The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs will be holding National Anthem auditions on Saturday, March 13 from 9 a.m. to Noon in the Legends Club at Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf. Weather permitting, auditions may take place on the field.

Those selected to perform will be assigned to one of the Blue Crabs 70 home games, based on their availability

More than 550 Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students competed in the regional Destination ImagiNation competition held Saturday, March 6, at La Plata High School. Thirty-four teams advance to the state-level competition, scheduled for April 10 at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

Ninety teams competed to solve one of five problems in the long-term academic event that challenges students to work together to apply creativity, critical thinking skills and their unique talents. Challenges are separated into three levels of competition: elementary, middle and secondary. Teams that place at the regional event advance to the state tournament.

GREENBELT, Md. (March 08, 2010) - U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Jhonte Norris Brawner, Jr., age 27, of Waldorf, Maryland, today to 10 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for possession with the intent to distribute crack cocaine.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Ava Cooper- Davis of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; and Charles County Sheriff Rex Coffey.

THE BOARD OF APPEALS FOR CHARLES COUNTY, MARYLAND has been petitioned by C.A. Bean, Inc. for a Special Exception for surface mining more than 10 acres, as provided in Article XIII, Section 297-212 and Article XXV, Section 297-415 of the Charles County Zoning Ordinance. The property is located at 29061 Rollins Lane, Charlotte Hall, Maryland, designated as Tax Map 58, Grid 19, Parcel 16. The subject tract contains approximately 125 acres in the Agricultural Conservation (AC) Zone. Approximately 69 acres are proposed to be mined. The Board is hereby giving notice that a Public Hearing will be held on this matter Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Meeting Room of the Charles County Government Building, La Plata, Maryland.

The Petition and Plats, filed on December 15, 2009, and Zoning Officer’s Report for Docket #1247, are available for inspection at the Office of the Board of Appeals located in the Planning and Growth Management Office, Charles County Government Building, La Plata, Maryland.

The U.S. Army is conducting environmental restoration activities along several parcels of shoreline at the U.S. Army Blossom Point Research Facility (BPRF). In keeping with the Department of Defense (DoD) policy to seek community involvement in the restoration process, the U.S. Army is seeking input to determine if there is sufficient community interest in establishing a Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) at the BPRF.
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The BPRF, in Charles County, Maryland, has conducted a Munitions Response Site Prioritization Protocol (MRSPP) at four (4) sites along the Nanjemoy Creek and Potomac River. Under the MRSPP, these four munitions response sites (MRS’s) have been evaluated based upon their safety and environmental
hazards. Response actions for two of the sites, the Nanjemoy Creek MRS and the Potomac River South MRS, were identified in an Engineering Evaluation Cost Analysis in the spring 2008. To date, the following non-time critical removal actions (NTCRA) have been implemented: 1) annual surface sweeps; 2) posting of signage along these shoreline areas; 3) installation of shoreline control structures for erosion control; 4) establishment of land use controls; and 5) notification and postings at local marinas.

Purpose of a Restoration Advisory Board

The purpose of a Restoration Advisory Board is to provide those community members who may be affected by environmental restoration activities at the BPRF a forum to discuss and exchange information with decision makers.

...meeting minutes: Tuesday, February 9, 2010 and Wednesday, February 10, 2010

About 100 of the nation’s nearly 15,000-plus school systems have moved to four-day school weeks, and dozens more are considering it.

Why are they considering the change?

The move would prevent layoffs and save money on transportation, heating and overhead.

Times may be tight, but the state agency that oversees many of Maryland’s entertainment and sporting facilities believes it can make up the difference by continuing to attract more high-profile events to Baltimore.

The Maryland Stadium Authority, which manages Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium, will likely be getting roughly the same operating budget from the state for fiscal 2011 as it did this year, save a $15.7 million reduction from non-budgeted funds that was for one-time capital expenditures this fiscal year. The state money goes toward debt service on facilities.

Although timing for the PATH project is still uncertain, residents in southern Frederick County are taking pre-emptive action to halt the plan.
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The substation site was chosen because it is where power lines from three utility firms meet. It could eventually be part of a more extensive transmission line continuing into New Jersey.

Allegheny Power said the line is needed to meet future regional demands for electricity. PJM, the regional authority that oversees electric power transmission in 13 states, is planning to have updated need assessments in June.

The Maryland State Highway Administration has launched the second phase of its program to add travel time information to its overhead message boards.

The program, launched in January on Interstate 95 north of Washington, has expanded to Maryland’s other interstates, including the Capital Beltway and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. The signs display estimated driving time to major roadways.
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Before leaving home or work, drivers can find the same travel time information on the State Highway Administration Web site. The travel time messages are automatically removed from the overhead signs if there’s an accident or other event that has closed lanes.

A California Highway Patrol officer helped slow a runaway Toyota Prius from 94 mph to a safe stop on Monday after the car’s accelerator became stuck on a San Diego County freeway, the CHP said.

Prius driver James Sikes called 911 about 1:30 p.m. after accelerating to pass another vehicle on Interstate 8 near La Posta and finding that he could not control his car, the CHP said.

The latest state income tax payments to local governments fell $61.8 million year over year, piling new fiscal woes atop budgets already reeling from state cuts, high snow removal costs and earlier revenue declines.
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Prince George’s and Charles counties were alone among Maryland’s 24 jurisdictions to receive more in the fourth quarter of 2009 than in 2008.

Builders, environmentalists and government officials have reached a compromise in a looming legislative fight that threatened to weaken Maryland’s new storm-water pollution rules, they said Monday.

The deal, hammered out over more than a week of negotiations, would head off a move by lawmakers in Annapolis to soften or delay by up to a decade the requirements for controlling runoff from development, which are supposed to take effect May 4.
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Under the deal, the state Department of the Environment would amend its rules to “grandfather” some residential and commercial developments already in the planning pipeline. The state also would grant some flexibility to redevelopment projects in designated growth areas, easing how much they must control runoff from lawns, buildings and pavement.
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Under the compromise, projects that already have preliminary approval from county or municipal government would be able to proceed in many cases under existing, less-stringent, storm-water rules. Developers would get up to three years to get final local approval of their plans, but they would have to start construction by 2017 or be forced to install more runoff controls

Just as sharks smell blood in the water, foreclosure rescue scammers can pick out desperate homeowners on the brink of foreclosure. Many homeowners are unaware of their options and panic. In the latest issue of The Consumer’s Edge, Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler warns homeowners and consumers of foreclosure rescue scams, and offers tips on how to avoid them.

Scam artists learn of homeowners in distress by scouring through public foreclosure notices in newspapers and government offices. Offering “foreclosure rescues,” “mortgage consulting” or “foreclosure services,” they contact the homeowners by phone, in person or by mail, promising a fresh start only if the homeowners act immediately. With promises to save the homeowners from foreclosure, scam artists dupe desperate homeowners out of money by:

Results released last week from the statewide Teaching, Empowering, Leading and Learning (TELL) Maryland survey show Charles County teachers generally feel satisfied with their working conditions, but would like to play a larger role in the decision-making processes.

Released by Gov. Martin O’Malley recently, the results are from a survey taken by nearly 43,000 educators statewide and by 93.21 percent of certificated staff in Charles County. The survey asked teachers to rate everything from technology and school environment to training and leadership in the school. In May, individual school results were made available to principals and staff to provide time for review and development of plans based on the results. Survey data for the state, county and individual schools are posted at www.tellmaryland.org.