake Shipbuilding Corp. displays a large, orange sign that reads, “Hiring now!”

Marley Station mall in Glen Burnie has been sold to a New York-based partnership that says it plans to move quickly to fill vacancies. The ownership group includes Mason Asset Management and Namdar Realty Group. The partners, based in Great Neck, New York, manage shopping centers across the country. The purchase price and seller were not disclosed. State assessment records list the owner as YAM Marley Station LLC of Scottsdale, Arizona.