Buzz

Under Armour's Footprint Poised to Grow

Baltimore Sun Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Under Armour recently unveiled plans for a significant expansion of their corporate headquarters.

From the Sun:

Under Armour is hoping to double the size of its Baltimore headquarters to accommodate additional employees, a retail store and a company museum.

The sports apparel company wants to build an additional 400,000 square feet at Tide Point, an office complex in the Locust Point neighborhood that the firm, which had rented there for years, bought earlier this year.

The company envisions a 20,000-square-foot store opening in 2013, with offices and the museum to follow. Underground and surface parking are also planned.

Read the whole story here.

Troubles Continue For Poe House

Reuters Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Baltimore's Edgar Allan Poe House remains in danger of closing.

From the source:

But the city that named its NFL team after his poem "The Raven" may soon lose a key physical connection to Poe. The Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum, where the writer lived for four years in the early 1800s, is in danger of closing next year, due to budget cutbacks by the city.

"Everyone is tightening their belt," said Jeff Jerome, the museum's curator and only employee, who also works for the city's planning department.

Read the whole story.

Home Sales Improve In August...Sort Of

Baltimore Business Journal Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Recently released numbers show mixed results for Baltimore's real estate market in August. Sales were up, but prices were down.

From the source:

Baltimore-area home sales grew more than 6 percent in August, but the average sale price continued to tumble.

During the month, 2,046 homes were sold, up from 1,925 in August last year, according to Rockville market research firm Metropolitan Regional Information Systems.

The uptick in home sales, one of the better August months in the past several years, is likely tied to lower interest rates and cheaper homes.

Still, the average home sale price in the Baltimore area slipped 5.4 percent to $274,735.

The full story is here.

Pinball Museum Coming to Power Plant Live

Baltimore Sun Tuesday, September 20, 2011

It's official: the National Pinball Museum -- previously located in DC -- will open in Baltimore.

From the source:

The National Pinball Museum, forced out of Washington after losing its lease earlier this year, will be moving into the Power Plant Live complex.

Trucks began moving owner David Silverman's vast collection of flipper-type pinball machines into a building at 608 Water St. Wednesday. Silverman, a Silver Spring-based landscape designer who has been collecting the machines for some 40 years, said he hopes to open for business by the end of November.

"We're moving in now," he said early Thursday morning as he drove into Baltimore.

Read the whole story.

Terps Helmets Reminiscent of Roller Girls

Baltimore Sun Tuesday, September 13, 2011

The Maryland Terrapins' new uniforms generated a ton of national conversation last week, largely due to their outlandish nature. The Baltimore Sun takes a look at a less-reported aspect of the story: how much the new helmets resemble those worn by Baltimore's Charm City Roller Girls.

From the source:

When the Terps’ revealed a new uniform and helmets before Monday’s game, there was much oohhing and ahhing over the all-white look with the Maryland state flag motif.

But at least one corner of Baltimore reacted with a dismayed pang of recognition: for the Charm City Roller Girls All-Stars team, the Terps’ new helmet looks much like the one they’ve been using for the past three years.

“They’re not identical, but they’re shockingly similar,” said Hillary “Rosie the Rioter” Rosensteel, the roller derby team’s captain.

Read more here.

Baltimore Among Launch Markets for New Live Mobile Streaming Service

AP Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Baltimore will soon be among the first nine markets to see the debut of a new live streaming TV service from EW Scripps.

From the source:

The E.W. Scripps Co. said Thursday that it will become the first TV station group in the nation to deliver live video programming to mobile devices.

The launch will occur in nine markets: Detroit, Phoenix, Tampa, Fla., Cleveland, Baltimore, Kansas City, Cincinnati, West Palm Beach, Fla., and Tulsa, Okla.

Users who download the mobile application for their local Scripps station will be prompted at certain times — such as during breaking news events or occurrences of severe weather — to view streaming content. Clicking on the prompt will open a media player that will show either a simulcast of the station's on-air content or special coverage tailored to small screens.

Read the full story here.

Frederick Bank Expands to Towson

Baltimore Business Journal Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Frederick-based BlueRidge Bank will soon open a new retail location in Towson.

From the source:

BlueRidge Bank is scheduled to open its first full-service retail branch in the Baltimore area on Sept. 12.

The Frederick bank has had a commercial banking office in Towson since June 2010. But, its new Towson branch at 502 Washington St. marks BlueRidge’s first retail banking location outside Frederick County.

Read the rest here.

Baltimore B-ball All-Stars to Showcase in Philly

csnphilly.com Tuesday, September 13, 2011

A team of basketball players from the Baltimore area, led by Carmelo Anthony, will travel to Philly later this month to play an exhibition match at the famed Palestra.

From the source:

There may or may not be an NBA season this year, but that won’t stop the NBA from coming to Philadelphia.

Team Philly, a team made up of basketball stars from the Philly area, will take on Team Melo, a team led by Carmelo Anthony, on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 6 p.m. at The Palestra.

Read the whole story here.

Legendary Eatery Gino's Returns to Maryland

Investigative Voice Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Longtime Baltimore area institution Gino's Burgers & Chicken -- absent from the state since 1991 -- has returned with a new location in Towson.

Gino's Burgers & Chicken, a new millennium version of the fast-food chain founded in Baltimore in 1957 by Colts football greats Alan Ameche and Gino Marchetti, opened its doors Wednesday morning in Towson.

More than 100 people lined up waiting for as long as four hours for the restaurant to open, which occurred shortly after 11 a.m.

Investigative Voice has the whole story here.

Aberdeen Restaurant Sued By In-N-Out Burger

MercuryNews.com Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Grab-N-Go, an Aberdeen restaurant, is being sued for infringement by California-based In-N-Out Burger.

From the source:

The popular West Coast burger chain In-N-Out is suing a Maryland restaurant claiming its name, logo and menu is too close to its own.

The Irvine, Calif.-based chain filed an infringement lawsuit this week in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. The chain claims customers could be led to believe that the Aberdeen, Md., burger joint Grab-N-Go is related to In-N-Out, and is seeking a permanent injunction and unspecified damages.

Read the full story here.

"Great Migration" Exhibit Coming to Baltimore

Washington Post Tuesday, August 23, 2011

A new exhibit chronicling the "Great Migration" of African Americans from the South to the North will make a stop in Baltimore's Penn Station following a stint in DC.

From the source:

Amtrak is opening a new exhibit at Washington's Union Station to recount the history of the "Great Migration" of Southern blacks moving to the North early in the 20th century.

Between 1915 and 1970, about 6 million African Americans moved from the South to the North. Many left behind rural farm lives for job opportunities in industrialized cities. Many made the journey by passenger or freight train, which provided the connection for Amtrak.

Read the full story here.

Baltimore-born Documentary Distributor Has Another Hit

Baltimore Sun Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Baltimore Sun film critic Michael Sragow has a blog post explaining Baltimore's connection to the new hit documentary Senna.

From the source:

A year and a half ago we reported that Baltimore born-and-bred Bart Walker, a partner in Cinetic Media, had co-founded the super-specialized Producers Distribution Agency to get "Exit Through the Gift Shop" into the right theaters in the right way.

Well, PDA -- somehow it fits that the acronym also means Public Display of Affection -- released its second movie last weekend, Asif Kapadia's documentary "Senna," and once again scored a great and immediate success ($66,075 from two 2 theaters, one in New York, one in Los Angeles).

Read the full post here.

How the Grand Prix Came to Be

Baltimore Sun Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Julie Scharper and Justin Fenton at the Baltimore Sun take a deep, engaging, well-reported dive behind the scenes into the Baltimore Grand Prix and how one man's idea eventually became a reality.

From the story:

With the drop of the green flag in three weeks, Wehner's dream will roar to life.

Glossy race cars are set to dart down newly paved roads alongside the Inner Harbor, bearing on their sleek frames the aspirations of city and state officials who are betting on the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix to draw tens of thousands of race fans, pump tens of millions of dollars into the local economy and burnish the image of the city.

Read the whole thing here.

Tribune Company Explores a Tablet Computer Strategy

PC Magazine Tuesday, August 16, 2011

The Tribune Company -- owner of, among other properties, the Baltimore Sun -- is exploring the idea of creating its own tablet computing device as a way to distribute content.

From the source:

The Tribune Company could be getting into the tablet game. The Chicago-based media company, which owns papers like the Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun, and the Los Angeles Times as well as 23 TV stations, is reportedly working on a tablet that it will market to subscribers, CNN reports.

Citing "people briefed on the plans," CNN says the tablet will run on a "modified version" of the Android platform, with software specific to the reader's paper of choice. CNN says it spoke with "more than half a dozen current and former Tribune employees" who said the Tribune company will offer the tablet for free or at a heavily reduced price to subscribers.

Read the full story.

Carnival Cruise Lines Extends Baltimore Deal

WBAL TV Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Carnival Cruise Lines recently agreed to a deal that will keep it operating from the Port of Baltimore.

From the source:

Carnival Cruise Lines will continue to offer cruises year-round from the Port of Baltimore.

The line agreed to an extension, which was announced Monday and is effective Aug. 31, after the current two-year contract ends.

Read the full story.