Ace Hardware

An Ace Hardware Express will open in early February inside the existing Harvest Fare grocery store in Fallston, at the intersection of Routes 1 and 152. This will be the first store of its kind in the state, but the precedent has already been set in other states such as Texas, where combination hardware and grocery store operations have been successful, according to press release from Harvest Fare. The location of the hardware store is expected to allow customers to avoid heavy Bel Air traffic.

An Ace Hardware Express will open in early February inside the existing Harvest Fare grocery store in Fallston, at the intersection of Routes 1 and 152. This will be the first store of its kind in the state, but the precedent has already been set in other states such as Texas, where combination hardware and grocery store operations have been successful, according to press release from Harvest Fare. The location of the hardware store is expected to allow customers to avoid heavy Bel Air traffic.

Fire caused by lightning Monday night destroyed an Edgewood landmark, a family-operated Ace Hardware store in the 400 block of Edgewood Road, fire authorities said yesterday.Damage to the store and its contents in a one-story concrete block building was estimated at $500,000, said W. Faron Taylor, a deputy state fire marshal.The lightning "came in on the power line, blew out a junction box in the center of the store and just wiped out everything" from that point forward, he said.Leroy M. Love, 66, of Bel Air, who owns the store with his wife, Shirley, said he had left the office in the center of the store and locked up about 15 minutes before the lightning struck.

Finding family-friendly DIY projects What are some winter home improvement projects that are family-friendly? What are the projects that are safer for children to participate? Painting is the most family-friendly project out there. And interior painting in the winter is always a great way to spruce things up. Take time to cover and mask areas that you do not want covered in paint, as children will be learning and may spill a bit. I recommend using water-born paints with Low VOCs such as Clark+Kensington.

ELDERSBURG -- Customers walking past a cardboard John Madden into the new Ace Hardware store in Carrolltowne Mall won't see hardware.To the right, they'll see silk flowers, wreaths and ribbons. In the middle aisles, they'll see dog bones and cat boxes. It's not until they look left that they catch sight of the nuts and bolts."We could just as easily have called it Ace Crafts," owner Pete Peterson said.The 4,500-square-foot crafts section is the largest section in the 25,000-square-foot store, which will celebrate its grand opening Wednesday.

It takes vision to create Eden on a parking lot.Greg Bookhultz has the vision -- and a green thumb. Thanks to him, the Robert's Field Shopping Center is an oasis of colorful flowers."

Calvin Klein may have a way with slick fashion. But he has a more domestic side too, and his new spring bed and bath line reflects that. The Down and Feather Collection includes sumptuously soft pillows, comforters and mattress pads with the famous label. The Khaki Collection has an even wider selection of sheets, shams and duvet covers in playful plaids, indigos and more. Prices range from $17.50 for a bath towel to $500 for a queen down comforter. Call 1-800-294-7978 for store locations.

A 24-year-old Westminster man has been sentenced to a year in the Carroll County Detention Center in connection with pipe bombings in Hampstead and a series of break-ins.Circuit Judge Luke K. Burns Jr. imposed the sentence Tuesday on David William Smith, of the 1800 block of Pleasant Valley Road, for the defendant's convictions Nov. 2 on charges of felony theft and manufacturing a pipe bomb.Judge Burns suspended a nine-year state prison term in connection with the pipe bombings and break-ins.

Finding family-friendly DIY projects What are some winter home improvement projects that are family-friendly? What are the projects that are safer for children to participate? Painting is the most family-friendly project out there. And interior painting in the winter is always a great way to spruce things up. Take time to cover and mask areas that you do not want covered in paint, as children will be learning and may spill a bit. I recommend using water-born paints with Low VOCs such as Clark+Kensington.

In a crumbling old city where so many houses look as if they could use a coat of paint, the arrival of a new neighborhood hardware store is a cause for rejoicing. So when I was walking up Old York Road a few weeks ago and spotted a nuts-and-bolts inventory being moved into a building fronting Homestead Street, I felt as if old Waverly had turned a corner. It's the not-so-little-amenities that make a neighborhood - good grocery stores, a friendly pub, a cozy restaurant. Actually, the Ace Hardware that opened this week is part of a steady Waverly revival.

In a crumbling old city where so many houses look as if they could use a coat of paint, the arrival of a new neighborhood hardware store is a cause for rejoicing. So when I was walking up Old York Road a few weeks ago and spotted a nuts-and-bolts inventory being moved into a building fronting Homestead Street, I felt as if old Waverly had turned a corner. It's the not-so-little-amenities that make a neighborhood - good grocery stores, a friendly pub, a cozy restaurant. Actually, the Ace Hardware that opened this week is part of a steady Waverly revival.

It wouldn't be a weekend for Jay Swanson if there weren't some tinkering to do around the house. The building engineer from Wauconda, Ill., gets satisfaction from jobs that strike fear in others' hearts. His idea of a good time is resetting a toilet or installing some closet bolts. When Swanson tackles a task, he usually makes a run to a nearby Sears Hardware Store or Ace Hardware. He isn't crazy about either one. The prices strike him as high, the selections aren't huge and the service is just so-so.

Calvin Klein may have a way with slick fashion. But he has a more domestic side too, and his new spring bed and bath line reflects that. The Down and Feather Collection includes sumptuously soft pillows, comforters and mattress pads with the famous label. The Khaki Collection has an even wider selection of sheets, shams and duvet covers in playful plaids, indigos and more. Prices range from $17.50 for a bath towel to $500 for a queen down comforter. Call 1-800-294-7978 for store locations.

Ravens veteran special teams performer Bennie Thompson agreed to a one-year contract yesterday and began practicing with the team. Thompson may be the final addition of consequence until the free-agency period virtually re-opens June 1. Thompson, 37, has played in the league nine seasons. He has led the Ravens in special teams tackles three of the four years the team has been in Baltimore, including 24 tackles last season. Thompson was named to the AFC Pro Bowl team in 1998 and named an alternate last season.

Fire caused by lightning Monday night destroyed an Edgewood landmark, a family-operated Ace Hardware store in the 400 block of Edgewood Road, fire authorities said yesterday.Damage to the store and its contents in a one-story concrete block building was estimated at $500,000, said W. Faron Taylor, a deputy state fire marshal.The lightning "came in on the power line, blew out a junction box in the center of the store and just wiped out everything" from that point forward, he said.Leroy M. Love, 66, of Bel Air, who owns the store with his wife, Shirley, said he had left the office in the center of the store and locked up about 15 minutes before the lightning struck.

It takes vision to create Eden on a parking lot.Greg Bookhultz has the vision -- and a green thumb. Thanks to him, the Robert's Field Shopping Center is an oasis of colorful flowers."

It sounded like a recession success story -- less than a year after construction was completed, amid central Maryland's worst economic climate in a decade, the Roberts Field Shopping Center along Route 30 here was more than 75 percent leased.The 81,000-square-foot center, completed in April and owned by Columbia-based McGill Development Ltd., cost more than $8 million to build.But despite having a major grocery, national hardware, video retailer, liquor store, pizza shop and six other enterprises under its farmhouse-inspired roof, Roberts Field's developers in July filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

It wouldn't be a weekend for Jay Swanson if there weren't some tinkering to do around the house. The building engineer from Wauconda, Ill., gets satisfaction from jobs that strike fear in others' hearts. His idea of a good time is resetting a toilet or installing some closet bolts. When Swanson tackles a task, he usually makes a run to a nearby Sears Hardware Store or Ace Hardware. He isn't crazy about either one. The prices strike him as high, the selections aren't huge and the service is just so-so.

A 24-year-old Westminster man has been sentenced to a year in the Carroll County Detention Center in connection with pipe bombings in Hampstead and a series of break-ins.Circuit Judge Luke K. Burns Jr. imposed the sentence Tuesday on David William Smith, of the 1800 block of Pleasant Valley Road, for the defendant's convictions Nov. 2 on charges of felony theft and manufacturing a pipe bomb.Judge Burns suspended a nine-year state prison term in connection with the pipe bombings and break-ins.

NEW POSITIONS* EA Engineering, Science and Technology Inc., a professional services consulting firm based in Hunt Valley, promoted Dr. Sylvia S. Morhardt to vice president and director of EA Environmental Assessment and Management and named Dr. C. Mike Prewett senior manager of the Seattle office.* Ace Hardware Corp. in Oak Brook, Ill. promoted Louis Miller to retail support manager for the Ace Retail Support Center in Baltimore.* Bethlehem Steel Corp. appointed Roger K. Shackelford Jr. superintendent of maintenance services.