Riverdale

Demolition begins today on the remaining units at the empty Riverdale apartment complex in Essex, once a high-crime area and a nagging eyesore.County Executive C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger will be joined by U.S. Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes and other officials as workers begin clearing the site in the 1800 block of Eastern Blvd."

The future of Riverdale -- a vacant apartment complex once considered one of Middle River's most blighted areas -- should be decided in the next few months as county officials begin talks about what to build there.County officials said yesterday that they have bought 38 acres of Riverdale so that the county owns the entire complex.They intend to demolish the 600 vacant apartments and develop a park, a residential community or some commercial project on the 64 acres."Soon everything you see behind me will be a memory," County Executive C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger said during a news conference at Riverdale about the purchase.

The long-awaited demolition of the derelict Riverdale Village Apartments in Essex is to begin April 14 -- more than a year later than originally planned -- now that the federal Small Business Administration has awarded a $1.2 million contract for the work.P&J Contracting Co. of Baltimore won the contract to knock down the 24 buildings on the federally owned half of the arson-marred brick complex in the 1900 block of Eastern Blvd., ++ the agency said yesterday.Though the rest of the abandoned, 35-acre complex will remain for the time being, Baltimore County officials hailed the federal demolition contract as the beginning of the end of the housing eyesore.

Demolition began yesterday at Riverdale Village apartments, a decaying symbol of neglect and greed in Baltimore County, as hard-hatted politicians celebrated the occasion and former residents stopped by to say good riddance."

Former workers at the Riverdale Village apartments in Baltimore County have described to federal investigators a pattern of bid-rigging and kickbacks totaling at least $500,000 at the now-condemned complex, according to search warrant affidavits.Repair prices were routinely inflated, according to one handyman, who said he kicked back nearly $50,000 annually in deals with companies linked to Riverdale's landlord. Another worker said she was instructed to have windows and other equipment sent from the complex to other properties controlled by the landlord.

Two months after demolition began at the abandoned Riverdale Village apartments in Essex, county officials and community groups are discussing options for developing the longtime eyesore.An indoor recreation center, single-family residences and housing for the elderly are among the possibilities that have emerged from nearly a year of study by architects, developers and community representatives.Officials caution that the county faces hurdles in its push to overhaul Riverdale, including acquisition of the half of the property it does not own."

Federal authorities are combing through thousands of records seized as part of an investigation of the condemned Riverdale Village Apartments in eastern Baltimore County and the property's landlord, Florida real estate mogul Richard M. Schlesinger.Stephen M. Schenning, first assistant U.S. attorney for Maryland, said agents from the FBI and U.S. Postal Service seized the paperwork Wednesday from two locations on Orville Road in Essex and the boarded-up rental office at Riverdale in the 1800 and 1900 blocks of Eastern Blvd.

After months of wrangling over the run-down Riverdale Village apartments, the absentee landlord agreed yesterday to allow Baltimore County officials to speed condemnation and the relocation of dozens of remaining residents.The agreement in court came as tomorrow's deadline neared on Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.'s plan to shut off utilities to the sprawling Essex complex, which once had more than 1,100 apartments. Now, 75 apartments are occupied, awaiting the last wave of an intense relocation campaign.

First, the exodus was from city to suburb. Now Maryland churches, especially large evangelical parishes serving young professionals, are following congregations from suburb to the farmland beyond.It is proving to be a very difficult step to make.Take the case of Riverdale Baptist Church, a storied Prince George's County congregation battling to build a 112,000-square-foot complex in rural south Anne Arundel County over fierce protest from the wealthy neighborhood. The National Cathedral in Washington is two-thirds the size of Riverdale's proposed complex.

With the residents gone from the dilapidated Riverdale apartments in Essex, county officials will begin today the daunting job of transforming the complex into a new residential community.Today, Ruppersberger administration officials are to speak by phone with representatives of Capital Asset Research Corp., the Florida company that paid Riverdale's $211,000 tax bill last month in a bid to take over the condemned property.Tomorrow, public works crews will begin cleaning trash and debris left Wednesday, when the last of Riverdale's residents moved out after gas, electric and water service were turned off. They also will secure the 16 buildings against vandals and squatters.

Bette Adler, Funeral was Sunday, July 26 in Riverdale, NY.

Critics of a proposed 260 town-home development in Columbia's Hickory Ridge may get a second shot at scaling back the project, thanks to developer Dale Thompson's financial woes. Creditors have obtained court judgments against Thompson, a builder for 22 years, and his various companies for more than $25 million in defaulted loans, and a sale of the 30-acre Riverdale site at Route 32 and Cedar Lane could result, a lawyer for one of the creditors said. The Baltimore Sun reported last week that the well-regarded builder of upscale Howard County homes appears to be out of business.

0.00 ERA for Patapsco pitcher Eric Ryan, who is 2-0 with 16 strikeouts in 16 innings. 7 Girls on the McDonogh track team, which won Saturday's Pikesville Track Classic with 68 points over second-place Thomas Johnson (61). 13.8 Percentage from the field Seton Keough's girls basketball team held Riverdale Baptist to in the second half of the Gators' 44-42 victory in the ESPN RISE National High School Invitational title game.

DAVID S. MALLINAK, age 51, lost his war with cancer on Wednesday, November 12, 2008. Resident of Mt. Rainier, formerly of Parma, OH. Son of the late Eleanor Mallinak; brother of Sandra (Gary) Walrath, Douglas Mallinak; uncle of Jessica, Mark, and Kelly Walrath; close friend of Kathleen Norvell and many others also survive. For 28 years he was a dedicated employee of the DOD; member of Maclean's Co. of Irish Foote, Admirals Regiment, War of 1812 Reenactors, Dandy 5th Regiment, Asquinth's Sharp Shooters, Society for Creative Anachronism and Historical Guild of Maryland.

State Highway Administration officials have answered concerns of homeowners and lawmakers about a proposed residential development by calling for new information and studies related to traffic flow. SHA is asking Dale Thompson Builders Inc., developer of the Riverdale project, to do additional studies, and will do some of the work through its own agency. The 30-acre condo and townhouse development is proposed for the Route 32 and Cedar Lane along the Middle Patuxent River at the edge of west Columbia.

County Executive Ken Ulman said he shares many of the concerns outlined in a letter from two lawmakers about proposed changes to the intersection of Route 32 and Cedar Lane to accommodate the planned Riverdale project. Del. Elizabeth Bobo and state Sen. Edward J. Kasemeyer, both Democrats, wrote to Ulman that the plans would "lessen the level of safety at that intersection and cause greater inconvenience to many of our constituents who rely heavily on Cedar Lane for their access to and from Route 32."

0 Passes completed (on one attempt) by the Joppatowne football team in its game against Havre de Grace on Sept. 14. But the Mariners ran for 332 yards in a 16-6 victory over the Warriors. 2 Overtime victories registered by Harford County football teams in Week 2. Fallston edged Elkton, 19-12, while Bel Air topped Riverdale Baptist, 12-6. 4 Players who got either goals or assists in North Harford's 3-2 field hockey victory over Dulaney on Wednesday. 5 Goals the Bel Air girls soccer team scored in the first half of a 7-0 rout of Joppatowne.

RIVERDALE - With dirty-blond hair and hazel eyes, Oscar Bonilla is called guero - Spanish for "blond" or "fair-skinned" - by customers at La Central music and video store. But his race is less easily defined. "I look white, completely white," says Bonilla, 21, who was born in El Salvador but raised in nearby Montgomery County. "But the first thing I would call myself is Hispanic. My race? I don't really think about it." Like nearly 15 million Latinos in 2000, Bonilla would identify himself as "some other race" on the U.S. Census.

Antiques show Purchase antiques while experiencing life as it was when the items were modern. Browse furniture, quilts and more along the shell-paved lanes of Historic Cold Spring Village, N.J., on Saturday and Sunday while the daily life of an 1800s community is re-created around you. Afterward, attend the free Festive Brass concert at the Village Gazebo on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. The village is on Route 9 between Rio Grande and Cape May. It is open...

ROBERT JEFFERSON WOOLDRIDGE was born on June 12, 1969 in Neptune, N.J. His parents were the late Donnelly R. Wooldridge and Gisela (Lisa) Eaton. He moved to Atlanta approximately 12 years ago. He worked for the former Jones, Askew Law Firm (now known as Kilpatrick-Stockton). After lengthy illness his life ended July 4, 2004 at Portsbridge Hospice in Dunwoody, GA. He leaves to mourn his passing his mother and step-dad Van Eaton. Grandparents George and Josefine Mc Elrath, N.J.; Rose G. Wooldridge, Riverdale GA; Uncles: George and (Adrienne)