Panel Of Experts

The Baltimore area commercial real estate market is generally healthy, but it is so closely tied to the economy that the latest downturn is likely to make developing and marketing new hotels, shops and offices more difficult this year, a panel of experts said yesterday. The experts were convened by the Johns Hopkins University and the Urban Land Institute, and they expanded on a report released recently by the university's Allan L. Berman Real Estate Institute. For the third year, the report has documented both the industry's hard numbers on vacancies and other measures and gauged attitudes of the professionals involved.

A panel of experts considering the effect of widening Route 32 through western Howard County had its first and only public meeting last night. Neil J. Pederson, deputy administrator of the State Highway Administration, told the seven-member panel that two work sessions set for Dec. 12 and Jan. 16 will be closed to the public. Pederson's announcement was protested by Dan Pontious, director of the Baltimore Regional Partnership, an umbrella group of five civic and environmental organizations.

The Orioles spent the past week evaluating the organization and mapping out the off-season, apparently intent on getting an early jump on the competition. But they didn't need a panel of experts to tell them what went wrong in 1992.OK, OK. There were a lot of things that went right over the course of their surprising season. Everybody knows that. The club far exceeded expectations. It's just that this is not the time to pat yourself on the back if the next step is to be the American League East title.

Baltimore officials said Wednesday that they plan to bring together a panel of experts and hire an outside firm in their search for the city's next police commissioner, even as two potential candidates got an audition of sorts before the City Council. Spokesman Ryan O'Doherty said a panel of law enforcement and legal experts will work with Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's deputy chief of public safety and operations, Yolanda Jiggetts, to find a replacement for Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III. He announced his retirement last week, effective Aug. 1. An outside search firm is likely to be brought in, though specifics were still being worked out as officials seek to fill other key vacancies at City Hall.

If you have a garden that makes your neighbors green with envy, we want to hear about it. The Baltimore Sun is searching for the most beautiful and creative gardens in the metropolitan area. We'll have our panel of experts select the best small, medium and large gardens. Flower gardens, shade gardens, container gardens and even water gardens will be considered, but they must be designed and tended by amateurs. Winners will be featured in The Sun and will receive a $50 gift card. To submit your entry, send three to five photos and a 200-word description of your garden by email to homes@baltsun.com or by mail to Baltimore Sun Garden Contest, Features Dept., 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore 21278.

BETHESDA -- Signaling a new era in AIDS treatment, an expert panel recommended yesterday that doctors act early and aggressively in attacking the disease with new drug combinations.The recommendations land squarely on the conclusion that protease inhibitors in combination with other anti-viral drugs should be given to everyone who has the disease and to many others who are infected but have not developed symptoms."The guts or the meat of these guidelines is to treat aggressively, to get the virus down as low as possible, for as long as possible," said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Disease.

Arthur E. Johnson isn't a surprising recipient of the prestigious Black Engineer of the Year award for 1997.As president of Lockheed Martin Federal Systems, he's in charge of 8,000 employees who develop, sell and deliver information solutions to the Defense Department, civilian federal agencies and other customers.Johnson, 49, has 27 years of experience in military and government technology as exotic as mine-hunting submarine sonars and as commonplace as mechanical mail sorters.But his selection for the national award, given Saturday in Baltimore, was hardly a no-brainer.

The public is invited to a community meeting at 7 o'clock this evening at the Pikesville Hilton, where a panel of experts will discuss the possible threat of biological agents and answer questions. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, the University of Maryland School of Medicine and Maimonides Society will hold a bioterrorism seminar for health care professionals at Beth El Congregation, including a review of resources and protocols.

The day after her ex-husband's funeral in January, Sabrina Lumpkin started calling every public official she could think of, trying to get someone to pay attention. Warren Lumpkin, 34, had died in a Southwest Baltimore house of heart complications related to using methadone, the prescription drug typically used to treat heroin addiction, according to an autopsy from the state medical examiner. But Sabrina Lumpkin said he had no such prescription - he took his roommate's methadone the night before he died.

One of the most worrisome things for parents are signs their child is having difficulty learning to read, because they know reading is the key to the child's education.The Sun has assembled a panel of experts to address your concerns about reading and your child -- from a psychologist and a pediatrician to an ophthalmologist and a reading teacher. We also will ask other parents what has worked for them.Your questions and the responses of our experts will appear in our special "Reading by 9" pages on Sundays and Wednesdays, beginning soon in the Today section of The Sun.L If you have a question, send it in and we'll get the answer.