Give us about fifteen minutes a day, and we will give you all the local news, local sports, local weather, and local events you can handle.
SPONSORS: Many thanks to our sponsors… Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Hospice of the Chesapeake, and the Maryland Higher Education Commission!
Today…
A horrible crash on 695 kills six construction workers. A man was indicted on arson charges stemming from a shed fire behind a closed Checkers restaurant in Pasadena. The Annapolis Police have launched a gun violence dashboard on their web page. The City of Annapolis is in hot water with the Department of the Environment for not reporting poop in the water. Anne Arundel County is the proud new owner of a grain elevator. Historic Annapolis is hosting a story time in the Paca Garden this Saturday and it sounds so cool for younger kids! And, of course, we have some pod news for you as well. As for me, I am at the Annapolis Film Festival until Sunday–so you will see me at the movies!
It’s Thursday and that means that Trevor from Annapolis Makerspace is here with your Maker Minute!
And as usual, George from DCMDVA Weather is here with your local weather forecast! Please download their APP so you can keep on top of the local weather scene!
The Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief is produced every Monday through Friday at 6:00 am and available wherever you get your podcasts and also on our social media platforms–All Annapolis and Eye On Annapolis (FB) and @eyeonannapolis (TW)
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TRANSCRIPT:
Good morning, it is Thursday, March 23rd, 2023, and THIS is your Eye On Annapolis Daily News Brief presented by Annapolis Subaru and the SPCA of Anne Arundel County.
Yeah, baby—I’ve been looking forward to today for a long time! The start of the Annapolis Film Festival and if anyone needs me between tonight at 5 pm and Sunday at about 10 pm, you are SOL because I will be at the movies! Anyhow, we have some news. So, shall we?
An absolutely terrifying and horrible story out of Baltimore County. Yesterday afternoon, for some unknown reason, a car entered an active work zone on the Beltway near Security Boulevard, striking and killing six construction workers. The car ultimately rolled over, and the driver was transported to shock trauma. The State Police have just begun the investigation and are in the process of notifying all the next of kin. While not in Anne Arundel County, when we know more, we’ll let you know. Certainly, a good time to remind everyone to slow down and pay attention in construction zones and pull to the left when you see a disabled vehicle or other emergency or service vehicle on the side of the road.
Back on February 25th, the Anne Arundel County Fire Department responded to a shed on fire behind a closed Checkers restaurant on Mountain Road in Pasadena. When they arrived, they saw a male adding items to the fire before fleeing. Police located the suspect, who was positively identified by the 911 caller who witnessed him starting the fire. The 39-year-old man with no fixed address was arrested and charged that night. Now, well, on March 20th, a Grand Jury returned an indictment charging him with 2nd-degree arson, malicious burning, and reckless endangerment. No trial date has been set and a public defender represents him.
The Annapolis Police have launched a dashboard about gun violence. It is a pretty decent dashboard showing calls for shots fired, shootings, and homicides by gunfire. It has data from 2015 to the present and to be honest, it is a bit alarming. It does not have other types of violent crime, such as rapes, stabbings, and the several axe attacks we saw last year. You can see it on the department’s website. Head to Annapolis.gov then click on the City Departments link, then the Police link, and then there is a link on that page to take you to the dashboard.
The City of Annapolis is in a bit of trouble with the Maryland Department of the Environment. A resident reported a white powder substance and sewage small at Hawkins Cove off of Spa Creek back in February. The City told the resident it was just a fire extinguisher that had been discharged. The Department of the Environment also got a complaint and went out to the site on March 13th and discovered it was not a fire extinguisher but there was a 1000-gallon raw sewage leak into Spa Creek, and the white powder was lime used to disinfect the area and not a discharge from a fire extinguisher. The MDE issued a report and potentially can fine the City for failing to report the sewage spill as the law requires reporting within 5 days. What’s interesting is that the City erected no swimming signs so they knew it was a sewage issue; yet told the resident that reported it that it was nothing to worry about just a fire extinguisher.
County Executive Pittman is helping out the agriculture community. Down in Lothian, Perdue operated a grain elevator for many years. It became unprofitable, and they moved to shut it down, which would directly impact farmers’ livelihoods. Through partnerships and political pressure, Perdue kept it running for a year and the County has agreed to buy it and operate it. The cost is $1.25 million dollars and the deal will close after an appraisal, an environmental assessment, and county council approval!
Hey, if you were in college and paused your education during COVID–because face it, going to school in that mess sucked. The Maryland Higher Education Commission has a LOT of ARPA money available to help you get back on track and finish up. You need to be eligible for in-state tuition, earned at least 45 hours at a community college or 90 in a 4-year school, and be a Maryland Resident. MHEC.Maryland.Gov will get you started!
And if you are not at the film festival this weekend and have some kids at home, this is cool. Historic Annapolis hosts these storytime events in the Paca Gardens. This week it is a book called Mae Among Stars which explores the importance of encouraging children’s dreams and it is about the first African American woman to travel in space. Annapolis.org is where you can get tickets it is $10 per child and includes the reading, some songs, a craft project, and time to explore. Get’s underway at 10 am, and it’s geared to the 3-7 crowd! Pretty awesome if you ask me!
OK, that’s all I got news-wise! Podcast stuff– Up this weekend on the Local Business Spotlight, we hear from Raelynn at Natural Benefits. Next week it is the Annapolis Dragon Boat Club. And as I mentioned earlier this week–check out the bonus pods we dropped with the directors of some films at the Annapolis Film Festival. If you need tickets, you can buy individual ones at AnnapolisFilmFestival.org
And that IS a wrap. As always, thank you all for being you. And a thank you to the sponsors for today’s Daily News Brief- Annapolis Subaru, the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Solar Energy Services, Hospice of the Chesapeake, and the Maryland Higher Education Commission!
OK, so now you need to hang tight because we have George from DCMDVA Weather with the only locally forecast weather report you will find, and of course, Trevor is here with your Annapolis Makerspace Maker Minute. All that coming up in just a bit.
