Author: eastbaltco

Wise Avenue VFC Cancels 2020 Train Garden


The Wise Avenue Volunteer Fire Company in Dundalk announced that they have canceled their train garden for 2020. Here is the statement on their Facebook page

“After careful consideration of all the factors, the Officers and Members of the Wise Avenue Volunteer Fire Company have made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 Annual Christmas Train Garden.

Our train garden, arguably one of, if not the largest in the State of Maryland attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year. Even during a non-pandemic situation, it is not uncommon for us to have people crowded into our hall and waiting in lines extending out of our front doors and around our building.

With COVID-19 still a public health concern, and with our physical constraints, we cannot envision a way, either through scheduling, social distancing, mask use, etc. to assure the safety of the public and our members.

Our primary goal is the safety and protection of life of the people and property in our community. We do not want to be in the position of potentially causing the needless spread of this virus. Also, as first responders we cannot afford to unnecessarily expose our members, which could ultimately impact our
ability to provide life-saving services.

We will be making sure Santa Claus still makes his rounds on the fire engine across the entire Dundalk community. Much like we did with the Easter Bunny last March and April, we can still bring Holiday cheer while keeping people safe.

It is our greatest hope that by this time next year this public health crisis will have passed, and we can once again resume this great Dundalk tradition.”

Woman Dies in Parkville Car Accident


One woman died following a vehicle crash in Parkville Monday morning.

Police responded to the crash just after 12 a.m. Monday, Sept. 13 when a Can-Am Spyder was traveling westbound on E. Joppa Road near Waltham Woods Road and struck another vehicle. The Can-Am lost control causing it to hit a median, roll over and eject both occupants. Baltimore County EMS transported the driver to an area hospital. The passenger of the Can-Am was transported to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center where she was pronounced deceased.

The passenger is identified as Elisha Denise Hemsley (30) of the 4000 block of Belwood Avenue in eastern Baltimore City. The occupants of the other vehicle were not injured.

The Baltimore County Police Crash Team is continuing to work to determine the cause of this fatal crash.

Middle River’s Orems Road to Close for Month


County Councilwoman Cathy Bevins reported that Orems Road in Middle River will be closed to traffic between Compass and Old Orems Road from Wednesday, Sept. 16 to Friday, Oct 16.

This area is the Aero Acres portion of Middle River.

The closure will allow crews to rehabilitate a 48-inch diameter sewer line. Construction traffic will be detoured to Fuselage Avenue and Compass Road.

Update on Gerst Farm Perry Hall Project


Fifth District Baltimore County Councilman David Marks gave an update about the proposed Gerst Farm project in Perry Hall.

Gerst Farm is located at 9328 Gerst Road behind the Honeygo Village Center and near the Joppa and Cowenton road traffic circle in Perry Hall.

Members of the local community had concerns of adding more traffic to the area and adding to an already overcrowded school system. The original plan called for the building of 317 townhomes/rowhomes on 47.61 acres of land.

Two more virtual meetings are scheduled on Tuesday, Sept. 15 and Thursday, Sept. 17. Here is a statement for Marks.

I would like to thank the dozens of Perry Hall residents who attended the first of three virtual meetings on roads, open space, and amenities in the Gerst Road corridor.

The overall theme of the discussion concerned the reconstruction of Gerst Road. Most residents who spoke seemed to support a road that is “pinched” with islands or some form of traffic calming to reduce speeding. There was support for dedicated bike lanes and sidewalks to improve mobility.

Residents from the Honeygo Village Center who spoke were concerned about connections to any future development at the Gerst Farm. The Strawbridge Terrace/Thomas Rankin Way connection was of particular concern. There was a suggestion to guide pedestrians to crosswalks near the existing roundabout.

Indian Trail Way and Thomas Rankin Way need to be evaluated. Options such as a traffic circle and/or speed humps are needed along Scott Moore Way.

The Glenfield Road entrance to Glenside Farms is still privately-owned.

Much discussion concerned the future of Gerst and Joppa Roads. Residents supported regrading the route to reduce the danger of cresting the hill from the south, which is important if there are no plans to widen the road.

In general, there was an appreciation for the connectivity in other residential projects such as Kentlands in Montgomery County. Information about that project can be found here: https://www.kentlands.com/home.

All High School Sports Seasons Could Be Held This Spring


The Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) postponed all high school sports and activities after all Maryland Public Schools are operating remotely for the first semester until Jan. 29 as a result of COVID-19.

Gov. Larry Hogan announced that Maryland is now in Phase Three of Recovery and there is anticipation that students could return to school campuses in February. If schools open, The MPSSAA has revealed its plan to hold a sports season that would include all three seasons, including fall sports. All seasons would have five weeks of interscholastic athletic competition.

The first sports season would start with the Winter Season. The Winter Sport Season Practice and Reconditioning would take place from Feb. 1 to Feb. 21 and the games and events would run from Feb. 22 to March 27.

The Fall Sports Season would bring with an unusually start of practice on March 15. The games and season would start on April 5 and would end on May 8.

The new Sport Season Spring would have practice starting on April 26 with games and events starting on May 17 and ending on June 19.

The future of the end of season MPSSAA State Tournaments were unclear.

“The MPSSAA recognizes the highest risk, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, is increased participation opportunities that includes statewide competitions among different geographic areas,” said a statement from MPSSAA.

“The MPSSAA will look for creative ways regarding these types of events and make
decisions as we get closer to the second semester.”

Eastern Tech Student Named National Merit Semifinalists


Lena Wang of Eastern Technical High School is one of 21 Baltimore County Public Schools [BCPS] students from nine high schools to be named semifinalists in the 66th annual National Merit Scholarship Program coordinated by the National Merit Scholarship Corp.

“Congratulations to these outstanding BCPS students for their academic achievement and to the teachers, families, and administrators who taught, challenged, and supported them,” said BCPS Superintendent Dr. Darryl L. Williams. “These students represent schools from across our district and represent the potential we see every day in all of our students, in all of our schools. Recognitions such as this inspire all members of the BCPS family to set and reach higher goals.”

More than 1.5 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by participating in the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NSMQT®). The highest scoring entrants in each state create the national pool of 16,000 semifinalists, which represents less than 1 percent of high school seniors in the nation. Most semifinalists advance to the finalist level (based on their academic records, recommendations and SAT scores) and compete for 7,600 National Merit Scholarships.

All of the honored BCPS students are:

Catonsville High School
Nikitha C. Mupparaju
Sean O. Nowak

Dulaney High School
Serena Chen
Grace Cong
Kristine C. Xie
Steven H. Zhang

Eastern Technical High School
Lena Wang

George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology
Elise T. Kylin
Lucas A. LaBuff

Hereford High School
Rishi R. Anand

Loch Raven High School
Alexander M. Spielman

Pikesville High School
Jacob D. Lane
Benjamin S. Matz

Towson High School
Shuming A. Mao
Daniel J. Melia
Noah J. Rich
Adam K. Viazanko
Eleuthera Wang
Tyler N. Yup

Western School of Technology and Environmental Science
Shaheer A. Imam
Benjamin K. Smith

Through its longstanding partnership with the College Board, which administers the PSAT/NSMQT, BCPS provides funding so that all students in Grade 9 can take the PSAT 8/9, all students in Grades 10 and 11 can take the PSAT/NSMQT, and all Grade 11 students can take the SAT – all at no charge to the students or their families. The PSAT test provides practice for the SAT and provides BCPS educators with important assessments of student strengths and challenges. Due to the pandemic, however, there may be changes in the testing offered during the 2020-2021 school year.

County Looking to Hire Crossing Guards


The Baltimore County Police Department needs men and women to serve as school crossing guards.

If you have been thinking of a way to become more involved in your community while getting paid to do so, this is the time to act. Parents, grandparents, college students or anyone who wants to help insure the safety of children to and from school are encouraged to apply.

The pay is $13.70 per hour and the time commitment is only two hours daily, Monday through Friday.

When schools have off due to inclement weather, so do you, without loss of pay.
You incur paid leave as you gain years of experience.

You may receive paid national and state holidays from September through June.
Equipment and uniforms are free of charge.

Those wishing to apply to the Baltimore County Police Department for the position of crossing guard need to be at least 18 years old. All applicants will undergo a background check, including fingerprinting and a medical screening.

This is the perfect part-time job for stay-at-home parents, retirees and those with a little extra time in the morning and afternoon. The best part of the job is the satisfaction of knowing that you play a major role in keeping the children in your neighborhood safe in their travels.

Additional information about the School Guard Team and how to apply to become a Baltimore County crossing guard are available online.

Train Incident Reported on Ebenezer Road


The White Marsh Volunteer Fire Company reported crews were on the scene of incident involving a train on Ebenezer Road at the CSX railway on Tuesday.

There are reports that a person was struck by a train but that has not been confirmed by Baltimore County police.

The train was reported stopped around 9 a.m. and Ebenezer Road is closed between Philadelphia Road and Pulaski Highway.

Dundalk Pedestrian Dies in Rosedale Accident


Baltimore County Police are searching for the driver of a vehicle that struck and killed a pedestrian in Rosedale Friday night, then fled the scene.

Police are looking for the driver of a red 2011 Chevrolet Camaro that struck a woman on eastbound Pulaski Highway near Rosedale Avenue and continued to flee eastbound. The woman was transported to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center where she was pronounced deceased. She is identified as Angel Diamond Wingate (20) of the 900 block of Dalton Avenue in Dundalk.

The vehicle was later located abandoned with significant front end damage on I-695 at Route 702.

Now police need the public’s help in identifying and locating the driver of that red Camaro. Police would also like to speak with the drivers or occupants of a white Ford Mustang and a red Ford Mustang that were in the area of the crash at the time it occurred, and may have witnessed the incident.

If you have any information that may help with this investigation, please, contact the Baltimore County Police Crash Investigation Team by calling 410-307-2020. Callers may remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward when submitting tips through Metro Crime Stoppers.

This is the second pedestrian accident on Pulaski Highway in Rosedale in less than a week. Gabrielle Harmony Durham was killed Friday, Aug. 28 on Pulaski Highway.