Bel Air

Editor: That is exactly what the County Council is doing when they try to change the zoning in the middle of owners who are complying with the law. I do not have an opinion one way or the other in regards to Walmart; however I do not like the fact that private property rights are being trampled on. When a piece of property is zoned for a use and the owner is using the property that it is zoned for, why does the Council feel a need to change it...

One might assume that even the most discriminating big sedan buyer could find satisfaction from one of the nine versions of BMW's flagship 7-series. One would be incorrect. For that ultra-discerning person, there's the BMW Alpina B7: more power, more athletic handling, more exterior styling, more cabin cosseting and, with only 2,000 produced per year, more exclusivity.  Alpina, a limited vehicle production company in its own right, has been partnering with BMW for 40 years to make already exceptional vehicles even better.

Soroptimist International of Havre de Grace, presenter of the 50th annual Havre de Grace Art Show, has announced the winner of the poster contest for original art created to highlight this year's event. Michael McMillion, of Bel Air, was presented an award of $300 by Soroptimist Club member and chairman of the Art Show, Cindy Height, for his entry. Soroptimist International expresses thanks to those who participated in the contest. The Havre de Grace Art Show has a call to entry for this year's show with a deadline of April 15. Proceeds from the show benefit scholarships and community service.

An early morning blaze destroyed eight apartments in the Hickory Hills condominium complex in Bel Air Friday morning, displacing 20 residents of the building, according to fire investigators. Damage to the building and its contents is estimated at $1.5 million, the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office said. The fire in the three-story, 18-unit apartment type building was reported around 2:45 a.m. in the 100 block of Seevue Court, with fire coming from all three floors, according to Rich Gardiner, spokesman for the Harford County Volunteer Fire & EMS Association who was on the scene.

The painting of a mural on the north wall of the Harford County Sheriff's Office headquarters is under way in earnest this week. The mural, which is being paid for by the town of Bel Air, will overlook the town's Main Street parking lot, built last year after the BB&T Bank building that stood on the site was acquired by the town and demolished. That opened up the bare wall of the sheriff's headquarters, which had butted against the bank building. The mural will depict the adjoining courthouse square as it looked prior to the 1950s, when a house stood on the site of the sheriff's building, in front of the old jail which is still standing.

The passing of yet another icon of old school, the much beloved Peter N. Panos, came late last month. The heart and soul of Bel Air's Main Street for many years, Pete passed away Monday, March 25, and the main thoroughfare through Bel Air became just a little emptier. You won't see the name of Pete Panos on any buildings or hear him honored for being a big noise. On the contrary, Pete, his brother Gus and his mom, Pota, were quiet, hard-working, middle-class folks with a passion for honest trading, human kindness and integrity.

Aberdeen Michael Alan Morrison, 21, of the 2000 block of Tower Road, was charged Monday with second-degree assault. Phallen Jai Price, 25, and Phillip Hampton, 25, both of the 200 block of Mayberry Drive, were charged Friday with scheming to commit theft between $10,000 and $100,000. Anthony Lee Jones, 51, of the 13000 block of Philadelphia Boulevard, was charged Saturday with second-degree assault. A fence was taken down and thrown in the street Friday in the 800 block of Maxa Road.

A brief power outage occurred in a portion of Bel Air around 2:45 p.m. Friday, followed closely by a report of a transformer fire in the general area of the outage. The outage lasted literally for a few moments and no further power disruptions were reported. Baltimore Gas & Electric's online outage map showed fewer than five customers without power on the east side of Bel Air around 3 p.m. Those outages were reported at 2:53 p.m., according to the map. There was also an emergency radio dispatch report a short time following the outage about a person being stuck in an elevator at Southampton Middle School, on the northeast side of town.

Thirty-four local authors attended Harford County Public Library's first Local Authors Day on March 24. In just two hours, approximately 70 customers visited with the diverse range of authors to chat about their work, get advice and purchase their books. "I don't even read that much but this was great," exclaimed one customer. Bethany Hacker, Community Relation's Specialist who coordinated the event commented, "I just thought it would be a good venue for authors to be able to network and meet with the public…a kind of celebrity sports signing event but for readers!"

Investigators say embers from a chimney caused a fire that did an estimated $70,000 to a Bel Air home Sunday evening, but the outcome could have been worse had it not been for a quick thinking teenager living across the street and quick reaction by the homeowners. The fire in a single family home, in the 500 block of Poplarwood Court off Red Pump Road, was reported shortly before 8 p.m. and brought fire companies from Bel Air, Fallston and Jarrettsville to the scene, according to the Harford Fire and EMS Association and the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office.