Maryland Archives - Page 345 of 395

Remodeled Under Armour Store Now Open in Montgomery Mall

Published September 30, 2022 at 11:44AM | Updated September 30, 2022 at 2:49PM

Under Armour has reopened its newly renovated location in Montgomery Mall (7101 Democracy Blvd, Bethesda) and is offering a 20% discount promotion throughout the weekend. The store now features a youth clothing section, 3D foot scanner, digital boards, and upgraded fitting rooms.

Kevin Plank, founder of Under Armour, grew up in Kensington. He is the youngest of five brothers born to William and Jayne Plank. His father was a prominent real estate developer who passed away in 1993. A local project of his was the Al Marah subdivision off River Road, just off of exit 39 on the Beltway. His mother was the mayor of Kensington for 8 years, from 1974-1982. She went on to direct the Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs at the United States Department of State under President Ronald Reagan, and was a real estate broker until the early 2000s. Read more about Kevin’s story here.

Governor Hogan Announces 4.5% Cost of Living Adjustment Increase For All State Employees

By Patrick Herron

Published September 29, 2022 at 2:52PM

ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Larry Hogan today announced that all employees across state government will receive a 4.5% cost of living adjustment (COLA )increase— effective November 1, 2022—as part of a series of measures to enhance statewide workforce recruitment and retention efforts.

The governor’s action follows official budget projections from the Board of Revenue Estimates showing that, for the second consecutive year, the state is reporting a multi-billion dollar surplus. Overall, after inheriting a $5.1 billiion structural budget deficit, the governor will leave office with a record $5.5 billion in reserves—a more than $10 billion swing in the state’s fiscal fortunes under the Hogan administration.“

New Law Takes Effect This Saturday, October 1; Governor Hogan Proclaims October as Move Over Awareness Month

By Patrick Herron

Published September 29, 2022 at 1:46PM

“Moving over and slowing down when passing a vehicle stopped on the highway isn’t just a matter of following the law—it is about saving lives,” said Governor Hogan. “This is especially critical to protect the crews and first responders who are working on the roads within inches of fast-moving traffic. We can all do our part to make sure that everyone gets where they’re going safely.”

The governor is issuing this proclamation today as part of a unified statewide effort—including an event being held this afternoon in Upper Marlboro featuring attendees from the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA), the Maryland General Assembly, and AAA Mid-Atlantic.

New 227 Area Code Coming to Maryland

By Patrick Herron

Published September 29, 2022 at 10:38AM | Updated September 29, 2022 at 11:33AM

The addition of the ‘227’ code is due to the dwindling supply of existing 240/301 phone numbers. According to the PSC, “the remaining supply of available telephone numbers in the 240/301 area is estimated to be exhausted in the second quarter of 2023 – requiring the establishment of a new area code to support future demands in the region. Customers with a 240 or 301 area code will maintain their existing area codes and their phone numbers will not change. Under the implementation plan approved by the PSC, no new 227 numbers will be assigned in the area until the remaining 240/301 numbers are completely exhausted.”

Virginia Declares State of Emergency in Advance of Hurricane Ian; Maryland Governor Larry Hogan Monitoring Storm

By Patrick Herron

Published September 29, 2022 at 9:53AM

On Wednesday, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin declared a State of Emergency ahead of Hurricane Ian, which is expected to start impacting parts of DC, Maryland, and Virginia on Friday evening. According to a press release, the State of Emergency “allows the Commonwealth to mobilize resources and equipment needed for response and recovery efforts. Virginians should be prepared for the potential of severe rainfall, flooding, wind damage, tornadoes, and other storm-related impacts.” The full text of Executive Order 22 is available here.

Governor Hogan Announces Additional $10 Million in Funding Now Available Through “Re-Fund The Police” Initiative

By Patrick Herron

Published September 28, 2022 at 3:15PM

“Community Safety Works is an important component of our our Re-fund The Police Initiative, providing resources to local business owners and community organizations for crime prevention efforts in neighborhoods across the state,” said Governor Hogan. “This additional $10 million in funding will help residents and other stakeholders who are actively trying to make their communities safer and more secure.”

Improvements include:

Attorney General Frosh Brings Action Against Crypto Interest Account Provider

By MCS Staff

Published September 28, 2022 at 9:33AM

Per The Office of the Attorney General’s Securities Division: The Attorney General Securities Division announced it was announced that it has filed a Cease and Desist against a cryptocurrency interest account provider, Nexo Group and its co-founder Antoni Trenchev (collectively, “Nexo”), ordering them to cease and desist violating Maryland law in connection with the offer and sale of Nexo’s Earn Interest Product (EIP) accounts. The Securities Division alleges that Nexo, operating as an unregistered broker-dealer, offered and sold unregistered securities in the form of its EIP accounts. In the course of offering these accounts, the Securities Division also alleges that Nexo misrepresented and omitted material facts such as its regulatory compliance and information related to interest generation.

Maryland has been participating in a working group of state securities regulators focused on interest-bearing cryptocurrency accounts. Through this coordinated effort, Maryland participated in the investigation of Nexo. The Nexo Order follows a string of similar state actions filed against BlockFi, Celsius, and Voyager. Celsius and Voyager are currently in Chapter 11 bankruptcy following a sharp decline in the cryptocurrency market over the summer.

Maryland United States Attorney’s Office Resolves Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Against Maryland Developer Involving Multifamily Housing Complexes

By MCS Staff

Published September 28, 2022 at 7:08AM

Per the Office of the U.S. Attotney, District of Maryland: United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced today that Maryland-based developer Stavrou Associates, Inc. and related entities have agreed to pay $185,000 to settle claims that they violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to build 11 multi-family housing complexes in Maryland with required accessible features for people with disabilities. As part of the settlement, the defendants also agreed to make extensive retrofits to remove accessibility barriers at the complexes.

The government’s lawsuit, filed today, raises similar allegations against a second Maryland-based developer, Humphrey Stavrou Associates, Inc., and related entities, which were involved in building six other multi-family housing complexes in Maryland. The lawsuit involving those properties is unaffected by today’s settlement.

5 of Top 7 Private High Schools in Maryland are in MoCo, According to Niche

By MCS Staff

Published September 27, 2022 at 5:34PM

Niche, a rankings and review resource that provides information on K-12 schools, colleges, cities, neighborhoods, and companies across the United States, has just published its new 2023 Best Schools and Districts rankings. Now in its ninth year, the rankings include updated data for 92,743 public schools, 30,112 private schools, and 11,820 school districts nationwide. 5 of the top 7 private high schools in Maryland are located in Montgomery County, with Bethesda’s Holton-Arms School earning the top spot.

Per Niche: “The 2023 Best Private K-12 Schools ranking is based on rigorous analysis of key statistics and millions of reviews from students and parents. Ranking factors include SAT/ACT scores, the quality of colleges that students consider, student-teacher ratio, private school ratings, and more. Data sourced from the U.S. Department of Education, Niche users, and the schools directly. Read more on how this ranking was calculated.”

7 of Top 10 Public High Schools in Maryland Are in MoCo; All MCPS High Schools In Top Half of Rankings, According to Niche

By MCS Staff

Published September 27, 2022 at 4:27PM | Updated September 28, 2022 at 5:44AM

Niche, a rankings and review resource that provides information on K-12 schools, colleges, cities, neighborhoods, and companies across the United States, has just published its new 2023 Best Schools and Districts rankings. Now in its ninth year, the rankings include updated data for 92,743 public schools, 30,112 private schools, and 11,820 school districts nationwide. 7 of the top 10 public high schools in Maryland are located in Montgomery County, with Poolesville High School earning the top spot (All MCPS schools listed can be seen below and there are 282 public high schools in the state).

Per Niche: “While traditional rankings rely almost exclusively on metrics like test scores and academic performance, Niche’s rankings combine user input — ratings from current students, alumni, and parents — with quantitative data from sources like the U.S. Department of Education to evaluate teachers, resources and facilities, extracurricular activity opportunities and more. The 2023 Best Schools rankings include 2,906 newly ranked public schools, 1,018 newly ranked private schools, and 547 newly ranked school districts across the country.”

Governor Hogan Announces Launch of Small Acreage Cover Crop Program to Support Urban Agriculture

By MCS Staff

Published September 27, 2022 at 3:48PM

Initiative Aimed at Helping Historically Underserved Farmers and Communities

Per the State of Maryland: Governor Larry Hogan today announced the launch of a Small Acreage Cover Crop Program to support small farm producers and urban agriculture. The pilot program is operated by the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) and aimed at helping historically underserved farmers and communities build healthy soils, increase yields, sequester carbon, and improve local water quality. Financial assistance for this program is capped at $1,000 per grower, per year. “The incredible character, work ethic, and resilience of our farmers has been an inspiration to me and to all Marylanders,” said Governor Hogan. “Grant programs like these demonstrate our commitment to ensuring that all our farmers continue to be good stewards of the land and that agriculture remains our state’s number one industry.”