Maryland Office

Forced out of Baltimore by the building of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Maryland Office Interiors, an office furniture retailer based in Woodlawn, said it is returning, lured in part by the city's Empowerment Zone program."

In the Dunloggin, Beaverbrook and Font Hill neighborhoods of Howard County, residents say they've spent thousands on home generators and on food to replace the stuff that spoils when the power goes out for days. There have also been other expenses, they say: motel stays, flashlights, lanterns, gas hot plates and long, heavy-duty extension cords - the kind used to hook up to a neighbor's generator. "You see people running across the street with extension cords," said Cathy Eshmont, who lives in Dunloggin, one of several Ellicott City neighborhoods where residents say they've contended for years with frequent power failures.

The $245 million settlement that Baltimore's Constellation Energy Group agreed to pay is the largest of its kind to resolve allegations of market manipulation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Details of the settlement emerged Monday, the same day Chicago-based Exelon Corp. closed on its $7.9 billion takeover of Constellation. The sale creating the largest non-utility energy provider in the United States ushers Baltimore's last Fortune 500 company out of town. The New York Stock Exchange will de-list Constellation shares Tuesday.

Four Israeli high-tech firms plan to soon open offices or add staff in Maryland, Gov. Martin O'Malley announced Tuesday, the third day of his eight-day economic development trip to Israel and Jordan. The four companies are Shekel Scales, Askimo, Roboteam and Hybrid Security, O'Malley said in a statement. Shekel Scales, which builds retail, industrial and healthcare scales for precision weighing, opened an office in Owings Mills earlier this year, according to the governor's statement.

Christopher Van Hollen Sr., a retired Foreign Service officer and ambassador to Sri Lanka, died of Alzheimer's disease complications Jan. 30 at the Washington Home and Hospice. The former Baltimore resident was 90. Born in Baltimore and raised in Cedarcroft, he was the grandson of George Henry Van Hollen, a seafood packer and owner of the Atlantic Packing Co. The family also developed the Cedarcroft section of North Baltimore and lent its name to Hollen Road. His father, Donald Van Hollen, was a Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. employee who later worked at the family's seafood business.

George Shehan, president of the Home Builders Association of Maryland, and Rosalie S. Abrams, director of the Maryland Office on Aging, are teaming up to present "Senior Housepitality" -- a project designed to provide home repair services to low-income senior citizens in the Baltimore metropolitan area.The official kickoff for Senior Housepitality got under way at the 71st annual banquet of HBAM on Nov. 30 at Stouffer Harborplace Hotel. At that time, HBAM members were asked to volunteer their time, talent, materials and expertise to make needed improvements on homes owned by senior citizens.

Residents of other states and the District of Columbia poured into Maryland during the 1980s, swelling the state's population by more than 101,000 through migration alone, the Maryland Office of Planning has reported.The big gainers -- especially during the boom years of the late 1980s -- were the state's wealthiest counties, Montgomery and Howard.The big losers, continuing a 1970s trend, were Baltimore City and Prince George's County. Between them, they lost more than 117,000 residents to migration.

Jim Bell named head coach of men's soccer at HCC Jim Bell has been appointed head men's soccer coach at Howard Community College. He will replace coach Armando Guiterrez. Bell, who served as assistant coach at Prince George's Community College for seven years, works for the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission in College Park. He is a program specialist. Stephen C. Smith Jr. promoted at contractors Stephen C. Smith Jr. of the Central Maryland Office of Encompass Services Corp.

Western Maryland College will induct five Maryland natives into its Sports Hall of Fame at its annual banquet and induction ceremony Saturday at 7 p.m. in the college's Decker College Center Forum.Jerry Phipps of Cockeysville, Charles White of Laytonsville, Lynn Glaeser Damiano of Ellicott City, Charles "Skip" Brown of Arnold and Ken Volk of Towson make up the Hall of Fame's Class of 1991, which brings its membership to 88.Reservations may be made by calling the Western Maryland Office of Alumni Affairs at (410)

In the Dunloggin, Beaverbrook and Font Hill neighborhoods of Howard County, residents say they've spent thousands on home generators and on food to replace the stuff that spoils when the power goes out for days. There have also been other expenses, they say: motel stays, flashlights, lanterns, gas hot plates and long, heavy-duty extension cords - the kind used to hook up to a neighbor's generator. "You see people running across the street with extension cords," said Cathy Eshmont, who lives in Dunloggin, one of several Ellicott City neighborhoods where residents say they've contended for years with frequent power failures.

Baltimore police did not have permission to conduct training exercises at the shuttered state facility for the developmentally disabled where an officer was shot and critically wounded, according to Maryland health officials. "As far as we can tell, there were not requests made by the city Police Department to use the facility for training," said Dori Henry, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. "We're looking into how they came to be there. " Police have not disclosed details of their internal investigation into the incident at the former Rosewood Center in Owings Mills, but Anthony Guglielmi, chief spokesman for the Baltimore department, acknowledged that police have known that the use of the building was unauthorized.

When Maryland visited Cameron Indoor Stadium last month, Duke fans smugly expressed indifference at the impending end of a Terrapins-Blue Devils series that was once among the hottest in the country. "Don't come back," they chanted at the Terps. But there is no such exaggerated nonchalance at Maryland, where the rivalry is not fading away quietly. In College Park, it still seems personal. Maryland (17-7, 5-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) may be leaving the ACC to join the Big Ten in 2014, but players and fans still define the team's season partly by how they stack up against Duke (22-2, 9-2 ACC)

Christopher Van Hollen Sr., a retired Foreign Service officer and ambassador to Sri Lanka, died of Alzheimer's disease complications Jan. 30 at the Washington Home and Hospice. The former Baltimore resident was 90. Born in Baltimore and raised in Cedarcroft, he was the grandson of George Henry Van Hollen, a seafood packer and owner of the Atlantic Packing Co. The family also developed the Cedarcroft section of North Baltimore and lent its name to Hollen Road. His father, Donald Van Hollen, was a Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. employee who later worked at the family's seafood business.

Visitors to Maryland -- and those wanting to explore more of the state they already call home -- can consult a new book showcasing the state's scenic byways and a mobile application that serves as a guide to the area's Civil War trails. Both items are part of the state's effort to boost tourism. Since 2007, Maryland has seen a 26-percent bump in visits -- amounting to an increase of 7.2 million visitors over the five-year period, according to a national survey of U.S. travelers conducted by D.K. Shifflet and Associates, a tourism industry research firm.

The League of Women Voters and the Towson branch of the Baltimore County Public Library have scheduled several discussions, starting Thursday, on referendums that will appear on the Nov. 6 ballot. A panel will delve into Perspectives on the Dream Act, the measure that would allow in-state tuition rates to children of illegal immigrants, at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. Panelists include Mark Krikorian, executive director at the Center for Immigration Studies; Tamar Jacoby, president of ImmigrationWorks USA; and Patricia Chiriboga-Roby, office director of World Relief Immigration Legal Clinic.

Would putting more polluters behind bars help restore the Chesapeake Bay? The Center for Progressive Reform believes it would. In a new report, the  a pro-regulatory think tank argues that both state and federal authorities prosecute water polluters too rarely in Maryland and that the state penalties for conviction aren't stiff enough to deter violators. Criminal prosecutions are an effective way to improve enforcement of environmental laws, especially when government regulators lack the funds to adequately inspect all potential polluters, says Rena Steinzor, the center's president and a professor at the University of Maryland's law school.

From Fort McHenry to Fort Washington, from a Garrett County grist mill to a St. Michaels maritime museum, from the tobacco plantations of the state's first capital in St. Mary's County to the Georgian gems of Annapolis, Maryland offers history aplenty.Now, hoping to tap into a booming market for history-related tourism, Maryland's Office of Tourism has assembled a free, 32-page promotional guide detailing hundreds of attractions throughout the state."Maryland Celebrates History A Guide to Maryland's Historical Attractions" includes concise descriptions of attractions, maps, timetables of historic events, color photos, phone numbers, admission prices and suggested reading.

A prisoner facing a death-penalty trial in the 2006 killing of a correctional officer inside the antiquated Maryland House of Correction was found mentally unfit to stand trial Thursday. Lamarr Cornelius "Junebug" Harris, 41, who is already serving more than three life terms for Baltimore murder convictions, looked blankly ahead after Anne Arundel County Circuit Judge Paul A. Hackner handed down his ruling. Harris was one of two prisoners accused of fatally ambushing Cpl. David McGuinn on the catwalk of a prison tier tier in July 2006 - part of the violence that led state officials to close the prison.

The $245 million settlement that Baltimore's Constellation Energy Group agreed to pay is the largest of its kind to resolve allegations of market manipulation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Details of the settlement emerged Monday, the same day Chicago-based Exelon Corp. closed on its $7.9 billion takeover of Constellation. The sale creating the largest non-utility energy provider in the United States ushers Baltimore's last Fortune 500 company out of town. The New York Stock Exchange will de-list Constellation shares Tuesday.