Growth

In Carroll County, the fight over growth is getting nastier by the day.Last month, construction workers for millionaire developer Martin K. P. Hill, who since 1984 has built more than 1,000 homes in Hampstead -- a town that even after the building boom has a population of only 4,000 -- were threatened with arrest as they began work on new condominiums.Hill countered with a $10 million lawsuit and got a court order allowing him to proceed.The town's reply: Last weekend, the town manager issued a "stop work" order for a 90-unit condominium project.

NEW YORK -- The economy made its strongest showing in six years during the final three months of 1993, growing at an annual rate of 5.9 percent and showing reassuring signs of low inflation, the government reported yesterday.Economists warned that the Commerce Department's numbers were an aberration. The economy is almost certainly already backing off that torrid pace, they said, and inflation is likely to grow more quickly this year than the numbers indicate."Everything fell into place for the economy," said Robert Dederick, chief economist at Northern Trust.

Growth-control advocate John W. Taylor says he will again try to unseat County Councilman Charles C. Feaga.The rematch is likely to be a test of strength for the west county farming and landholding families that have supported Mr. Feaga, himself a lifelong western Ellicott City resident and farmer.Mr. Taylor's support is expected to come from the growing number of relative newcomers who want to check the western advance of suburban growth.Mr. Taylor, 38, is a Westinghouse project manager who has lived in Highland for 6 1/2 years.

The county Planning Commission delayed a decision yesterday on the proposed Interim Development Control Ordinance, scheduling a vote on the controversial measure Saturday.The advisory vote will come two days before the Board of County Commissioners is set to act on the proposal that has drawn fierce opposition from the building industry."The consensus is this is one fatally flawed, divisive ordinance," said Robert H. Lennon. "We have a duty to those that find IDCO unworkable to address growth issues in Carroll County."

For years, Howard County Budget Administrator Raymond S. Wacks had a favorite chart for showing the county's fiscal fortunes: Tracking the growth of Howard's property tax base, the chart peaked during the boom of the 1980s, then slid downward throughout the '90s.Until now.Wacks unveiled the newest version of that chart to the County Council yesterday morning. Instead of trailing off downward, the end of the chart spikes suddenly -- signaling optimism about Howard's fiscal future for the first time this decade.

Persistently rising fuel prices and fears of an economic slowdown are prompting Southwest Airlines and AirTran Airways, the two dominant airlines at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, to scale back growth in capacity in 2008. Southwest Airlines, BWI's biggest carrier, said yesterday that it would hold growth to 4 percent to 5 percent next year rather than the 6 percent it previously projected. The reduction is the discount airline's second this year, after a cutback in June when BWI lost more flights than any other airport Southwest serves.

ANNAPOLIS -- Gov. William Donald Schaefer made a dramatic plea last night to the state growth commission to quickly finish its task of fashioning a bill to protect the Chesapeake Bay from uncontrolled development."

Anne Arundel County officials unveiled a land-use blueprint Friday that would spur growth in areas that already have or are due for sewer service and aims to re-create villages by encouraging mixed land uses.The plan continues a two-decade long trend toward shrinking the area of the county that can expect sewers to be built to whisk away waste -- crucial for high-density development.Making it clear that the county lacks the money to build extensive roads and water and sewer lines, County Executive John G. Gary said that under the plan, 90 percent of development would be channeled into the 40 percent of the county where the infrastructure exists.

Voters seemed to be of two minds in choosing candidates for the three seats on the Carroll County Commission. They nominated candidates who said the growth that's turning rural Carroll into a suburb has got to stop. And they renominated the only incumbent seeking re-election, a commissioner who defends the present policy on growth.Republicans nominated Julia Gouge, who is seeking a second term in office. And they chose Richard Yates, whose slogan, "Had Enough?" seemed to hit a nerve about rapid growth, higher demands for services and higher taxes to pay for those services.

Are small-growth stocks poised for a rebound? The answer could be yes, if our interviews with small-growth fund managers are any indication. To be sure, these managers have a vested interest in providing a rosy outlook. Even so, there are some good reasons to think better days may be in store for small-growth stocks. For one, some managers highlight the fact that the outlook for earnings is brighter for small companies than for their bigger siblings. They also point out that small caps tend to outperform when stocks emerge from a bear market.