Baltimore music venue 8×10 escapes permanent closure with new management, ownership — WJZ

Dali’s chief engineer latest to face criminal charges in Key Bridge disaster — The Baltimore Banner

Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys reaches its final days supporting young Black males — Baltimore Brew

Harford councilman ousted 16 months ago over dual-job conflict to return to his seat Tuesday — The Baltimore Sun

Surging inflation making it harder for Marylanders to make ends meet — Maryland Matters

When city and state leaders wanted to rejuvenate the Inner Harbor in the 1960s and 1970s, they didn’t start with a hotel or an office building or an apartment complex.

The first major building to open was the Maryland Science Center, a permanent home for the Maryland Academy of Sciences that opened 50 years ago at the intersection of Light Street and Key Highway.

The decision to start with a public attraction rather than a privately-owned building, civic leaders said at a 50th birthday celebration last weekend, set the tone for the Inner Harbor as a collection of tourist-friendly spaces and one-of-a-kind buildings that would give both residents and visitors reasons to come to the city’s revitalized waterfront less than a decade after the riots of the late 1960s.

But the science center that opened on June 13, 1976, was a far different structure from the one that draws 400,000 visitors a year now, after multiple changes to the building were made over the years, and its transformation still isn’t complete

On Saturday, civic leaders marked the science center’s 50^th anniversary by breaking ground on the latest capital improvement, a $2 million makeover of its harbor-facing entrance plaza. It’s the latest in a series of changes that started many years ago to “soften” the building and the area around it.

As part the event, leaders talked about how far the science center has come from its early days, how difficult it was to be the first public attraction alone by itself on the Inner Harbor shoreline, and how it has changed over the years.

Anchor institution

While its construction represented a vote of confidence in the Inner Harbor and gave the area a strong anchor institution, the science center faced challenges specifically because it was a pioneer on the waterfront, officials said. There was nothing around it that resembled the package of attractions that draws people today – no convention center, no National Aquarium, no festival marketplace, no Pier 6 concert tent.

Before the science center opened, in the pre-Harborplace days, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor was a working waterfront known for its dilapidated wharves, fishmongers and banana boats. No one thought of it as a tourist destination.

“The location was great, but there was nothing else around” for visitors, said James Backstrom, the science center’s first Executive Director. “It was a battle.”

As designed by noted architect Edward Durell Stone, the three-story science center had an austere, windowless, fortress-like appearance — stark and foreboding, seemingly impenetrable. While it looked as if it were designed to withstand another riot, it wasn’t exactly welcoming to families looking for places to take young children on a weekend.

And it could have been even less inviting.

According to senior educator Peter Yancone, Stone originally wanted to use reinforced concrete for the exterior rather than bricks. It was a time when examples of “brutalist’’ architecture were emerging in Baltimore and elsewhere, as seen in projects such as the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre by John Johansen and the McKeldin Fountain by Thomas Todd.

Stone had been selected largely because of his reputation as an experienced designer of museums and other cultural institutions, including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which opened in Washington, D. C. in 1971.

Phoebe Stanton, an art history professor at Johns Hopkins University and an architecture critic who served on Baltimore’s Architectural Review Board, was influential in preventing the concrete exterior.  

“Phoebe Stanton said, ‘If you do concrete the board won’t approve it,” and he changed the design, Peter Yancone, the science center’s senior educator.

While some people may think the windowless exterior was a response to the riots that followed the death of Martin Luther King Jr. and lingering fears about crime, that isn’t why the architect designed it that way, said Steve Himmelrich, former marketing director for the science center and now head of Himmelrich PR, a public relations firm that represents the institution.

Stone designed a building with few openings because he believed giving people inside a chance to look out the window would draw attention away from the interior spaces, Himmerich said. 

“The architect’s philosophy of museums was that there should not be windows because that would detract” from the people and activities inside, Himmelrich said. “He did a lot of museums, none of which had windows.”

Stone also had a reputation for designing flat-roofed buildings that leaked, and Maryland’s science center no exception, Backstrom said.

During the groundbreaking ceremony, Backstrom and Yancone were recognized as two employees who were part of the staff when the building opened 50 years ago.

Backstrom, now in his late 80s, served asexecutive director from 1976 to 1987. He came to the science center with his wife Raylene, who was also celebrating a birthday. Yancone said he started as a clerk in the science center’s gift shop and switched to the education department two years later. Now part of the science center’s senior management team, he’s the last original employee on the staff. 

Despite the early challenges that stemmed from being a pioneering institution on the waterfront, the science center found an audience. As other buildings opened – the World Trade Center Baltimore in 1977; the Baltimore Convention Center in 1979, Harborplace in 1980’ the Hyatt Regency Hotel and the National Aquarium in 1981 – it was no longer alone on the waterfront, although it was still set apart on the south side of the harbor basin.

Stone died in 1978 at age 76, and the Maryland Science Center was one of his last buildings to open. It started with three levels above ground, including a planetarium and an observatory – popular features after the 1969 moon landing.  

After Stone’s death, the building was altered many times in ways that made it less austere and fortress-like. The original entrance faced Key Highway and was reoriented to face the Inner Harbor in the 1980s. An IMAX theater was added in 1987. A dinosaur wing was added in 2004, designed by Design Collective of Baltimore and featuring more than two dozen dinosaur skeletons. Many new exhibits have been added to encourage hands-on learning and repeat visits.

According to science center President and CEO Mark Potter, the science center has had more than 15 million visitors since 1976.

“Over the past 50 years, no other institution has reached more people who share our interest in science than the Maryland Science Center,” he said. “We welcome usually over 100,000 school students every year across the state of Maryland on field trips” and take programs to all 23 counties in the state.  

Brick-lifting ceremony

The latest change to the building, a $2 million greening of the harbor entrance plaza and similar greening of the Key Highway entrance for school groups, is consistent with other efforts to ‘soften’ its appearance and make it more welcoming to visitors.

As designed by Mahan Rykiel Associates, the campus greening project calls for the mostly hardscape brick plaza to be turned into a landscaped green space with a sloping lawn, native plants, educational markers and a shade canopy. The bricks will be taken up and the land will be re-configured to support the new lawn and vegetation. The work has been designed to fit in with the improvements made to Rash Field to the east and West Shore Park to the north.  

The groundbreaking was actually a brick-lifting ceremony, because participants weren’t really breaking ground. Participants used shovels to lift bricks, symbolizing the actual removal of bricks from the entrance plaza.

“We’re going to change from a hardscape of brick and concrete to a greenscape that matches the work of our neighbors,” Potter said. The brick plaza and concrete steps “will make way for sloping grass fields, new trees providing shade, native plants for pollinators and a new seating area.” In addition, he said, the new landscape “will seek to reduce our impact on the environment, including mitigating storm water runoff in the harbor.”

As part of the anniversary, the cost of admission on Saturday was rolled back to 1976 prices — $1 for children and $2.50 for adults. There was a long line of people waiting to get in at 10 a.m., just as the birthday ceremony was getting underway. Every level of the building was filled shortly after the doors opened.

The event also highlighted the completion of the center’s “Transforming Our Future: 50^th Anniversary Campaign,” launched to raise funds to renovate facilities, improve sustainability and provide free and reduced-cost admission to students and Marylander on SNAP or WIC. The original goal was $10 million but the campaign ended up raising $15.2 million, 50 percent more than the original figure.

Actual work on the plaza will begin in the fall, after the summer tourist season ends. Before the brick-lifting portion of the ceremony, speakers talked about the role the science center plays in the Inner Harbor – and the life of the city and state.

‘Under the bones of a dinosaur’

Gov. Wes Moore, who like many of the speakers wasn’t born when the science center opened, talked about the symbolic gesture of making a public institution the first major building in the Inner Harbor’s transformation. (The site was officially secured in 1966 following approval by city voters – before the MLK assassination-related riots of 1968. Ground was broken in 1971 using a lunar drill from the Apollo program.)

“When Baltimore set out to reimagine and reinvent the Inner Harbor,” Moore said, “it started with a science center. It started with a place where a child can walk under the bones of a dinosaur, to make sure that our children were going to be the priority.”

Moore said his administration supports the science center because its mission is consistent with the state’s goal of educating Maryland children to become leaders in fields ranging from astronomy to quantum computing to medicine. His administration has provided funds to support the science center each year he has been Governor: $4.4 million in Fiscal Years 2024 and 2025, $3 million in Fiscal 2026 and $200,000 in Fiscal 2027.

“A world-class mission deserves a world-class facility,” Moore said. “No one leaves the Maryland Science Center with all of the answers but everybody leaves here with better questions and a better understanding of how we fit into this big, beautiful world.”

Before anyone becomes a scientist, Moore said, they have to be curious and they have to have a place where that curiosity is going to be supported and developed.

“For 50 years the Maryland Science Center has been exactly that, and we must make sure we are investing so that for the next 50 years the Maryland Science Center can be exactly that,” he said. “We are grateful for the years that this place has made Maryland better.”

‘This place is heaven’

Maryland Senate president Bill Ferguson, also under 50, said the Science Center can be a lifesaver for parents with young children.

Ferguson said he can recall Saturday afternoons “when it was raining outside and I had two- and four-year-old kids, and I thought ‘if we spend one more minute in this house, one of them may not make it out.’ It is the Water Play exhibit in the science center that has truly saved the Ferguson family. And so for that reason alone and for the hundreds of thousands of other families who have had that moment in the science center of saying, ‘Whew, this place is heaven,’ we want to say thank you, thank you, thank you.”

“For the record, we love when it rains,”Potter told him.

More seriously, Ferguson said, the improvements to the science center and nearby Rash Field are important to the city and the way it’s perceived.

“We’re at an unbelievably important time,” he said, “an important time for this city.” He called it a “moment in time where we are in a place of inflection, at a point of reenvisioning, at a point of saying what we have is not enough and we deserve more.”

After waiting many years to see improvements to Rash Field, the first phase is complete and the second phase will open later this year – also with state funding support.

“If you walk [from the science center towards Rash Field], you will hear kids yelling and screaming and having a blast,” Ferguson said at the birthday event. “You will see parents enjoying a beautiful new setting. You will see a construction site that is totally reenvisioning and reimagining what this space can be for the next 50 years. As we say ‘Happy Birthday’ to the science center, what we are also saying is we are so unbelievably fortunate for having assets  like this here in this state.”

‘The front yard of Maryland’

Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman, another speaker who wasn’t born when the science center opened, said her children have benefitted from going there.

“This is where my son discovered space,” she said. “This is where my daughter, I kid you not, built a miniature weather vane that she keeps in her room ‘til today…I look at my kids and I’m proud that they have the opportunity to do those things. I want to be sure that every child has the opportunity to do those things and you all make that happen.”

The science center is a place that helps children understand the world better, Lierman said.

“A child discovering that they can figure out how the world works, it’s empowering to that child and helps translate into their school work and more,” she said. “That’s really what the Maryland Science Center has been giving to Maryland families for 50 years.”

While more than 400,000 visitors go to the science center every year, the impact goes far beyond a visitor count, she continued.

“Think about what that means compounded over half a century,” she said. “Generations of Marylanders who have had a moment in this building that stuck with them — who went home, who asked a question that they never thought to ask before. Some of them are scientists today. Some of them are engineers, doctors, teachers. Some of them work here today. And some of them are just people a little bit more curious about the world and that’s so important, especially today.”

Lierman also praised the campus greening project for helping create a positive impression for visitors. She noted that the Science Center and the Inner Harbor are often the first areas that out-of-towners see when they come to Baltimore – “a city that they may not have seen the best news about sometimes.”

The harbor plaza renovation “will demonstrate the way that we build sustainably and beautifully to welcome people to the city of Baltimore,” she said. “This Inner Harbor is the front yard of Maryland and today we are taking a big step in greening our front yard, which is exciting.”

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball III agreed that the science center is a place that sparks kids’ imaginations.

At the science center, he said, “we are not just in a building, but we are helping build the builders, those who are going to look at the future and not just see what is but what can be, and write our next best chapter.”

Ball added that he doesn’t think turning 50 makes something old.

“As someone who is 50,” he said, “I can tell you it is very young.”

‘A welcome invitation’

No one representing Mayor Brandon Scott’s administration spoke at the event or took part in the brick-lifting ceremony. Former Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young, City Council member Zachary Blanchard, Comptroller Bill Henry and Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore president Dan Taylor were in the audience.

Potter said all of the capital improvements and programs reflect the science center’s primary goal of giving the citizens of Maryland a world class facility, “one that is accessible, inclusive and brings science to life through exciting exhibits, an engaging staff and outreach programs beyond our walls.”

Admission fees alone “are not enough for us to reach our goals,” he said. “We must rely on public support and private support – support from individual donors, funds from the corporate community and of course grants from foundations.”

Potter said the Maryland Science Center’s mission is as relevant today as it was 50 years ago.

“In 1976 we were innovators and trailblazers, starting the momentum that led to one of the country’s most celebrated urban redevelopments,” he said. “Five decades later, and with the renovation of our harborside entrance, we’re still a model for informal science education, the joy of scientific discovery and creating a welcome invitation to Baltimore and Maryland.”

Maryland’s First Lady Dawn Moore will preside over the official ribbon cutting and grand opening of The Fishmonger’s Daughter on Thursday at 11 a.m. in Catonsville. The restaurant will officially open for business on Friday.

The Fishmonger’s Daughter is a continuation of the 140-year Faidley’s Seafood restaurant tradition. Owned by Damye Hahn and operated with her son, Will Hahn, the new restaurant has undergone six years of intense and painstaking historical restoration in preparation for this moment. The space was once a branch of Heidelbach’s grocery store, which operated for decades before becoming Plymouth Wallpaper, which closed in 2017.

Damye and Will Hahn represent fourth- and fifth-generation members of the Faidley family. Bill and Nancy Faidley Devine, third generation owners of Faidley’s, will be at the grand opening event, as will community and regional leaders and other specially invited guests.

Taking over the former Plymouth Wallpaper building felt like a bit of a homecoming to Damye Hahn, who spoke to Baltimore Fishbowl about her family’s Faidley’s legacy, her Catonsville roots, and how the new restaurant came to fruition.

“I was born in Catonsville but grew up right over the line in Old Ellicott City,” Hahn said. “So, my parents are still in their home off of Frederick Road. I’ve only driven one road in my life, and that’s Frederick.”

She is proud of the fact that theirs is one of the oldest continually operating family businesses in Maryland.

“My great-grandfather started in 1886,” Hahn said. “We’ve been feeding a lot of people.”

Hahn spoke glowingly of Fishmonger’s culinary team, which includes Scott Bacon and Maria Bell. Bacon is the executive chef, and he was formerly executive chef at Magdalena, A Maryland Bistro at The Ivy Hotel. Bell is head of pastry and beverage and is a part-time instructor teaching hospitality management courses at Anne Arundel Community College. She holds a Grand Diplôme, Professional Pastry Arts from the French Culinary Academy.

“Everything we’re doing here is Maryland-centric from our menu,” Hahn said. “On the 18th we’ll have the Department of Agriculture here, because we are one of the few restaurants that do primarily sell Maryland crabmeat. We always have, because as long as we’ve been around, we’ve had connections with the shore and everybody on the Bay that will sell directly to us… For as old as we are, we want people to come in and know that they can get something that truly, truly speaks of Maryland and the Chesapeake.”

The Fishmonger’s Daughter is “True Blue,” a designation conferred by the state of Maryland on a restaurant that makes their crab cakes from local crabmeat. The program requires at least 75% of crab product used annually to be harvested and/or processed in the state of Maryland. As proof, the restaurant submits annual copies of sales receipts and invoices to the Maryland Department of Agriculture for verification.

“Everything Scott does is unbelievable,” Hahn said. “He’s taking the whole bodies of the crabs and boiling them down and making our crab stock. Everything is fresh-made and in house. Even all of our rolls and our all of our pastries are all made in house. All the syrups for all the cocktails are made in house.”

Hahn emphasized the importance of being Maryland-centric while connecting with the local businesses in their new location. In many ways, that is where the restoration came in. She has a background in art and has always loved restoration. Hahn attended the Schuler School of Fine Arts and has seen several large restoration projects through from start to finish, so the notion of a six-year project did not scare her.

Many of the tables are custom made by Jason Dawson at Maker’s Woodshop from the 100-year-old beams Hahn had to take from the roof of the building when she razed it.

“That’s all 100-year-old heart pine,” Hahn said. “When I gave him the project a couple of years ago… he decided to open up a retail store in Catonsville on Frederick Road. Well, that is his first retail outlet, and it’s down the street, so anybody who likes my tables can walk down the street and have Jason make them one.”

The taller tables are made from wood Hahn took from her father’s Ellicott City property over 20 years ago. The tables are maple, and inlaid with oyster shells that were served to their customers in the downtown Faidley’s location. When Hahn says nothing went to waste, she means it.

She salvaged the copper that graced the building’s storefront and Dundalk artist Eric Magnuson turned it into an enormous 22-foot sculpture of a rockfish. Hahn, her husband, and their friends cleaned up shingles that had been pulled off the building, and those shingles are now the scales on the rockfish sculpture.

“It was definitely a lot of cool things that were collaborative efforts by a lot of artisans local to Maryland,” Hahn said. “So, there’s a lot of fun things when you go through the building, a lot of little Easter eggs of history… The building has turned out beautifully. I put my heart and soul in this one.”

The restaurant’s capacity for seating is 168, and the event space on the second floor, called The Plymouth Room (a nod to the former wallpaper store), seats 300.

“It was almost as if this was kind of meant for me to take on,” Hahn said. “We’ve been asked probably a thousand times to open restaurants in different strip malls and different places, and it was never the right space.”

It turned out the right space was on the road she has always driven.

The Fishmonger’s Daughter is located at 720 Frederick Road in Catonsville, Maryland. It will be open for lunch and dinner service. Reservations can be made online at Open Table.

The Maryland Department of Health on Monday announced a consumer advisory for all cheese products made by Clover Hill Dairy due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Clover Hill Dairy of Mechanicsville, Maryland initially issued a voluntary recall of all requesón/soft ricotta products, alongside a consumer advisory from the state health department, due to possible L. monocytogenes contamination. The department also shut down the facility’s operating license on May 30, 2026. According to a statement from the MDH, a follow-up evaluation is ongoing with cooperation from the facility. 

L. monocytogenes is a type of disease-causing bacterium that can lead to Listeriosis, a potentially life-threatening condition. While mild symptoms can include fever, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, severe symptoms can include stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions.

The new advisory expands the list of recalled products from just requesón/soft ricotta products to all Clover Hill Dairy cheese products.

Clover Hill Dairy products are sold directly from their retail market, at farmers markets, and through third-party distributors, including in North Carolina, New York, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. According to the MDH, some products may be relabeled under a different retailer. 

If available, consumers should check the manufacturer information on packages. The label should identify the Clover Hill Dairy manufacturer permit or plant number as “24-128”. 

The recalled products include but are not limited to: 

Soft and Semi-Soft “Spanish Style Cheese Varieties:” Cuajada, Soft Cuajada, Soft Cuajada in Brine, Soft Cuajada Crumbs, Ricotta/Requeson and Soft Ricotta w/ Jalapenos (Requeson Con Chile)

Mild Cheese Varieties: Yummy Cheddar, White Cheddar, White Colby, Monterey Jack, Marble Jack, Fresh Cheddar Curd, Snack Pack – Assorted (White Colby, Marble Jack, and Yummy Cheddar), and 3-in-A-Pack – Assorted (White Colby, Marble Jack, and Yummy Cheddar)

Hard Cheese Varieties: Yummy Cheddar, White Cheddar, White Colby, and Snack Pack Sharp Stix.

Smoked Cheddar Cheese Varieties: Cheddar and White Cheddar

Flavored Cheeses: Horseradish and Old Bay Cheddar

Pepper Cheese Varieties: Jalapeno Cheddar, Pepper Jack, Sizzlin’ Colby (with Habanero Peppers), Snack Pack- Assorted Pepper Stix (Jalapeno Cheddar and Pepper Jack), and 3-in-A-Pack – Assorted (Jalapendo Cheddar, Pepper Jack, and Sizzlin Colby)

Smoked Pepper Cheese Varieties: Jalapeno Cheddar

Consumers can find information from the FDA, CDC, and MDH regarding Listeriosis and the recall here.

Vegan burger shop Slutty Vegan will be leaving its Baltimore Peninsula location at 2424 Distillery St. Suite 2120. Slutty Vegan was one of the first restaurants to open at the Baltimore Peninsula development in late 2024.

In a press release, Slutty Vegan announced it will be adding a new Baltimore location at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 2027.

Slutty Vegan remains open and a closing date has not been announced.

Read more at SouthBmore.

The Baltimore Pride Parade returned to Charm City on a sunny Saturday, June 13, taking over Charles Street with bright colors, music, and dancing to celebrate LGBTQ+ community.

From parade walkers wearing shirts that read “Free Mom Hugs” to members of the crowd dancing in the streets, Baltimore came together to show their love for one another.

Check out scenes from the parade in this photo gallery:

The Republican Party put Nino Mangione on the Baltimore County Council to complete the last six months of Wade Kach’s term. Kach resigned in May due to health reasons.

Now Kach wants Mangione gone.

Kach, a Republican, is endorsing environmentalist Theaux Le Gardeur over Mangione in the June 23 GOP District 5 County Council primary.

Read more at WYPR.

On a warm afternoon at the Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships, two brothers from Baltimore raced side by side on one of college track’s biggest stages.

When the men’s 110-meter hurdles final ended, University of Iowa senior Vaughn DeVaughn III crossed the finish line in third place with a time of 13.43 seconds. Just behind him was University of Maryland freshman Justin DeVaughn, who finished fourth in 13.47.

Only four hundredths of a second separated them.

For the DeVaughns, the race was about more than conference medals. It was the latest chapter in a family story rooted in track & field and years of competing together.

“We’ve been competing all our lives,” Vaughn said. “We always try to outwork each other to our best abilities and watch each other succeed.”

Vaughn DeVaughn Jr., father of Justin and Vaughn DeVaughn III, said that he and his wife Terria DeVaughn met while competing on the track team at Coppin State University. What started as a shared passion eventually became a family tradition. The DeVaughn brothers said that while growing up, track was a family affair. 

“Track and field has always been family time for us,” said Vaughn DeVaughn Jr., who has spent 24 years teaching in Baltimore City schools and serves as the track coach at Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School, also known as Mervo. “When they were growing up, Justin was always challenging his big brother and saying, ‘I’m gonna beat you, I’m going to beat you.’ And Vaughn would just kind of smile off, you know, being the big brother.”

Today, the DeVaughn family said, nearly every member of the family participates in the sport in some form. Their sister, Dominique, competes at the Division I level for Towson University. Younger brother Xavier is emerging as the next standout athlete. 

Both brothers attended Mervo, where their father coached them throughout their high school careers. Vaughn became one of Maryland’s most decorated athletes, winning multiple state championships and earning Maryland Male Athlete of the Year honors in 2022. He also helped lead Mervo’s football team to a state title.

Justin developed into one of Baltimore City’s top athletes as well, eventually earning Baltimore City Athlete of the Year recognition.

Having their father as both coach and teacher created unique challenges and opportunities.

“At the end of every year, I go to my children and I say, ‘Thank you for allowing me to coach,’” DeVaughn Jr. said. “I have high expectations for all of my student-athletes, but for them, I really have high expectations.”

For Justin, those years provided constant guidance.

“It was always good to have my dad next to me,” Justin said. “I could always get the advice and coaching that I needed from him at any time.”

After high school, the brothers’ paths diverged.

Vaughn began his collegiate career at Alabama State University before transferring to Iowa. There, he established himself as one of the Hawkeyes’ top hurdlers and earned places among the program’s all-time top performers in the hurdles.

Justin stayed close to home, enrolling at Maryland while balancing both football and track. The transition to college competition required adjustments, particularly moving from 39-inch high school hurdles to the 42-inch hurdles used in college races.

Still, he adapted quickly.

As a freshman, Justin ran the second-fastest 110-meter hurdles time in Maryland history and became one of the few freshmen to qualify for the Big Ten final.

The brothers had already raced once earlier in the outdoor season at a meet in Orlando, where Vaughn claimed the victory. The Big Ten Championships provided another opportunity.

For Justin, the race became personal motivation.

“The only thing I’d seen was the hurdles and him,” Justin said. “I wasn’t really worried about nobody else in the race. I was racing my brother.”

Vaughn admitted he felt the same way.

As the race unfolded, he caught sight of Maryland’s red uniform closing from a neighboring lane.

“I was like, ‘Oh nah, he can’t beat me,’” Vaughn said. “I had to make sure he didn’t get that one.”

He held on for third place while Justin finished fourth, creating one of the most memorable family moments of the championship. The moment after the brothers crossed the finish line was captured online, where Justin and Vaughn can be seen dancing in celebration.

The race carried additional significance because it marked one of the final collegiate competitions of Vaughn’s career.

Their father watched the results from afar while continuing to coach younger athletes back in Baltimore. When videos and photos from the race began appearing online, emotions quickly followed.

“To see him and then have his brother right there with him, it made it even more special,” DeVaughn Jr. said. “It was a beautiful moment.”

For Baltimore, the race represented two hometown athletes excelling on a national stage. For the DeVaughns, it reflected years of family sacrifice, coaching, and support. And for one afternoon at the Big Ten Championships, two brothers were separated by nothing more than four hundredths of a second.

Here are some recent notable stories published by Baltimore Fishbowl that are worth revisiting as you start your week:

“Jobs, jobs, jobs: Harborplace developer will hold ‘subcontractor outreach event’ to share information about job opportunities created by its project“: As it prepares to begin construction on the initial phase of its $900 million redevelopment of Harborplace, MCB Real Estate is getting the word out about job opportunities created by the project.

“World Cup Watch parties abound. Where will you watch?“: While there will be no live matches to watch in Baltimore, local fans can still enjoy World Cup festivities with watch parties across the Baltimore region.

“A contest to name the Maryland Zoo’s new red panda is on“: The Maryland Zoo needs help naming one of its newest residents: a juvenile red panda.

“The search is on for Tesla driver who mowed down 10 geese in Harford County“: Harford County Sheriff’s Office investigators are working to find the driver of a dark-colored Tesla sedan who struck and killed a family of ten geese in Joppa last week.

“Long-dormant Penn Station parking lot is reopening after development plans shift“: A large parking lot servicing Baltimore’s Penn Station, closed to the public for several years, is opening again now that Amtrak and local partners are reevaluating development plans and restructuring their partnership.

Put your local news knowledge to the test with David Conn’s Daily Dispatch Quiz.

6 questions. 90 seconds.

Today’s topics include:

• Officer’s decade-old confession surfaces
• Union issues demands to universities
• Surprise endorsements mid-campaign

See how you stack up against other quiz-takers on the leaderboard.

Brag – or lament – about how much you really know in the comments below.

A free DDQ coffee mug will be awarded to each month’s Leaderboard winner, as well as anyone who refers at least three people to become subscribed players.

The Daily Dispatch Quiz has an app, too. Download it by clicking the Dispatch logo at the end of the quiz.

Pets rescued from 3-alarm rowhome fire in Reservoir Hill – WBAL News Radio

Baltimore violence prevention summit to be held at M&T Bank Stadium – CBS Baltimore

A chaotic night in Fells Point as police monitor huge number of kids – FOX Baltimore/WBFF-TV

7 restaurants and cafes to visit in Baltimore beyond Pride Month – Baltimore Banner

Series of storms has been tough on Annapolis – WMAR-TV

Kach endorses La Gardeur over Mangione in Baltimore County council race – WYPR News

As it prepares to begin construction on the initial phase of its $900 million redevelopment of Harborplace, MCB Real Estate is getting the word out about job opportunities created by the project.

MCB and its general contractor, the Whiting-Turner Contracting Company, have scheduled a “subcontractor outreach event” for next week to provide information about bid opportunities stemming from the initial phase of its development at Pratt and Light streets.

As unveiled in October of 2023, the entire project is a phased, mixed-use development that includes two apartment towers, offices, shops, restaurants and public space, and work is expected to take several years to complete.

The first phase is called the Inner Harbor Park and Promenade Project. It has been designed to revitalize approximately 20 acres of waterfront parks, promenades, and public spaces along Baltimore’s Inner Harbor waterfront. It entails work on urban infrastructure, parks and reconstruction of portions of the Inner Harbor Promenade. Construction is expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2026.

In preparation, MCB and Whiting-Turner have scheduled a 90-minute briefing session to let subcontractors know about the many different jobs that will arise from this work and how companies can bid on them.

They say they’re holding the outreach event because they particularly want to ensure that Maryland minority, women-owned and disadvantaged businesses in the subcontractor trades are aware of the bidding opportunities that are coming up.

The outreach meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 17, from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the eighth floor of 1 East Pratt Street, an office building owned by MCB.

“Contractors and project stakeholders are invited to an informational session on the horizontal construction work associated with Baltimore’s Inner Harbor Park and Promenade Project,” MCB and Whiting-Turner said in an announcement about the meeting.

“The event will provide an overview of the Harborplace project’s horizontal site improvements, including the promenade, bulkhead and marine infrastructure, heavy civil, wet and dry utilities, landscaping, hardscaping, and public-space enhancements.

“Attendees will learn about subcontractor participation opportunities and the bid procurement process throughout the development. The session will also provide an opportunity to connect with project leadership, development partners, and industry peers.”

Companies already hired for design phases of the Inner Harbor Park and Promenade Project include: Gensler as the Master Architect; DesignHAND Architects as the Master Plan Partner, and Hoerr Schaudt as the lead Landscape Architect. Working with Hoerr Schaudt are Floura Teeter as Executive Landscape Architect; Mahan Rykiel Associates as Landscape Architect for West Shore Park; Fluidity as the Water Feature Designer; Hines Inc. as the Irrigation Designer, and Kanics Inclusive Design Services as the Accessibility Consultant.

Also, STV Inc. as the lead Civil Engineer; Ashton as the Signage and Wayfinding Designer; Biohabitats for Ecology and Soil Design; Daft-McCune Walker for Surveying and related work; Flux Studio Ltd. as the Lighting Designer, Hillis-Carnes as the Geotechnical Engineer; The Traffic Group for Signal & Signage and Pavement Marking and other transportation and traffic-related work; Moffat & Nichol as the Maritime Engineer, and Accurate Infrastructure Data Inc. for Subsurface Utility Investigation.

According to MCB and Whiting-Turner, the scope of the public elements of the Inner Harbor Park and Promenade Project includes Mass Grading, Heavy Civil, Site Utilities, Road Realignment, Traffic Signalization, Custom Waterfront Seating Features, Site Amenities, Water Features, Amphitheater Seating, Marine Bulkhead, and Park Green Space, Hardscaping and Landscaping.

“We encourage all subcontractors with relevant experience in the sitework and infrastructure scopes…to join us and learn about how to join our Team and help deliver a lasting legacy for Baltimore,” the development team says. “Let’s build something extraordinary together.”

There is no cost to attend the meeting, but advance registration is required. More information is available at www.ourharborplace.com/contractors.

The Maryland Zoo needs help naming one of its newest residents: a juvenile red panda.

The zoo has welcomed two red pandas recently, a mature red panda female named Aurora, and a juvenile female still waiting for the perfect name. The Maryland Zoo hopes its many fans might suggest the right one, and it is holding a contest/fundraiser to do it. Starting tomorrow (June 13), visitors can see them in the zoo’s brand new habitat, which had its ribbon cutting today.

Both red pandas arrived at the zoo around the same time, but they came from different locations. They were born in different zoos around six years apart. Aurora is around 7 years old and the juvenile red panda is around 1 year old. Red pandas are endangered, and require ongoing conservation efforts.

The fundraising opportunity gives people the chance to name the younger red panda. By supporting her care through donations, people will be entered for a chance to leave their mark on zoo history. Every donation of $20 earns one entry for the chance to help name her. Only credit card and Venmo transactions will be accepted, no checks.

One winner will be randomly chosen, then notified by the zoo’s development team. That winner will be invited to the Maryland Zoo to meet with the red panda keeper team to learn more about the pandas and their care. This meeting should take place in person or virtually by June 29, 2026.

After the meeting, the winner can submit three potential names for the animal care team’s consideration. Explanations for name choices are encouraged! Names must be appropriate in nature, and the zoo reserves final discretion in choosing the name. The panda’s name will be announced on July 2, 2026.

Every donation helps provide care and supports conservation efforts at the Maryland Zoo and beyond. Donate by June 22 at 10 a.m. to enter.

The Baltimore Orchard Project (BOP) is sponsoring Mulberry Madness on June 20 at the Waverly Farmer’s Market.

To celebrate the season, BOP had a poetry contest for students who found mulberries their muse. The winners will be announced at the BOP stand during Mulberry Madness at 11:15 a.m. The high school winner will get $100 and a native fruit tree of their choice, and they will read their poem at the festival. The elementary/middle school winner will receive $50 and a native fruit tree of their choice.

More Mulberry Madness at the market includes free samples of mulberry jam made by Atwaters, mulberry treats from Gertrude’s restaurant, and a mulberry-infused cocktail mix made by Baltimore Spirits for sale.

The festival celebrates the mulberry fruit as being both native and under-appreciated in Maryland. They get a bad rap because they stain cars and streets, but they also have a good side, in that they taste great in snacks, preserves, and pies. To further repair the poor fruit’s reputation, the market will have a free recipe booklet available with how to make muffins, cobbler, and other treats using mulberries.

Another perk of visiting the market on June 20 is that Baltimore city residents will be able to pick up a free fruit tree or shrub on a first come, first serve basis, while supplies last.

The Baltimore Orchard Project is a nonprofit organization that works with schools, congregations, and neighborhoods to plant orchards and harvest native fruit trees. The goal is to create food and lively ecosystems, which help urban communities where access to fresh food is limited. Since its inception, BOP has harvested thousands of pounds of food donations and planted fruit and nut trees to increase food sources for those in need.

Waverly Farmer’s Market is located at 400 E. 32^nd Street, Baltimore, MD. It runs from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m.

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