Annapolis Junction

About 200 people were forced out of an Annapolis Junction food production facility after it was determined that ammonia was leaking from a refrigeration unit, Howard County emergency officials said. Firefighters from Howard and Anne Arundel counties, as well as Fort Meade, were called to the Taylor Farms Foodservice building in the 9000 block of Junction Dr. at about 9:40 a.m. Saturday, where they were able to stop the leak, according to Howard County fire spokesman Adam Nolder. Three employees of the company were evaluated by paramedics but refused further treatment.

An engineering, construction and technical services firm notified the state that it might lay off 31 employees next month, Maryland's Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation said Wednesday. California-based URS Corp. said possible layoffs could occur at its operations on MacArthur Road at Fort Meade and 430 National Business Parkway in Annapolis Junction. If layoffs happen, they would take effect at the close of business on Feb. 27 t h , the state said. The company declined to comment.

The U.S. post office in Annapolis Junction was robbed shortly before noon Saturday by a gunman who took an undisclosed amount of money, Howard County police said.No one was was injured. The gunman entered the branch in the 10900 block of Guilford Road about 11: 55 a.m., displayed a handgun and ordered two clerks to turn over money from the registers, police said. He took the cash and ran.Minutes later, a K-9 unit tracked the man for about 100 yards, but the dogs stopped where he apparently got into a waiting vehicle, police said.

About 200 people were forced out of an Annapolis Junction food production facility after it was determined that ammonia was leaking from a refrigeration unit, Howard County emergency officials said. Firefighters from Howard and Anne Arundel counties, as well as Fort Meade, were called to the Taylor Farms Foodservice building in the 9000 block of Junction Dr. at about 9:40 a.m. Saturday, where they were able to stop the leak, according to Howard County fire spokesman Adam Nolder. Three employees of the company were evaluated by paramedics but refused further treatment.

Location: South of Route 32 and east of Dorsey Run Road in Annapolis Junction Developer: Konterra Description: The 200-acre development will provide more than 2 million square feet of industrially zoned, upscale business space. The park, which sits across Route 32 from the National Business Park, will accommodate between 10 and 15 buildings. Status: The developer is installing sewer infrastructure as part of the permitting process, and expects to break ground this year. The project is to be completed over 10 years.

ANNAPOLIS JUNCTION has played an important role in the regional economy ever since 1840, when the first railroad link to Maryland's state capital was launched from there. These days this community is in the news because it is in the midst of an office boom.The reasons are easy enough to understand. Location is everything in real estate and Annapolis Junction has the location. It is on the Anne Arundel-Howard County line, east of Route 1, south of Route 32 and northwest of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway.

Lockheed Missiles & Space Co. Inc. said yesterday that it will move out of 43,000 square feet of office space at Airport Square in Linthicum and into 15,807 square feet at Constellation Real Estate Inc.'s National Business Park complex in Annapolis Junction."

POLICE LOG* Annapolis Junction: 10600 block of Iron Bridge Road: A white 1994 Isuzu truck with Maryland tags 38B110 was stolen between last Thursday and Tuesday.

POLICE LOG* Annapolis Junction: 10600 block of Iron Bridge Road: Someone stole all four tires and rims valued at about $300 from a 1993 Chevrolet between Sunday and Monday.

POLICE LOG* Annapolis Junction: 8100 block of Henckels Lane: Keys were stolen from an automotive service shop Friday after someone entered through a broken window.

At the height of the Civil War, a Union soldier climbed into the dome of the State House in Annapolis and described the scene around it, a sea of white tents spreading in every direction. The tents were home to thousands of soldiers captured by the Confederates and returned to the Union army. They would wait in Camp Parole until recalled to service or sent home. In a letter home, another infantryman described the dire conditions in the crowded camp and called the state capital "a low, dirty place.

Constellation Energy Group has made a minority equity investment in an Annapolis Junction-based solar company focused on residential customers. The terms of the investment in Astrum Solar, announced Monday, were not disclosed. In regulatory documents filed in early June, Astrum Solar said it had raised $3 million in an equity offering. Investors were not named. Astrum Solar said Constellation's investment would help the 125-employee company expand its business to residential customers across the country.

Government contracts to be program focus The Baltimore-Washington Corridor Chamber of Commerce will present a GovCon Contracting Information Series program from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at Courtyard by Marriott Fort Meade, 2700 Hercules Road, Annapolis Junction. Dennis Smythe of Government Contractor Resources LLC will present "The Five-Step Process to Becoming a Successful Government Contractor," and Richard Barnard of Arundelton Consulting will present "Preparing Your Not-For-Profit for Government Contracting."

Officials from the Maryland Office of Safety and Health were investigating yesterday the death of an electrician who was killed while working at a downtown office building. Michael Hembree, 35, of Clinton was installing a light switch Wednesday shortly after 10 p.m. in an office building at 7 St. Paul St. when something went wrong, according to Matt Selmer, his business partner. A person working with him "heard the sound of an electrical pop," according Officer Nicole Monroe, a Baltimore police spokeswoman.

Location: South of Route 32 and east of Dorsey Run Road in Annapolis Junction Developer: Konterra Description: The 200-acre development will provide more than 2 million square feet of industrially zoned, upscale business space. The park, which sits across Route 32 from the National Business Park, will accommodate between 10 and 15 buildings. Status: The developer is installing sewer infrastructure as part of the permitting process, and expects to break ground this year. The project is to be completed over 10 years.

Arbitron Inc. (800 Columbia workers) A company with New York headquarters that measures network and local-market radio audiences across the United States, surveying the retail, media and product patterns of local market consumers. Its research and technology base is in Columbia. (www.arbitron.com) Ascend One (800 Columbia workers) Ascend One Corp. is the parent company of Amerix Corp., the nation's leading technology and service provider to the debt-management industry. Ascend One provides an umbrella of diverse services that benefits and helps consumers save money and get out of debt.

Essex Corp., the Columbia company that makes equipment for optical networks, said yesterday that it acquired an Annapolis Junction technology company. Financial terms were not disclosed. Essex President and Chief Executive Officer Len Moodispaw said the deal was mostly stock and some cash. Essex said it expects the acquisition of privately held Sensys Development Laboratories Inc., or SDL, will increase its revenue by $4 million this year. Essex's revenue for 2002 was about $4.5 million, and Moodispaw said in December that he expected 2003 revenue to be twice that.