Western Maryland

Rarely has a real estate closing felt so overdue. With a unanimous 3-0 vote, the state Board of Public Works on Wednesday agreed to sell the Rocky Gap Lodge & Golf Resort to Evitts Resort LLC, taking one of Maryland's most star-crossed government-backed developments of all time off the hands of state taxpayers. Evitts officials in attendance seemed almost shocked by the palpable sense of relief that pervaded the State House. If it's any comfort to the new owners, they're getting a great deal.

Blaine Young, the Republican president of the Frederick County Board of Commissioners, has taken a step toward a possible run for governor in 2014 by launching a fund-raising committee. Young, 40, was elected in 2010 as part of a conservative Republican sweep of the five board seats in the Western Maryland county. He had been appointed to the board earlier that year. The former Democrat, who switched parties in 2002, said he has registered a committee, Blaine Young for Maryland, with the state elections board.

Tropical Storm Alberto isn't expected to reach Maryland, but it should be a damp week nonetheless. In the Baltimore area, at least, it may not be damp enough to remedy developing drought conditions, though. A low-pressure system is expected to stall over the mid-Atlantic today through Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service. Showers and thunderstorms could crop up along the Interstate 95 corridor today, but the chances for heaviest rain later in the week are southwest of us along the Shenandoah Valley, according to the weather service.

The hunter-backed effort to bring wild elk back to western Maryland is gaining some steam, though fierce resistance remains in key quarters. A survey done by pro-hunting groups finds that nearly three-fourths of Marylanders asked favor restoring the large, majestic ungulates to the state's mountainous region, which hasn't seen any of the animals since the 1700s. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has been working with the Maryland Legislative Sportsmen's Foundation and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to review the biological, social and economic feasibility of restoring the species in the state.  The telephone survey, done by Responsive Management , a Virginia-based polling firm, was underwritten by the two foundations, according to a DNR press release about it. While the survey found widespread public support for bringing elk back to Maryland, the survey also found a strong current of opposition among some western Maryland farmers and others  who feared the large animals could jeopardize their livelihood, spread disease or damage their property.

The Maryland Department of the Environment on Tuesday extended a drought watch to western Maryland and parts of central Maryland. A drought watch was already in effect for the Eastern Shore since April 13. The drought watch includes all of Harford and Carroll counties and parts of Baltimore and Howard counties, as well as Frederick County and points west. It doesn't include areas that get water service through Baltimore city. MDE issues a drought watch when at least two indicators show developing drought conditions.

The last thing you'd think Maryland's Republican party needs would be a nasty internecine fight, but that's what it got at its annual convention over the weekend. Rather than unity in the effort to overcome a massive voter registration disadvantage, chronic fundraising problems and a frequent lack of competitive candidates for state-wide offices, the party became focused on a divisive race for an obscure position: national committeewoman. In the end, Audrey Scott, a GOP stalwart who has held a variety of elected and appointed posts, including a stint as state Republican chairwoman, was defeated by a heretofore little known, 37-year-old Baltimore woman, Nicolee Ambrose.

ON THE SITE... Second suspect arrested in taped beating by courthouse :  Shayone Davis, 20, is being held on $750,000 bail on charges of armed robbery and two counts of assault. Police have identified her as the woman seen in the video dancing, then slapping the victim across the face. Cause of 3-alarm fire in Canton warehouse still to be determined : Maryland Department of the Environment and federal EPA officials were on the site of a fire at Eastern Plating Co. on Monday, but fire officials were not yet able to investigate the cause of the blaze because of dangerous conditions.

It's a wet, snowy day in Western Maryland. The storm may not dump as much snow in Maryland as expected, or as much as has already fallen a bit further north, though. Traffic cameras show slick roadways and white on everything else. Forecasters are calling for 2-4 inches in Allegany and Garrett Counties, according to the National Weather Service. Two inches were reported in Frostburg as of 7 a.m., according to a weather spotter report to the National Weather Service.

Some weather models are predicting snow in Western Maryland on Monday, on the tail end of the rainy system expected to move through this weekend. But the chances are slim and variable, according to AccuWeather meteorologists. Moisture from a storm moving up from the Carolinas could meet cold air coming from the north, potentially producing the most snow in western Pennsylvania and New York, AccuWeather blogger Elliot Abrams wrote. But AccuWeather severe weather blogger Henry Margusity cautioned   factors including "the temperatures in the lower level of the atmosphere, the time of day the snow falls and the intensity of the snow" could determine whether it's something or nothing.

Two partner organizations dedicated to ending hunger in Maryland for more than 20 years have merged. The Maryland Food Bank and Food Resources of Hagerstown have united to form the Maryland Food Bank – Western Branch, a facility that will become a central distribution point for a network of more than 120 soup kitchens, pantries, shelters and other community-based organizations in Allegany, Frederick, Garrett and Washington counties. The merger allows Food Resources to broaden services to the entire Western Maryland region and the more than 52,000 residents who are struggling to provide food for themselves, the groups said.