mary pat clarke

A powerful voice joined the growing chorus to raise the state's minimum wage Thursday as Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller said it was time for Maryland to act.

City delegation leaders say raising minimum wage will be city's top issue of next General Assembly session; Miller says 'it's time' to hike minimum wage

Day one of Rotunda mall redevelopment finds construction already under way.

$1.6 million in renovations to two public schools in Charles Village are the first tangible results of the Homewood Community Partners Initiative that was announced in December. The Initiative was Hopkins' attempt to help 10 struggling communities in the north Baltimore area. This morning, Hopkins president and interim schools CEO were on hand to announce the renovations to Barclay and Margaret Brent elementary/middle schools.

Waverly Library branch, probably the most used in north Baltimore, is closing Aug. 24 for at least the next 18 months for major renovations,.

Rotunda redeveloper sets groundbreaking deadline at meeting Tuesday evening

Pickup of Sun story about robberies in north Baltimore and shooting in Roland Park

Remington holds a picnic to stress the importance of recycling and hands out bins. The mayor will be there. This is for a story about the community's hot status with a wave of redevelopment planned.

A two-year-old methadone clinic off the Avenue in Hampden is under fire from a Baltimore City councilwoman and merchants, who say it should be shut down because of drug dealing, loitering and other nuisances that are endangering thousands of children at schools and recreation centers in the immediate area.

Using funds meant to help poor families find affordable places to live, Baltimore's public housing agency has paid nearly $6.8 million to satisfy long-standing court judgments against it for lead poisoning suffered by six former residents when they were young children years ago.

After weeks of protests, the Baltimore City Council granted preliminary approval Monday evening to more than $100 million in public financing for the upscale Harbor Point development.

City officials have dropped more than 1,600 spouses, children and others from municipal health care coverage after workers failed to fill out forms to prove they were legitimate dependents.

Baltimore's stormwater fees are hard on businesses — and could have been worse.

New traffic circle, or roundabout, has opened to good reviews, although its supporters admit they are trying to be positive about the controversial traffic-calming measure.

The Baltimore Police Department promoted 15 commanders and put new faces at the helms of four patrol districts and key investigative units, moves that drew concerns from some City Council members who called for continuity amid a spike in violence.

The city's housing department has awarded exclusive negotiating rights to Baltimore Free Farm, an urban farming group, buy two vacant, city-owned lots that border the group's community garden in Hampden. Baltimore Free Farm beat out a developer who wanted to build housing on the lots.

Ticketmaster and other ticket sellers could add unlimited fees to the price of admission for concerts and sporting events under legislation approved by a key City Council committee on Tuesday.

Pastor of Hampden church celebrates 20 years in ministry

Angry city residents shouted "Shame," "Unbelievable" and "We're fed up" at Baltimore's spending panel Wednesday for not stopping a water bill rate increase of nearly 42 percent over the next three years.

Two key budgetary measures are headed to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's desk Monday after Baltimore City Council gave final approval to new stormwater fees and a pension overhaul.

The Baltimore Police Department is short almost one-sixth of the officers it should have as it girds for warmer weather and increased violence — prompting top brass to once again exceed its overtime budget and dig deep to fill patrol cars.

Ocean City MD police

Peabody Heights brewery in Abell will throw a party/open house for the public Saturday, 2-6 p.m., and give tours. The 1-year-old brewery is located in an old gingerale bottling plant. We see how its doing. It's a big operation, I'm told. Some community leaders from Abel, Waverly, Charles Village are expected to come.

As the City Council works to finalize Baltimore's fee structure, religious nonprofits are lobbying local lawmakers to charge their groups a lower rate than companies and other nonresidential property owners.

Some north Baltimore liquor stores have found a way around a new city ordinance that would eventually ban wine and liquor stores located in residential neighborhoods. Several stores are seeking rezoning from R1 residential to C1 commercial, with the support of community leaders and their City Council representatives.

Maryland Historical Trust unanimously votes to modify easement that prohibits new construction on the site of historic Crittenton property in Hampden.

Faced with a rash of reported mobile device thefts, local lawmakers want to ban the automated purchasing kiosks that have cropped up at area shopping centers and allow customers to instantly resell phones, tablets and music players.

Companies could see 85 percent reduction

With 12 shootings in Baltimore over the Memorial Day weekend, residents and police seek to tamp down the violence and prevent it from spilling over into the summer

The Maryland Historical Trust to hold a hearing June 6 — in Calvert County — on plans to redevelop historic site in Hampden. It's a statewide hearing on historical trust issue, so Sharon Price of Hampden and Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke will shlep two hours to get there.

The City Council's finance committee will hear testimony Thursday on the mayor's bill to require the city's civilian employees to contribute to their pension fund. Councilman Carl Stokes, who chairs the finance committee, said he expects the plan to pass.

Customers of Baltimore's water system would see their water bills go up 15 percent — more than expected — under a proposal the Department of Public Works announced Monday.

General contractor John Brooks has a contract to buy the Crittenton House, a historic property in Hampden, and says he wants to build 11 apartments and 19 townhouses on the site. But the Maryland Historical Trust would have to waive an easement that prohibits new construction, and area residents, backed by City Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke, are opposing the project.

Several prominent city leaders are pushing for the school board to name interim city schools CEO Tisha Edwards the permanent superintendent, rather than search for an outsider to take on the district's sometimes daunting challenges.

A city councilwoman is challenging Baltimore's plan to charge businesses some of the highest stormwater fees in the state — and use some of that money to help fund property tax cuts.

Action in Maturity (AIM), a Hampden-based transportation service for seniors in north Baltimore, celebrates its 40th year May 2. We talk to Esther Bonnet, 100, and City Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke, who founded AIM. We also talk to AIM director Liz Briscoe.

Area billboard companies are speaking out against a proposed tax introduced by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake this week.

Baltimore officials announced Tuesday they have suspended the city's troubled speed camera program amid fresh reports of erroneous tickets, this time involving a new multimillion-dollar camera network. The Baltimore Sun found that one of those new cameras has been issuing invalid tickets to motorists on The Alameda, apparently because the camera was programmed with the wrong speed limit.

The city presents new plans for a $3 million renovation and upgrade of the Waverly Library, after area residents and political leaders complained about previous plans that they said are bad.