Business

Hundreds of luxury apartments and single-family homes are underway as the second phase of a planned $800 million development in Elkton moves forward. The housing is the latest addition to the large-scale Southfields of Elkton that will convert 650 acres of remote land off of Interstate 95 and the Elk River into a mixed-use community anchored by retail and industrial complexes. Timonium-based Stonewall Capital is the master developer and visionary of the project that was unveiled in 2019.

Rite Aid Corporation announced Tuesday that customers in Maryland and four other states can now receive prescribed hormonal contraceptives by Rite Aid pharmacists at most store locations after completing an in-person private consultation. Pharmacists in Maryland, as well as California, New Hampshire, Nevada and Oregon, have gained the authority to prescribe hormonal contraceptives depending on each state’s laws and regulations.

Rodney Williams fondly recalls his days growing up in Northeast Baltimore, when he ran track, acted in drama classes and played high school football. The tech entrepreneur, now 39, also remembers how his mom and other family members struggled to make ends meet. His experiences led him in 2018 to create an online, peer-to-peer lending marketplace that he describes as “democratizing finance.” Earlier this year, SoLo Funds Inc. hit 1 million registered users, becoming, it says, the largest Black-owned consumer fintech — financial technology — company in the U.S.

Besieged by rising office vacancy rates, depressed leasing activity and weak sales, a group of office building owners has commissioned a report showing a pending drop in property tax collections. The owners are requesting county assistance and predicting budget headaches if they don’t get it. Here are the problems as they see it. MoCo’s office vacancy rate has risen from 13.1% to 17.7% since 2019, partly because of changing work patterns since the pandemic.

Ovenbird Bakery plans to open its third and largest location in December, over two years after first announcing the East Baltimore spot. The bakery will debut its Highlandtown shop at 3925 Gough St. during a soft opening this weekend, with regular service to start on Dec. 6. The bakery also has locations in Little Italy and Lexington Market and Ovenbirds’ owners are looking at neighborhoods like Locust Point, Federal Hill and Hampden for future expansion.

The board of directors of McCormick & Company Inc. announced Wednesday an increase in the quarterly dividend from $0.39 to $0.42 per share on its common stocks, payable Jan. 8, 2024, to shareholders of record Dec. 29. This marks the 38th consecutive year that the company has increased its quarterly dividend. The Hunt Valley-based McCormick & Co. has more than $6 billion in annual sales across 170 countries and territories.