Maryland

Environmental groups ask judge to reverse Maryland toll lane approvals

Published

1 year ago

June 16, 2023

Environmental groups ask judge to reverse Maryland toll lane approvals

Environmental and historic preservation groups filed a motion Friday, as part of an ongoing lawsuit, that seeks to undo federal and state environmental approvals for a project that would add toll lanes to the Capital Beltway and Interstate 270.

The motion, filed in federal court in Maryland, argues that the Maryland Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration failed to provide a candid assessment of damage that the 15-mile project would create along the busy corridor.

It’s the latest challenge to former governor Larry Hogan’s (R) plan to ease some of the nation’s worst road congestion. Supporters say the project to widen highways through suburban areas would help alleviate traffic backups in suburban Washington, while critics cite concerns about effects on parkland and historic sites, arguing it does little to boost transit options.

In the motion filed Friday, the groups allege that the project would increase pollution in communities near the highway, disproportionately affecting residents who are racial minorities or have lower incomes. They also cited the potential for disturbances to unmarked graves around a historic Black cemetery, intrusions on the environmentally sensitive Plummers Island near the American Legion Bridge and decreased quality of life for those who live near new interchanges.

“Despite spanning tens of thousands of pages, the Agencies’ review of the toll lanes project still omits critical information about the project’s harms to communities, historic sites, and the environment,” the motion says. It calls on the court to reverse project approvals “so the Agencies can reconsider their decision after a full evaluation of the project’s impacts.”

Terry Owens, a consultant for the Maryland Department of Transportation, said the state and the Federal Highway Administration will reply in court by Aug. 7, citing a schedule ordered by the court.

“While we maintain the Managed Lane Study fully complied with all federal requirements in [the] environmental review process, the Maryland Department of Transportation cannot comment further as this is an ongoing legal proceeding,” he wrote in an email.

A spokesman for Gov. Wes Moore (D) reiterated that the administration is committed to easing congestion and replacing the 60-year-old American Legion Bridge, which often creates a bottleneck for traffic between Virginia and Maryland.

But the administration has not expressly said that it would build the toll lane project as designed. Moore spokesman Carter Elliott IV said in an email that “the governor is committed to reviewing solutions that will ease congestion and providing more travel options that serve everyone.”

“Gov. Moore’s first priority is to review solutions through the lens of equity, sustainability, environmental protection and environmental justice,” the email continued.

Among other allegations, the motion claims that state and federal officials failed to clearly analyze and articulate the project’s community and environmental costs, citing some of the same issues Moore has said are important to him.

Plaintiffs include the Maryland Chapter of the Sierra Club, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Friends of Moses Hall, formed to help preserve the Morningstar Tabernacle No. 88 Moses Cemetery and Hall, a historic African American cemetery in the shadows of the Beltway. The Northern Virginia Citizens Association, which had filed a separate lawsuit, joined portions of Friday’s brief, the groups said.

The plaintiffs singled out what they allege was a lack of analysis and public communication about environmental air quality for vulnerable communities along the path of the project and the disturbance of graves in the Morningstar Tabernacle No. 88 Moses Cemetery, which was separated from its church when the Beltway was constructed decades ago.

Hogan announced the plan in September 2017 as part of a $9 billion proposal to widen Maryland’s most troubled roadways without getting public support from local officials. Many of those officials — particularly in Democrat-heavy Montgomery County — preferred a more transit-oriented approach. Hogan pitched the public-private partnership as a way to relieve bottlenecks without relying on taxpayer money.

Part of his plan faltered early: the state couldn’t secure control of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway from the federal government to widen the highway. But the remaining proposal to launch one of the nation’s largest public-private partnerships to build toll lanes and replace the bridge moved forward in fits and starts until March.

That month, the company selected for a 50-year deal to design, build and operate the toll lanes walked away, leaving the $6 billion project’s future uncertain. By then, Maryland had spent $200 million to design it. Australian toll company Transburban cited the ongoing lawsuit as part of the reason it quit the project. The decision came amid uncertainty over whether Moore, who has criticized the project, would support building it.

Owens said the state is working on “design and permitting activities, field work and data collection; and developing funding options and procurement approaches to deliver a new American Legion Bridge and multimodal corridor improvements, including seeking federal grants.”

Diane E. Baxter, who has two great-grandparents buried at the cemetery, said in a new legal filing along with the motion Friday that she finds it “galling that MDOT keeps saying that the project will not harm the Cemetery when they have no idea whether that’s true.” She said that a ground penetrating radar survey conducted in connection with the project in 2021 did not cover all of the land around the cemetery where people might be buried.

In an earlier legal filing, Maryland acknowledged “there remains limited potential for burials located outside the historic property boundary” that could be affected by the toll lanes project. To account for that possibility, the state said it agreed to “fully investigate areas to be impacted by construction that are near or may be associated with the Morningstar Cemetery as design is advanced further.”

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Maryland

How to watch Michigan State vs. Maryland (9/7/24): TV channel, kickoff time, live stream

Published

2 hours ago

September 7, 2024

Press Room

How to watch Michigan State vs. Maryland (9/7/24): TV channel, kickoff time, live stream

Michigan State got the job done in its season opener, but it wasn’t pretty as it hung on at home against Florida Atlantic. Now, it has to head on the road to open Big Ten play in what promises to be a tougher test.

· Watch the Michigan State Spartans on FuboTV (free trial)

· Watch the Michigan State Spartans on Sling

· Watch the Michigan State Spartans on DirecTV Stream

· Visit MLive’s Betting Home for latest odds & sportsbook promos

Michigan State is 1-0, but the road gets tougher now. The Spartans go on the road and start Big Ten play early in Week 2 with a trip to Maryland. The Terrapins have a new look this year without quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa but looked strong in their season-opener against Howard last week.

· Who: Michigan State at Maryland

· When: 3:30 p.m.

· Where: SECU Stadium, College Park, Maryland

· Twitter: Follow Matt Wenzel

· Live updates: Beginning at 2:30 p.m. at mlive.com/spartans

· Latest line: Maryland -9.5

TV Network: Big Ten Network

Streaming options:

· FuboTV is offering $30 off the first month for all U.S. plans. Sign up to get your favorite TV shows, live sports events, and much more

· Sling currently has an offer of $20 for the first month of subscription and has streaming coverage of live sports, news and entertainment.

· DirecTV Stream offers live sports, news and on demand TV.

Five must-reads before kickoff:

* Michigan State lost two members of its secondary, Dillon Tatum and Khalil Majeed, to long-term injuries in its season opener. The team is turning to some new faces to fill in the holes from those injuries.

* Alex VanSumeren was once Michigan State’s top-rated recruit, but he’s been seldom seen on the field due to injuries. Now, though, he’s healthy and making his mark on the Spartans’ defensive line.

* Aidan Chiles’ 10-completion, two-interception performance in Michigan State’s season-opener was his “floor,” according to offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren, who has a plan to improve the quarterback’s performance going forward.

* Jonathan Smith had a name for Week 1 in college football: overreaction Saturday. He’s cautioning fans not to put too much stock into an opening performance that likely underwhelmed many.

* The run game and discipline are two of Matt Wenzel’s five things to watch in this week’s matchup.

Michigan State

* Passing: Aidan Chiles 10-14, 114 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT

* Rushing: Kay’ron Lynch-Adams 9 rush, 101 yards, 1 TD

* Receiving: Michael Masunas 2 rec., 29 yards, 0 TD

* Tackles: Angelo Grose 12

* Sacks: Khris Bogle 1.5

* Interceptions: Grose, Nikai Martinez 1

Maryland

* Passing: Billy Edwards Jr. 20-27, 311 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT

* Rushing: Roman Hemby 14 rush, 66 yards, 1 TD

* Receiving: Tai Felton 7 rec., 178 yards, 2 TD

* Tackles: Glendon Miller 6

* Sacks: None

* Interceptions: Ruben Hyppolite II, Miller 1

Friday, Sept. 6

Western Illinois at Indiana

Duke at Northwestern

Saturday, Sept. 7

Texas at Michigan, noon (FOX)

Rhode Island at Minnesota, noon (Peacock)

Bowling Green at Penn State, noon (BTN)

Akron at Rutgers, noon (BTN)

Iowa State at Iowa, 3:30 p.m. (CBS)

Michigan State at Maryland, 3:30 p.m. (BTN)

Eastern Michigan at Washington, 3:30 p.m. (BTN)

South Dakota at Wisconsin, 3:30 p.m. (FS1)

Kansas at Illinois, 7 p.m. (FS1)

Colorado at Nebraska, 7:30 p.m. (NBC)

Western Michigan at Ohio State, 7:30 p.m. (BTN)

Boise State at Oregon, 10 p.m. (Peacock)

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Maryland

Pre-Snap Read: Michigan State vs Maryland

Published

8 hours ago

September 7, 2024

Press Room

Pre-Snap Read: Michigan State vs Maryland

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Michigan State has an excellent chance to make a strong statement this weekend that the rebuilding job under new head coach Jonathan Smith is ahead of schedule, if the Spartans can take down 8-point favorite Maryland on Saturday.
A Michigan State victory would be a strong statement within the football industry, but maybe not as strong from a fan perspective. I’m not sure Maryland’s football brand is as respected in the state of Michigan and regionally as it should be, for a program that has gone 8-5 in the past two seasons and defeated Auburn and North Carolina State in bowl games the past two years.
Maryland is good. The Terrapins are coming off a 50-7 victory over a weak UConn team last week. Maryland’s offense looked very good against a weak, soft, conservative UConn defense.
Michigan State’s defense was ahead of schedule last week against a mediocre Florida Atlantic offense. Michigan State’s offense was behind schedule, experiencing inconsistent accuracy and decision-making at the quarterback position, which was somewhat understandable considering it was sophomore Aidan Chiles’ first start as a college player. MSU’s running game also lacked consistency, especially in short yardage and in the red zone.
The big news from Maryland last week in my opinion was the excellent play of new starting quarterback Billy Edwards. The 6-foot-3, 222-pound redshirt-junior had waited behind the outgoing, record-breaking Taulia Tagovailoa for three years. Tagovailoa left Maryland as the Big Ten’s all-time passing leader. He went undrafted and is now playing in the CFL.
Edwards looked good last week. He’s strong in the pocket, is a physical ball carrier on designed runs or scrambles. He was accurate over the middle on intermediate routes, and seemed to do a good job processing coverages, although UConn’s coverages were simple, slow and soft.
I saw this Michigan State vs Maryland game as a swing game on the schedule prior to the season. But considering how well Edwards and his receivers looked last week, and Michigan State’s sputtering start on offense, this game goes from being a swing game to uphill slog for the Spartans.

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Maryland

Student shot in Joppatowne, Maryland high school

Published

16 hours ago

September 6, 2024

Press Room

Student shot in Joppatowne, Maryland high school

One teen shot another during a dispute in a Maryland high school bathroom Friday in what authorities called an isolated incident.

The victim, a 15-year-old student at Joppatowne High School, was in serious condition after being airlifted to a hospital, the Harford County Public Schools said in a news release, citing information it received from the county sheriff’s department.

A 16-year-old student whom police identified as the shooter fled shortly afterward but was caught minutes later nearby, according to the news release. Officials said no information would be released immediately about the weapon, which had not been recovered.

The state’s attorney has said the suspect will be charged, the release said, citing Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler.

Shortly after the shooting, the sheriff’s office asked people to avoid the area, but emphasized that the confrontation was an “isolated incident, not an active shooter.” A parent-student reunification center was established at a nearby church. More than 100 personnel responded to the high school about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Baltimore, Gahler said.

The fight happened two days after a shooter whom authorities identified as a 14-year-old student killed four people at a high school outside Atlanta. Wednesday’s attack renewed debate about safe storage laws for guns and had parents wondering how to talk to their children about school shootings and trauma.

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