Business Owners

At the behest of business owners - and using their financial contributions - the Waterfront Partnership is extending its safety and cleaning services into the heart of Fells Point. "It's really a great example of a community coming together to better the place that they live, work and play," said Mike Maraziti, president of Fell's Point Main Street Inc., a nonprofit that promotes commerce in the neighborhood. About 30 businesses and a few residents chipped in more than $150,000 to hire the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore Inc. to empty garbage cans, sweep sidewalks and provide safety patrols, said Maraziti, who owns One-Eyed Mike's tavern, near the corner of South Bond and Aliceanna streets.

The $1.5 billion overhaul of State Center in midtown Baltimore is effectively dead after a judge voided development contracts essential to the project. “The court's ruling reconfirms the significance of following the competitive bidding laws,” said Alan M. Rifkin, the attorney for a group of business owners and landlords who sued the state, alleging that the contracts were illegitimate. Unless the state mounts a successful appeal and can resurrect the public-private partnership deal, the court order Thursday requires the state to go back to the drawing board on the project, in the pipeline since the administration of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. A new start would mean following the state's procurement laws, which require finding public financing for the project - a tall order in austere times.

The goal for Race On is clear: To make the Grand Prix of Baltimore a long-term fixture, the company must generate significantly more money from Baltimore businesses and fans. Enter Debbie Bell. The former director of corporate sales and sponsorship for the Orioles has been named Race On's vice president for sales and marketing, officially becoming the first full-time employee of the promotion company founded by financier J.P. Grant and construction executive Greg O'Neill. She's been on the job for about two weeks, spending much of her time trying to drum up enthusiasm — and persuade business owners to set aside some of their 2013 budget to help support the Labor Day weekend auto racing festival.

John Barkdoll is used to being characterized as a therapist for business owners.Mr. Barkdoll, a Columbia resident, says that's not quite an accurate description of his role in a 5-year-old venture, the Business Network. The company puts business owners together to discuss growth strategies and solve problems."I like to think of us as helping business owners see what the common sense solutions are," Mr. Barkdoll, 47, says."My expertise is in running good meetings and in the front-end preparation for those meetings.

When the nation's first Small Business Development Center devoted solely to exporting opened about a year ago in #i downtown Los Angeles, director Gladys Moreau expected a positive response. But she's been astonished at just how many small-business owners are interested in selling their products and services abroad."We're busting at the seams here," said Ms. Moreau. "We are absolutely overwhelmed with the demand and the successes."The center, which hires experts to provide one-on-one free counseling to business owners, has advised about 1,000 clients so far. In addition to the free counseling, the center is host to frequent introductory seminars for business owners and offers a variety of computerized data base services.

BERMUDA -- Imagine not having to pay any taxes or keep any books or records on your business. It sounds wonderful, but strangely enough, the absence of taxes actually has a negative effect on local small-business owners."

Catonsville home care business named to top 100 in region Linda Cromwell, president and CEO of Catonsville-based Being There Senior Care, was among those selected for the 2012 Top Minority Business Enterprise Award. Cromwell was among the 100 women and minority business owners in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware and the District of Columbia honored during a May 4 ceremony at the University of Maryland University College. She was also among the top 100 women and minority business owners in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware and the District of Columbia for 2009.

On Tuesday evening, the county's Route 1 Revitalization Committee will hold a follow-up meeting to the "Community Quality Survey" it conducted March 17, when 130 residents and business owners voiced their preferences for the county's U.S. 1 corridor. Those attending Tuesday's meeting, in the Great Room of Savage Mill, will be shown detailed results of the survey, which was conducted by A. Nelessen Associates, a New Jersey consulting firm. The consultants will show the most popular of the visual mock-ups it displayed March 17 to illustrate different ways the corridor could change.

Few would argue that economic development along lower West Street, at least two decades in the making, is flourishing along this increasingly inhabited stretch of Annapolis. But the scale of new development - and its location - has residents worried about newcomers putting additional strain on traffic and parking. They also are concerned that the height of new buildings - such as at the $300 million Park Place complex under construction - will detract from the historic look of some communities.

Maryland, according to a new survey of business titans, is the 40 th most business-friendly state, down from 37 last year. Or, put another way, we are the 11 th least friendly. Those are the findings by Chief Executive magazine's annual survey . Business leaders were asked to rate states based on their taxes, regulations, living environment and quality of workers. According to the magazine, Maryland's "income-tax increases on 'middle class' nick and frustrate business owners.