Business

After being designated a national tech hub last fall, the Baltimore region is moving on to compete for $70 million in federal funding that would help establish a framework to create tens of thousands of jobs and generate hundreds of millions of dollars of investment. The region, which includes Baltimore and seven surrounding counties, was selected in October as one of 31 cities or regions for the federal Tech Hubs Program, putting the area in line for a share of $10 billion in federal funding over five years.

The prospect of selling 40,000 lobster rolls this year is keeping Dan Beck’s Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls up and running at Harborplace this year. That, and no rent. The seafood restaurant is among the few vendors still open at the iconic Inner Harbor development despite a high vacancy rate and dead-mall image. Their dedication is paying off: Beck says they have paid no rent so far this year and lease negotiations have been stalled since January. He’s unsure why, but is grateful to keep moving froward.

Drink aisles at Giant supermarkets across the state will have more options from Greater Baltimore after one Towson company completes a major expansion. ZenJoy, a drink company based at the StarTUp at the Armory accelerator, is launching a partnership with Giant in April. The deal will put its product in 145 stores in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. ZenJoy’s young trio of founders already sell their products in 385 convenience stores, restaurants, and other small retailers, but believe this deal can offer a template for expanding into supermarkets.

DCS Corporation Friday announced it has moved its headquarters to southern Maryland to accommodate the growing support to its customers at Naval Air Station Patuxent River. The company relocated to 45310 Abell House Lane, Suite 250, in California in St. Mary’s County. From this location, DCS supports its NAVAIR customers providing engineering support. DCS supports NAVAIR’s Air Vehicle Test and Evaluation (AVT&E) Division.

The Maryland Cannabis Administration selected 179 businesses out of over 1,500 applications Thursday in a lottery to get the chance to enter the nascent Maryland cannabis industry. The selection process put an end to a process fraught with weeks of delays as the MCA processed over 1,700 applications and lawsuits that threatened to stop the rollout of new cannabis businesses. After the first winners of the lottery were selected, MCA Executive Director William Tilburg smiled as a group of local entrepreneurs got one step closer to opening their own dispensary business.

If you, like The Be. Org, have been in Baltimore for a decade or more, nostalgic and catchy commercials like this one for a now-defunct, Baltimore-based shoe store ought to jog a memory or two. Although that commercial was specific to one shoe store, it speaks volumes about the significance sneakers hold in the local community. This importance is something founders like Tonee Lawson have recognized, as evidenced in her nonprofit The Be. Org’s fifth annual Sneaker Ball fundraising gala on April 6.

Hundreds of hopeful entrepreneurs will learn on Thursday if they’re one step closer to starting a cannabis business in Maryland, a state-regulated industry experts have estimated could take in more than $1 billion in annual sales. Each of the more than 1,500 eligible applicants have checked all the boxes in a multistep vetting process to qualify as what’s been dubbed a “social equity” applicant for their shot at one of the 179 licenses being distributed in this first of three possible licensing rounds.