Please give a warm welcome to the BBJ's new restaurant, hospitality and tourism reporter
Morgan Simpson
, who started with us this week from the Venice Gondolier Sun in Florida.
In her first article, published this morning, Simpson shared news of two quick serve franchises
that are currently closed downtown. The
Royal Farms
at Light and Lombard streets shut down today for renovations as the
Burger King
across the street was closed for health violations.
You can get Morgan's latest reporting, and all BBJ news, straight to your inbox by signing up for our daily email newsletters here
.
Yesterday I reached out to '8 things' readers to source recommendations on where to get a nice bowl of hot soup downtown — and they came through. Suggestions included Café Poupon, Vietnamese spot Mekong Delta in the Charles Plaza Food Court,
Nalley Fresh
at Calvert and Baltimore streets and Werner's, which reopened in January
.
Now, here's what else you need to know this Thursday.
- Households can order four free Covid-19 rapid tests from the Biden administration again this year as the White House brings back the program first offered last year. Orders will start shipping next week before families and friends gather for the holidays. CNBC
- Rural communities in Maryland are getting a $50 million boost from the state to fund 114 economic development projects across 15 counties. Gov. Larry Hogan announced the grants yesterday, which come from the Rural Maryland Economic Development Fund. The
Maryland Department of Commerce
oversees the fund, but the grants were administered by the five rural regional councils. Projects include an agricultural biotechnology manufacturing center in Talbot County, improvements to the airport in Sailsbury-Ocean City, dredging in the West Ocean City Commercial Harbor, road improvements in Cecil County and much more. Press Release
- An increase in armed carjackings of ride-share vehicles in recent weeks has prompted the Baltimore police to create a task force dedicated to investigating the crimes. Police say the attacks are organized and being carried out by the same small group of individuals. So far, nine arrests have been made, all of juveniles, and five cases have been closed, some in the county and some in the city. In most cases, the attackers are carjacking ride-share drivers, robbing them, and using their app to answer calls and rob customers. Police are recommending customers double-check that the car and driver who shows up is the same as what is shown on the app. WBAL-TV
-
The Walters Art Museum
will raise salaries for all its employees by an average of 13%, with hourly pay to be set at $17 per hour for all full-time, part-time and internship positions. The changes, set to go into effect in January, come as the Baltimore institution is also in the midst of a unionization effort
. The pay increases follow a compensation analysis. Press Release
- A recent poll found that while three-quarters of Americans want members of Congress to work across the aisle, most have no confidence they will. The
NPR
/
PBS News
/Marist poll found 58% of respondents have no confidence Congress will compromise with the other side, more than double the level found in 2008. Broken down by party, 82% of Democrats want to see officials compromise to find solutions, compared to 66% of Republicans and 78% of Independents. NPR
- Earlier this month I reported on a new tea-focused cafe preparing to open in the former Patterson Perk space in East Baltimore.
Well, the cafe now has an opening date, Dec. 26. Culture Cup Cafe will also host an intimate "pop-in" on Dec. 17 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Visitors can grab a free small coffee or sample vanilla chai tea and a taste of rum cake.
- The Boys of Hampden are back with their annual pin-up calendar to raise money for the
Hampden Family Center
. The calendar features familiar neighborhood faces captured in ~saucy~ positions. It can be purchased through the end of the year at boysofhampden.com
. The Hampden Family Center offers health and wellness, mental health services, social support, youth enrichment and more to local families.
- Any guesses for the most-searched Christmas movie in Maryland? It's not too hard to believe that "Home Alone" tops the list, according to a study by educational research company
Scholaroo
. The classic 90s movie starring Macaulay Culkin was also the top choice of 17 other states. In second place was the 2018 animated version of "The Grinch." Baltimore Fishbowl
My favorite? It's a tie between two old classics: "A Christmas Story" and "White Christmas." But it's well-established I have the taste of an 80-year-old.
