Quality Of Life

It's 2 a.m. on a Saturday, and young people in various states of inebriation stream out of a Federal Hill bar. Some are so intoxicated they appear to be walking into a stiff wind, staggering and clutching friends for support. One woman tries to steady herself on the hood of a car, then slowly slides to the ground. A commotion breaks out and several police officers — stationed nearby for the seemingly inevitable late-night fight — hurry to pull two young men apart. A woman wearing a short leopard-print dress and towering high heels rushes over.

As it has for the last half century, Baltimore City's population continues to decline, albeit at a slightly slower pace than in recent decades. The Census Bureau reported last week that the city lost 3,231 people during the year that ended July 1, 2008. But while the drop in the city's population, which the bureau pegged at 636,919, was somewhat expected, the surprising news was that, for the first time in decades, Baltimore County lost residents as well. With 785,618 people, the county is still Maryland's third most populous jurisdiction, and the decline was modest - the bureau reported 212 fewer people living there than during the previous 12 months.

Salary: $62,000 Age: 32 Years on the job: 10 How she got started:: After graduating from Towson University with a bachelor's degree in psychology and sociology, Allen went to work as director of admissions for a Baltimore-area long-term nursing care and rehabilitation center. She came to Levindale in 1999 as a guest relations specialist. Two years later she became director of guest relations, and in 2006 she started as a "neighborhood" leader. Typical day:: The day starts early for Allen, who said she's usually in by about 6 a.m. One day a week, she arrives by 10 a.m. and stays through dinner service in an effort to keep in contact with all three shifts of employees.

New energy-efficient, single-family homes could soon fill the site of a demolished apartment complex in the heart of Dundalk. The Baltimore County Council is expected to review plans tonight for the 66-home, planned unit development of Yorkway that officials and community groups are hailing for its potential to revitalize and enhance the once-blighted area. "We are going from blocks of run-down homes that generated as many as 3,000 police calls a year," said Councilman John Olszewski Sr., who represents the district and will introduce the resolution tonight.

The residents of Rodgers Forge have a simple message for Towson University: A promise made should be a promise kept. Towson University plans to build a 5,000-plus-seat arena on its southernmost boundary - which abuts my house. In 2003, the university drew up its master plan for the development on its campus and received input from the Rodgers Forge Community Association. The university agreed to build the arena on a site to the north, and not on the site that abuts the residences in Rodgers Forge.

Cities with highest quality of life 1 Zurich, Switzerland 2 Geneva, Switzerland 3 Vancouver, British Columbia 4 Vienna, Austria 5 Auckland, New Zealand 6 Dusseldorf, Germany 7 Frankfurt, Germany 8 Munich, Germany 9 (tie) Bern, Switzerland, and Sydney, Australia From a survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting Co. based on interviews with residents.

New kind of capitalism boosts quality of life Even rock-ribbed capitalists would agree with Jay Hancock that market-based economies can and should benefit all citizens in hard times - whether what motivates entrepreneurs is selfishness or not ("Butcher, baker, unemployment line maker," Nov. 22). But rather than a "payroll co-operative," as he suggests, let's consider a more effective and efficient way to use the rewards that come to those leading successful enterprises. Call it Capitalism 2.0. In such a system, which is growing in Baltimore right now, the market economy drives the means of generating wealth, but an awakening social conscience redefines how that wealth is distributed.

Harford County Executive David R. Craig announced nearly $13 million in cuts to the current budget yesterday but stressed there will be no employee layoffs and insisted that work will continue on school and road construction projects. The county will also meet the challenges to its infrastructure, associated with BRAC, a military expansion that will bring 10,000 more jobs to Aberdeen Proving Ground, and it will move forward with other projects already undertaken, he said.. Despite the downturn in the housing industry that has led to reduced revenues from the transfer and recordation taxes, Craig assured residents that they would not see any decrease in services.

The Harford County Council will hold at least one public hearing next month on a proposed zoning code rewrite, an 800-page document that represents the first comprehensive effort to revamp land use standards in more than 25 years. The council introduced the proposal Tuesday, shortly after members received the voluminous document. They set a hearing for 6 p.m. Sept. 16 at council chambers in Bel Air. If necessary, a second hearing will be scheduled Sept. 23, most likely at North Harford High School, officials said.

Rosewood residents given new freedom Gov. Martin O'Malley did an extraordinary thing for residents of Rosewood Center on Tuesday -- he signed an executive order mandating its closure ("Maryland to shut home for disabled," Jan. 16). Closing Rosewood will finally bring an end to the unjustified confinement of the disabled and will help people learn to live independently. The governor acknowledges that institutions for the disabled are outmoded and that all people have a right to live free in the community.