Maryland Business

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

That’s a good thing at the just-reopened tearoom of the Woman’s Industrial Exchange.

Irene Smith, new operator of the landmark Baltimore City restaurant located at 333 N. Charles St., placed a bright oil painting of the tearoom’s former waitresses above the mantle Tuesday. In their starched white aprons and blue uniforms, this legendary crew led by the inimitable Marguerite lends a nostalgic touch to the bright pink walls.

Talk about your welcoming committee!

Smith said business has been steady since the tearoom reopened Dec. 7. Patrons are still sticking with the old house favorite, the chicken salad, deviled egg and tomato aspic platter for $9.

Other menu items include vegetable pot pie, meatloaf and Tina’s mushroom pie with mixed greens — all served with delicious, bite-sized Maryland beaten biscuits.

Even Jacques Kelly, a staff writer at The Baltimore Sun and one of the city’s unofficial historians, has visited and loves the re-do, Smith said.

“We are seeing the old schoolers who are here who were skeptical,” she said. “And there have been lots of kids from Peabody coming in who we love seeing sitting next to the 70-year-old patrons.

“One guy comes in four times a week, orders the chicken pot pie and cleans his plate.”

Besides the new oil painting, by local artist Mark Becker, Smith has supervised other adornments.

The tearoom, open daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., is decorated and dedicated to Baltimore icons, cultural leaders and famous daughters. One dessert is dedicated to the two daughters of other local restaurateurs at the Chameleon Café in Lauraville: Fern and Gertie’s vanilla ice cream with chocolate Grenache.

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Even stingrays ought to have new digs.

That’s the theory behind a loan request scheduled to come before the Baltimore City Board of Estimates on Wednesday.

The board is poised to vote on a request for $500,000 by officials of the National Aquarium in Baltimore to renovate the stingray tank.

The exhibit, first opened in 1981, is one of the aquarium’s most popular, greeting all who enter because of its ground-floor location.

Inside the 265,000 gallon tank, dozens of stingrays of all shapes and sizes, some even with polka dots, glide through the water, back-lit by accent lights. They share the large tank with sea turtles and a few sharks.

The planned improvements would allow for reinforcements of the concrete walls in and underneath the exhibit and an upgrade to the electrical system.

The aquarium is located at 501 E. Pratt St. and is home to 16,500 aquatic critters.

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Baltimore is offering residents 10,000 newly-purchased smoke alarms armed with lithium batteries that will give the device a 10-year life.

In the wake of a deadly fire Thursday, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Fire Chief James Clack urged residents to call 311 to obtain a free smoke alarm if needed from the Baltimore City Fire Department.

“The single most important life-saving device in a home is a smoke alarm,” the mayor said.

“If you or someone you love is in need of a smoke alarm, call 311,” Clack added. “Within two hours, our firefighters will be at your front door to install your smoke alarm. Our goal is to achieve zero fire deaths in the City of Baltimore.”

This summer, the city fire department used a federal grant to purchase the new smoke alarms for distribution to those in need.

Thursday’s fatal fire claimed the life of 84-year-old Mary Hines, a retired school teacher and principal who lived in the 2600 block of E. Biddle St., and gutted her rowhouse. Fire officials said the incident remains under investigation.

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Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake tried out elements of what could be her inaugural speech Monday at the Greater Baltimore Committee’s 37^th annual Mayor’s Business Recognition Awards Luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at the Inner Harbor.

“Our number one goal in the next 10 years is to grow Baltimore,” the mayor said, echoing the theme of her Tuesday inaugural, “Growing Baltimore.”

“We need to seek dynamic growth at a time of limited resources,” she continued. “We must focus every resource we possess as people. We believe that  Baltimore can grow again.”

The mayor handed out 13 awards to business owners and corporations that have “demonstrated significant corporate leadership and service for a better Baltimore.” Among the winners: Arris; a Design Studio, Inc.; Kaydon Ring & Seal; KPMG LLP; Southern Management Corp.; and Constellation Energy.

“There are businesses who say it’s not enough to make a profit,” she said, addressing the winners and lauding them for giving back.

Wearing a purple suit she said is now her standard, Monday wardrobe choice after a Ravens victory, Rawlings-Blake was given a round of applause in anticipation of the 11:30 a.m. ceremony Tuesday at City Hall’s War Memorial Plaza.

A spokesman for the mayor said Monday afternoon her speech would center on making city government more efficient and making Baltimore “better, safer and stronger.”

The mayor is expected to unveil a 10-year plan for Baltimore early next year, said Ian Brennan, her spokesman.

Rawlings-Blake was first elected to the City Council in 1995 at age 25. Her inauguration will be for a full, four-year term. Formerly the president of the City Council, she took over the  mayor’s job on Feb. 4, 2010 after the resignation of Sheila Dixon following a conviction in Baltimore City Circuit Court on corruption charges.

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If it’s the end of daylight-saving time, it’s budget time in Baltimore.

And with a projected $50 million budget shortfall for 2012, many in city government are already singing the blues.

That’s expected to be the case during two budget workshops scheduled for December and January with Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced Friday by City Hall officials.

(Rawlings-Blake, a Democrat, is expected to easily win her first, full term Tuesday when she faces Republican challenger Alfred V. Griffin III and write-in Republican candidate Steven H. Smith in the general election.)

The first workshop will be held on Dec. 14 at the American Brewery Building, 1701 N. Gay St., from 6-8 p.m. The second one will be Jan. 21 at Cylburn Arboretum’s Vollmer Center, 4915 Greenspring Ave., from 10 a.m until noon.

The workshops are described as hands-on — and likely will require the use of a red marking pen.

“The Mayor’s Budget Workshops provide an opportunity for citizens to roll up their sleeves,” a release from Rawlings-Blake’s office said. “The workshop will begin with a short presentation and Q&A about the City’s fiscal situation.  Participants will then complete a realistic budget balancing exercise: deciding which services to cut, and which ones to protect.”

After the cost-cutting exercises, the mayor will open up the floor to recommendations on how to craft her budget “at a time of unprecedented fiscal stress.”

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Occupy Baltimore’s deadline of evacuating McKeldin Square is looming, and with it, looms the future of the city’s offshoot of the movement.

The city has asked the group to reduce its presence at the square to two people overnight. In exchange, they have offered to provide 10 pop-up shelters for daytime use.

I’ve been down to McKeldin Square about a half-dozen times since they first set up on Oct. 4, and each time it has been different — in the mood and in the setting.

On Tuesday morning, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before: a small child, maybe 2 or 3 years old. She was hanging around a group of Occupy Baltimore participants playing a game of chess. She was also wearing a bag of Utz Salt’n Vinegar chips on her sleeve, removing her arm every few minutes to eat a chip. It was not clear who the child’s parents were.

I spent some time watching this group and the child. When one of the chess players stepped away to go to the food tent, the child — with her Utz bag in-tow — took his place and curiously began reaching for the pieces on the board.

As she did, a young woman, also sitting around the table reached out with a broom handle and began to prod and lightly whack the child’s hand to keep her from ruining the game.

About 100 feet away, in the small village of camping tents, Whitney Saraglou and Cody Parsons (who both appeared in this video) were waking up and climbing out of their tent — which was donated to Occupy Baltimore. The two had been living on the site for five days, and both said they would be willing to go to jail for the cause. Both are unemployed, and Saraglou said she had been sleeping under an overpass until recently.

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Downtown Baltimore has been virtually realized.

Immersion Media created a virtual video of the track, showing what it will look like for IndyCar racers speeding through the streets in this weekend’s inaugural Grand Prix.

The 2.1-mile, 12-turn course starts on Pratt Street, in front of the convention center, and the first turn is a tight one onto Calvert Street. I could describe the rest, but it would probably be better to just see it for yourself.

“The track is fast, a little bumpy in places, tight and narrow,” the voice over says. “There isn’t much room for driver error.”

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The first glimpse of a long-awaited new retail center to be built on the waterfront in Canton will be unveiled Monday before a city design panel.

The Urban Design and Architecture Review Panel is scheduled to preview the master plan for the new development beginning at 11 a.m. at 417 E. Fayette St. in the city’s Department of Planning offices.

Architects for the project are Brown Craig Turner.

To be called Canton Crossing, the development is expected to hold a big box store, a grocery and other smaller stores to be developed by Chesapeake Real Estate Group. The 31-acre site was purchased from Exxon Mobil Corp. in June by BCP Investors LLC, a newly formed partnership that includes principals from Chesapeake Real Estate Group and Birchwood Capital Partners.

The site was once an oil terminal owned by Exxon Mobil. First Mariner Bank owner Edwin F. Hale Sr. had hoped to develop the parcel and include a Target and upscale grocery. But the recession hindered those plans and the banker assigned his interest in the property to BCP Investors.

The site is located next to the bank’s 17-story tower, located just off of Boston Street.

The new development will hold more than 275,000 square feet of retail space. Construction is expected to being in 2012.

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This may be one of my favorite posts so far to write. Mostly because I still get giddy over fireworks. The cacophony of fireworks and constant Sousa, popcorn and fried food smells… It’s the best.

We won’t provide an entirely comprehensive list of where you can find fireworks around the state, but here are a few spots to cover the Greater Baltimore area in case you’re in need of a fireworks fix:

Baltimore’s Inner Harbor will make the entire afternoon and evening a big Fourth of July party, starting at noon Monday. Children’s entertainment will start the fun events, including the ever-popular Milkshake Duo (hear your kids screaming yet?) The Pennsylvania Air National Guard Band plays at 4 p.m., followed by the Electric Brigade at 7:30 p.m. Fireworks start at 9:30 p.m.

Annapolis will start its Fourth of July with a parade at 6:30 p.m. on Amos Garrett Blvd. The parade ends in front of the Market House. Get your seats early.

Columbia will fire up the weekend with fireworks at Columbia Lakefront. Entertainment includes live bands on two stages and children’s entertainment.

Baker Park in Frederick is the place to be if you’re around there for the weekend. The 44-acre park is a natural locale for a day that lends itself for family fun. Holiday activities in Frederick include live music, a volleyball tournament, chili cook-off and a “most-patriotic” pageant.

And for you fellow Baltimore County residents, Oregon Ridge Park will have its usual Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Star Spangled Spectacular on Saturday and Sunday this year, starting at 8 p.m. I already hear Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture playing.

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Now that the weather’s nicer and traffic is just lousy around downtown already, commuting to work by bicycle is looking like a better option these days.

Waterfront Partnership and Bike Maryland are teaming up to host a workshop June 30 on the basics of bicycle commuting. Interested bicyclists will learn on how to get started on biking, staying safe on those dangerous roads, choosing the right equipment, routes and what to do in inclement weather.

All attendees will be entered to win a TREK 700 hybrid bike. The event, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., will be free, but attendees must register.

Check out Waterfront Partnership’s site for more details and registration.

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