West Street

The second phase of the $13.2 million utility replacement and road reconstruction on Annapolis' West Street is at least two weeks ahead of schedule and expected to be completed by early June, city officials said. Despite the record snowfall during the winter, the contractor - encouraged by incentives of $2,000 a day to finish earlier than the contract completion date of July 8 - has kept a steady pace. "We've managed to hold the schedule and are at least two weeks ahead of schedule, maybe a little more," said Joseph A. Baker Jr., the city's chief of engineering and construction, who said the contractor, FMC Civil Construction Inc. of Cheverly, lost two days because of snow.

Annapolis police are looking for a man who pulled a 21-year-old woman into an alley in downtown Annapolis and sexually assaulted her early Saturday morning. About 1:30 a.m., the woman was walking alone in the 100 block of Duke of Gloucester St. near the heart of the downtown area when a man walking behind her grabbed her and dragged her into a nearby alley, according to police. The man threw the woman to the ground and sexually assaulted her, police said. The woman, who had been walking home from West Street, was eventually able to fight off the man, who then fled, police said.

Despite this year's upswing in business on West Street, the Crate Cafe is likely to shut down soon.For two weeks, a handwritten note has hung on the door, telling customers the restaurant is closed for vacation.The dozen-year-old Annapolis cafe, the longtime gathering spot for the Friday Morning Democratic Breakfast Club, has been operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since March. George Z. Petros, the Crate's attorney, said the restaurant at 49 West St. probably won't reopen.The owners, John and Gail Chwan, have been trying to restructure their business debts or sell the 75-seat cafe.

A 33-year-old man was shot and killed near the intersection of North Loudon Avenue and West Franklin Street at 4:42 p.m. Sunday, according to the Baltimore Police Department. The man was pronounced dead at Shock Trauma at 5:32, according to Sgt. Anthony Smith. Baltimore City police reported three other shootings Sunday. •Homicide investigators were called to the scene of a shooting at 9:15 p.m. in the 200 block of Herring Court in Southeast Baltimore. The shooter approached a 22-year-old man and shot him multiple times in the head, according to police.

Truffles, the popular Annapolis eatery known for its sinfully sweet desserts, closed this week, the latest victim of the economic downturn on West Street.Michelle O'Brien, owner of the quaint, upscale restaurant at 50 West St., said yesterday that her business was struggling because of poor parking and the growing number of empty shops in the first block of the street."The problem on West Street, as you know, is half the places are vacant on the block," she said.Truffles is one of at least four shops to leave Inner West Street in recent months.

Driving on West Street in Annapolis could be safer.That's the conclusion of the Annapolis City Police Department after a yearlong study found that 10 percent of the city's auto accidents occur on the stretch of that road from Legion Avenue to the city-county line near Route 2.Beginning tomorrow, city police will set up digital display boards to inform motorists how fast they are driving.If that doesn't make people slow down and drive more safely, be prepared to be ticketed, police warn."This is the first time we've tried to educate people first," said Lt. T. J. Harrington, commander of the newly launched West Street Accident Suppression Project.

"West Street Story," a story in the Sunday edition of the Anne Arundel County Sun on prostitution in Annapolis, contained an incorrect statistic.Forty-three arrests have been made, 32 of which have beenagainst men charged with solicitation.In the shadowy light of a street lamp on Annapolis' West Street, a young woman in faded jeans and a neon jacket walks slowly back and forth.Two men saunter past her and stare. Cars stop at the corneras men peer out the windows, or speed up, the drivers looking straight ahead.

Business owners and urban design consultants urged the Annapolis City Council last night to increase spending on streetscape improvements for the ailing West Street corridor.Preliminary designs for revitalization of the area show costs may run between $7 million and $10 million, Faux Group designers told the council and a neighborhood advisory committee.The council allotted $3.2 million in its capital budget for the project.The designs -- which include the addition of a traffic circle at the intersection of West Street, Taylor Avenue and Spa Road -- depict West Street as a bustling business district and cultural community.

EVEN ON A soggy Memorial Day weekend, the shops and restaurants along Annapolis' Main Street and City Dock bustled with activity. To visitors who have not visited the state capital for a while, the commercial vitality in this section of town may be surprising. New merchants fill old vacancies. Some long-time businesses have spruced up facades. Diners pack "sidewalk cafes." It's the kind of healthy commercial environment that the Annapolis' city government has long hoped to create along West Street, beyond State and Church circles.

Two Annapolis city council members are seeking to limit the density of developments along the outer West Street corridor, where major office and residential projects are fast overshadowing older homes and storefronts. Prompted by concerns that the thoroughfare is being overdeveloped, Aldermen Josh Cohen and Samuel E. Shropshire have proposed an ordinance that will seek to limit the density of multifamily developments to 35 units per acre, a 20 percent reduction from current standards. This latest proposal comes as two major projects begin to take shape at West Street and Spa Road: a headquarters for Severn Savings Bank, and the $200 million Park Place development, which will include a Westin Hotel, offices, condominiums and shops.

City police were investigating a double-shooting in West Baltimore Monday night that killed a 29-year-old man. Officers found Donte Collins suffering from multiple gunshot wounds at about 8:30 p.m. in the 1500 block of Rosedale St., in the Rosemont neighborhood, and paramedics transported him to Maryland Shock Trauma Center where he was pronounced dead about an hour later. Around the same time, police were informed of another shooting victim who had been dropped at St. Agnes Hospital for treatment for multiple gunshot wounds to his lower body.

Miss Shirley's, the pride of Alonsoville, famous for its rib-sticking breakfasts, quietly opened its third location on Monday, in Annapolis' Park Plaza building. The new West Street location, adjacent to the Westin Annapolis, seats 160 diners in a main dining room, private dining room and seated bar. There is, weather permitting, additional outside dining. The Annapolis location, like the two in Baltimore, does not take reservations. The hours are the same in Annapolis, too: Mon.-Fri., 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and Sat.-Sun., 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. 

A 14-year-old girl who accepted a ride in a van in West Baltimore was raped or sexually assaulted by five men on Sunday afternoon, according to city police who are seeking help identifying suspects and finding the vehicle. The attack, first made public by police on Wednesday, occurred about 4:30 p.m. in the 1500 block of Leslie St., just off Presstman Street in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood. Police said the girl was seeking directions and got into a van driven by a man in his 20s who offered her a ride.

A staff member at Baltimore Behavioral Health Inc. has filed a lawsuit against the private clinic in Southwest Baltimore, alleging that officials there "diverted and stole" thousands of dollars from employees by failing to deposit payroll deductions into their retirement and disability plans. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Baltimore, claims that more than 100 employees "suffered substantial financial losses in both 2009 and 2010 as a result of the diversion and theft of employee contributions that should have been placed in the Retirement and Disability Plans.

It's not just that Kenneth Gram's family misses his quick wit at the holiday table. They also mourn a life cut short. A year later, they still don't know why the 22-year-old was fatally stabbed in Annapolis. "The axis of the earth sort of tilted at a different axis after this," said John Gram, Kenneth's father. "How does somebody go walking down the street and get killed? And how does this not get solved?" he said. Annapolis police say leads and hunches haven't produced any leads.

A 20-year-old man was fatally shot Wednesday afternoon in front of a small corner church in West Baltimore, police said. The man, who was identified Thursday at Marcus Brown, was shot multiple times at West Lanvale and North Payson streets, in the Midtown-Edmondson neighborhood, at about 12:45 p.m. He was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center and pronounced dead before 1:30 p.m. At the scene, a bike lay on its side as wind pushed evidence markers...

BY PERMITTING McDonald's to open an express outlet in a vacant storefront on West Street, sans arches, the Annapolis City Council has improved the fortunes of that area.Members of the community who opposed the approval may come to realize that a fast-food outlet might not carry the cachet of an art gallery or a trendy restaurant, but it will go a long way toward reversing the street's plodding revitalization efforts.Albeit on a smaller scale, McDonald's and its immensely marketed fare may do for the first block of West Street what Walt Disney Co., that other purveyor of pop culture, is doing for Manhattan's Times Square.

REHABILITATING THE seven-block stretch of West Street between Church Circle and Taylor Avenue may be one of the most important public works projects the city of Annapolis undertakes.If done correctly, the project will stimulate investment and development in an area that has many vacant storefronts and empty lots. To rush the planning to meet an artificial deadline would be a mistake.As the successful redevelopment of nearby Main Street in the state capital demonstrates, knowledgeable citizen participation can enhance the design of public projects.

City police are investigating a fatal shooting that occurred Saturday afternoon on Fayette Street in West Baltimore. A 25-year-old man was shot in the head at about 3:30 p.m. in the 2100 block of West Fayette St., less than a block from Bon Secours Hospital. Police did not release the man's identity. Traffic was still being diverted off Fayette to North Pulaski Street almost two hours later, while police knocked on doors collecting information. While some looked on from a nearby bus stop by the hospital, others strolled by the yellow police tape to peer down the street.

This has been a rough winter for Annapolis restaurants. Morton's the Steakhouse abruptly shut its doors for good last week. Apparently even the servers didn't know until they showed up for work that day. This isn't unusual when a restaurant wants to maintain full staffing until closing for good. I got in touch with company spokesman Roger Drake to ask why, although I was pretty sure what the answer would be. "We made the very difficult decision to close the Annapolis restaurant," he said.