Sparrows

A flurry of faxes, a few strokes of the pen in a Manhattan law office and the swift electronic shift of hundreds of millions of dollars yesterday ended the 99-year life of Bethlehem Steel Corp., an industrial giant emblematic of American economic power for much of the 20th century. At Sparrows Point in Baltimore County, in Burns Harbor, Ind., and in four other Bethlehem plants across the country, handfuls of survivors surrounded by banks of high-tech, automated steel-manufacturing equipment mourned the company's demise.

The closing of the steel mill at Sparrows Point overwhelmed Bob Jennings. Too young to retire at 59, he faced a gloomy job market for local manufacturing workers and a bureaucracy that couldn't get him timely training help. He felt like a failure. No, no, his wife said, "the system is the failure," but she couldn't convince him. On a cold Saturday morning, he wrote her a short note of apology, walked to their shed and shot himself. Troy Pritt, 44, also worked at the Baltimore County mill.

The general manager of the Sparrows Point steel mill in Baltimore County told a county economic development official that part of the plant will shut down temporarily this summer, putting hundreds of employees out of work. Baltimore County Economic Development Director David Iannucci said during a budget work session with the County Council Monday afternoon that general manager Thomas Russo told him the blast furnace would be temporarily shutdown in June. Iannucci said he was told the shut down would affect at least a third of the plant's 2,500 workers.

The demise of steelmaking at Sparrows Point last year landed like a body blow on eastern Baltimore County. With 2,000 jobs and a 125-year-old legacy lost in the shutdown and subsequent liquidation of assets, the cost to families, to the local economy and to the very social fabric of a close-knit community was immense. Yet, nearly one year after RG Steel filed for bankruptcy, the outlook for the 3,300-acre property is significantly brighter. The potential for redevelopment could yield as many as 10,000 jobs within 10-15 years as new businesses - particularly those related to the Port of Baltimore - take the place of steelmaking.

1889 --Pennsylvania Steel pours first pig iron at Sparrows Point 1916 --Bethlehem Steel buys the plant and announces $50 million expansion 1940-42 --Bethlehem plant and its adjacent shipyard emerge as largest producers of steel and ships for Allied war effort in World War II 1959 --Steel plant reaches peak employment of 30,920 after major expansion launched in 1957 1978 --"L" Blast Furnace built (predecessors took names A-K). It remains one of the largest in the Western Hemisphere 1997 --Bethlehem shipyard sold 2001 --Bethlehem Steel files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, seeks to reorganize 2003 --Financier Wilbur Ross founds International Steel Group and buys Bethlehem in $1.5 billion deal, creating nation's largest steel producer 2005 --Indian-born billionaire Lakshmi N. Mittal merges his growing steel empire with ISG and forms Mittal Steel Co. NV, the largest steelmaker in the world 2006 --Mittal announces a hostile bid for rival Arcelor SA in January, a $33 billion acquisition that would create a global giant 2006 --The Department of Justice files suit in August to block the sale for anti-trust reasons unless Mittal sells Arcelor's Canadian company Dofasco Inc. But that sale is blocked by a Dutch trust that controls it. Mittal later offers to sell a Weirton, W.Va.

If someone had told Bobby Hallet in August that Sparrows Point would be playing in next week's Class 1A state title game, the Pointers' first-year coach would have told that person to "see a doctor."After all, Hallet inherited a team that lost its leading scorer and starting goalie. And only 14 players showed up for the Pointers' first practice back on Aug. 15.None of that seemed to matter last night as Sparrows Point, a team that Hallet declared "the hottest in the area," romped past Williamsport, 7-2, in a state semifinal matchup at North County.

Ashley Fishell-Shaffer Sparrows Point For the Pointers to win their first Baltimore County divisional championship, they had to be nearly perfect within Division 2. At 9-0 they were, thanks to what they learned from their coach: mental toughness, a positive attitude, and the knowledge that if they didn't win, "it was just a game and the sun would come up tomorrow. " It was a lesson that life had taught Fishell-Shaffer, 29, who lost a baby at the start of the 2010 season because of a genetic defect and had a miscarriage last April.

- Dunbar made its first ever trip to the state Class 1A volleyball tournament at Ritchie Coliseum last night. Unfortunately for the Poets, the trip was not a fruitful one. Dunbar gave Perryville (13-6) all it could handle in two of three games, but fell to the Panthers 25-21, 25-7, 25-22. Tara Holland led Dunbar with six digs and three kills. Perryville was led by Morgan Tennant with 22 assists. The Panthers will play Smithsburg, a 3-0 winner in the other semifinal, on Friday at 6 p.m. for the Class 1A state title.

The Department of Justice approved yesterday the sale of the Sparrows Point steel plant to Russian steelmaker OAO Severstal. "The division has granted its approval to the Trustee's proposed sale of Sparrows Point to Severstal," Gina Talamona, a spokeswoman for the department, said in a statement. Severstal announced last month that it had agreed to buy the 119-year-old Baltimore County plant, which employs 2,500, for $810 million in cash. The government-ordered sale was overseen by a trustee appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Charles James Dunn, a career railroader and a tennis enthusiast, died of dementia Thursday at Stella Maris Hospice in Timonium. The Towson resident was 85. Mr. Dunn was born in Baltimore and raised on Cator Avenue. After graduating from Loyola High School in 1936, he attended Strayer's Business College. Because he was colorblind, he was unable to enlist in the armed services during World War II. He spent the war years working at Bethlehem Steel Corp.'s Sparrows Point shipyard. After the war, he went to work for Patapsco & Back Rivers Railroad Co., a subsidiary of Bethlehem Steel, where he was in charge of the car service department.

A new marine terminal could bring 9,000 jobs to the Sparrows Point peninsula, Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said Friday as he laid out the county's vision for remaking the land around its closed steel mill. A terminal in the peninsula's Coke Point area could take 10 to 12 years to become a reality, he said, and plans depend on the Maryland Port Administration's negotiations with the land's private owners, among other factors. The area has complicated environmental problems, but county leaders say the peninsula offers an exceptional location and the infrastructure to attract new investment.

Sparrows Point's landowner turned down a Maryland Port Administration offer to use part of the property for containing dredge material, but both sides said Wednesday that it's not the final word. "We're not really taking this at all as a closed-door situation," said port spokesman Richard Scher, who said the rejection came last week. "This is part of negotiating, and we recognize that. " Scher said the port has a meeting next week with Environmental Liability Transfer, which owns the land and some of the buildings on the former steel-mill property.

Joshua Polanowski was one of the first to go. He drove south in his 15-year-old GMC pickup truck, leaving behind freezing cold and a forever-closed steel mill for a balmy winter and a choice of manufacturing jobs. Forrest and Lacey Martin followed with their two daughters and pair of cats. Goodbye, Maryland. Hello, Texas. The demise of Sparrows Point and its 2,000 jobs last year has forced many life-changing decisions. For a small but growing number of workers, that change is an out-of-state address.

The Steelworkers union local at Sparrows Point has been taken over by its parent organization, a standard practice when a steel mill closes. United Steelworkers Local 9477 was put into "administratorship" in January, according to Jim Strong, the Baltimore-area director for the USW International. Strong has been appointed to oversee the local while it winds down operations. "They've begun the dissolution process, basically," said Chris MacLarion, vice president of the local at Sparrows Point before it was taken over.

SKW Constructors plans to hire up to 100 people to construct concrete tubes and fans at the Sparrows Point Shipyard and Industrial park in Dundalk, according to Baltimore County economic development officials. Subcontractors are expected to hire additional people to work on the project, including carpenters, mechanics, surveyors and truck drivers, the county said. "This project is a huge boost in our efforts to bring new businesses and new jobs back to Sparrows Point," Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said in a statement.

When Eddie Bartee started working at the Sparrows Point steel mill in 1955, about 35,000 men toiled at the eastern Baltimore County plant. Over the next four decades, he made a comfortable life for his wife and their six children as he moved through the ranks at the mill. Now, with the plant closed and machinery being sold for scrap, Bartee and other steelworkers are teaming with University of Maryland Baltimore County students and professors to record their stories. The students are making a website and helping with a documentary to preserve the history of the plant.

Environmentalists and residents sparred with state officials and the owner of the Sparrows Point steel mill on Friday over what's being done to curb air, water and soil pollution from the 2,300-acre industrial complex. Disputing complaints from environmental groups, a statement issued by Severstal North America Inc. said its steel mill is in compliance with a 12-year-old agreement to clean up contaminated soil and groundwater there. The company vowed to "vigorously defend" against the lawsuit that the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper organization have threatened to file alleging that the plant has done little of the remediation promised in 1997 and continues to pollute.

Russian steelmaker OAO Severstal said yesterday that its acquisition of the Sparrows Point complex could close as early as mid-May and that it plans to rapidly ramp up production at the Baltimore County steel plant. Severstal plans to bring plant production up to full capacity of 3.6 million tons a year, company executives told analysts during a conference call from Russia. The plant shipped 2.3 million tons last year. Current owner ArcelorMittal has operated Sparrows Point as a swing plant, with output fluctuating with market forces.

The federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. is suing the Renco Group — parent of bankrupt RG Steel — for allegedly attempting to "evade liability" for the steelmaker's pension obligations. The agency is seeking $97 million from the New York holding company, which created RG Steel in 2011 to buy the Sparrows Point steel mill and other facilities. RG Steel rapidly failed and sought bankruptcy protection last May. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York on Monday, alleges that Renco sold 24.5 percent of the steelmaker, of which it had been sole owner, in January 2012 with the "principal purpose" of avoiding pension liabilities.

Bobby Spivey can walk through the halls of Sparrows Point High School without drawing much attention from anyone aside from his group of close friends. But put the 16-year-old in the small Southern hamlet of Stuttgart, Ark. - the self-proclaimed "Rice and Duck Capital of the World" - and Spivey is something of a celebrity. Given his age and achievements to date, Spivey might become to duck calling what a teenage prodigy named Tiger Woods became to golf. Spivey had been to Stuttgart for the International Duck Calling Championship before last year's event in late November, finishing near the bottom the first time he tried in 2009 and coming in third in 2010.