Harbor Bank

JOSEPH HASKINS JR. remembers all of the doubters when he and a group of African-American leaders said they were going to open a bank in Baltimore run by blacks, for blacks and owned by blacks. It won't work, they told him. What makes you think you can pull this off? It will never happen. Those days, in the early 1980s, were tough for African-Americans who wanted basic banking services. Haskins saw a chance to help. He would offer them savings and checking accounts, and make loans so their businesses and churches could grow.

THE GREENING of Baltimore's black middle class was evident in the recent opening in Govans of the second branch of the successful minority-controlled Harbor Bank of Maryland. The bank's main office is doing well at 21 West Fayette St. Its first branch, the former Bank of Baltimore office at 5000 Park Heights Ave. in Pimlico, has shown steady growth since its opening two years ago.The Harbor Bank of Maryland has assets of $32.5 million and a sound $22 million loan portfolio and has been profitable for the past five years, resisting the tide of unfavorable trends in the banking industry -- a tide so high that it forced the federal government to take over the huge Bank of New England over the weekend.

With 90 percent of its work done, the Resolution Trust Corp. is winding down the painstaking job of cleaning up the worst financial mess in the nation's history.But there are still 63 failed savings and loans, and $68 billion worth of foreclosed properties to be sold nationwide. Four of those thrifts and about $82 million worth of property are located in Maryland.Yesterday one of the RTC's regional advisory boards came to Baltimore to hear from a diverse group of constituents bent on ensuring that the largest real estate sale in history proceeds fairly, and that everybody gets a chance at their piece of the pie.The advisory board, chaired by Ferris, Baker Watts Inc. Senior Vice President Edwin S. Crawford, is one of six regional panels that meet four times a year in cities throughout their regions.

New positionsMurphy is vice president at Maryland School for BlindThe Maryland School for the Blind named William Wells Murphy vice president for programs. He will oversee personnel, legal and compliance issues for the special education school.The Bel Air resident was executive assistant to the superintendent of the Harford County public school system. Murphy holds master's degrees from San Francisco State College and Boston College. He is an active member of the National Association of Secondary School Principals and the American Association for School Administrators.

Journey of Faith: The Creation of the Reginald F. Lewis Museum is testimony to the power that lies in a well-told anecdote. The Maryland Public Television documentary that premieres tonight is anchored by just such a carefully honed recollection. The snapshot this tale offers of a pivotal moment in the creation of Baltimore's as-yet unopened African-American history museum, allows one to witness an idea as it crosses into the realm of brick-and-mortar reality. In 1998, the state pledged $30 million for the creation of the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture, which is scheduled to open next week.

New Positions Benson, Goulding take Allegheny posts Allegheny Energy Inc. promoted David C. Benson to president of Allegheny Energy Supply Co. LLC, its energy supply subsidiary. Also, the Hagerstown-based energy company hired Philip L. Goulding as vice president for strategic planning of Allegheny Energy and chief commercial officer of Allegheny Energy Supply. Benson, a 26-year veteran of the company, had been executive vice president of Allegheny Energy Supply. A graduate of Pennsylvania State University, he has done graduate work at the University of Pittsburgh and completed management training school at the University of Idaho.

Two years after kicking off a plan to help 10,000 Baltimore families buy or rent affordable homes, the Federal National Mortgage Association, Fannie Mae, said its programs have assisted 3,900 families so far.Marking the second anniversary of House Baltimore-- a commitment of $750 million worth of mortgage purchases and other housing investments over five years -- Fannie Mae officials also announced Wednesday a $5 million loan to the city to help finance eight...

Keiffer J. Mitchell Jr.'s decision to run for Baltimore mayor has cost him his day job at Harbor Bank, a development the city councilman blames on "Nixonesque politics." "I was told that my colleagues in politics had concerns about me working at Harbor Bank and that's all I can say," said Mitchell, who will begin an unpaid leave of absence Tuesday. "It's a shame that Mr. [Joseph] Haskins" - the bank's chief executive - "and the bank have been subjected to what I term as Nixonesque politics."

The Arena Players, the country's oldest continuously operating African-American theater, is in danger of shutting its doors for good a victim of a bad economic climate, more choices for black theatergoers, and the deaths last year of its founder and several prominent members.The theater is running a deficit of $120,000, including $60,000 in back mortgage payments to Harbor Bank, says Rodney Orange Jr., manager/director of Arena Players Inc."Harbor Bank has been very concerned, and they have allowed us a lot of leeway," says James A. Brown, the theater's technical director and spokesman.

After a yearlong lull, Baltimore is experiencing a surge in bank robberies, and police released yesterday a photo of a man suspected of hitting five downtown banks this year.In each case, the man handed a teller a note in which he claimed to have a gun and demanded that money be placed in a bag.The latest robbery occurred Friday at Chase Bank in the first block of N. Charles St., when a man walked in about 11:15 a.m. and told a teller, "I need money orders."He got away with an undetermined amount of money stuffed into a McDonald's lunch bag. Much of the money was recovered about a half-block away after a dye pack exploded, police said.