Project planners presented the gas station concept to the city’s Board of Appeals at a contentious meeting Thursday, requesting that the project be granted approval for “conditional use” on the 33.32-acre property. Per city code, project planners must receive approval from the board before they are obligated to submit site plans outlining the project in detail.

Current information for the project states that a gas station and a 25+-room hotel are planned for the land, but no details on the number of gas pumps, number of hotel rooms, square footage, vehicle access, parking, traffic impact or other details have been made available for either of the proposals.

Mitch Ensor, with Bay State Land Services, told the board he had been working with the property since it was annexed into Havre de Grace about 10 years ago.

He explained that the land’s current zoning allows for a mix of commercial and residential development, and said a gas station is in line with the city’s comprehensive development plan.

Ensor also said every intersection in the county with a state road that intersects Interstate 95 — as Level Road does near the proposed development — has a gas station, which he said causes a need for the proposed gas station.

Residents of nearby housing developments attended the meeting and expressed concern with traffic, noise, quality of life, environmental concerns, overdevelopment and the impact the gas station would have on their home value. Many residents said that within a 5-mile radius, there are numerous gas stations and the proposal is unnecessary.

Some residents said developments in the area will add more residents and increase traffic: Bulle Rock plans to expand, and The Legacies is ready to break ground on 290 new homes off Level Road.

Speaking for himself and not as a City Council member, City Council President Jim Ringsaker emphasized that the property’s zoning allows for commercial development and said he fears not passing the conditional use could open the city to litigation.

He also criticized some of the project opponents, saying many did not live in city limits.

“While I don’t discount [what] everyone said, I understand if you live there, you don’t want stuff going in. But they don’t live in Havre de Grace,” Ringsaker said. “They are not within the city limits of Havre de Grace, and I think that diminishes the weight of the petition.”

Crowd members audibly sighed and snarked at the comment.

Acknowledging the concerns of the residents, Ensor said his review of the gas station found it would not have any impact on surrounding developments.

“I think the newly developing neighborhoods would be perfect users and convenient use of a gas station,” Ensor said, prompting audible laughs from the attending residents.

Despite the outline of a gas station and “over 25+-room hotel” being presented, board members said they do not have enough information regarding either of the developments to approve or deny the request for conditional use on the property.

After numerous back-and-forth conversations among board members, project planners and meeting attendees, it was determined that the project’s representatives are unsure of the development’s traffic impact as well as the scope of the gas station or hotel at this time because a tenant for either of the projects has yet to be identified.

Board members said numerous times that the project very well could be a one-pump gas station or something as big as a travel center.

The board voted to table its decision on the conditional use for the gas station and the hotel, citing a request for the project planners to present them with the project’s traffic conditions; planned facility usage; effect on local houses; protection of surrounding properties and conservation of property values.

Both projects will go before the city’s board of appeals at a later date. Project planners said that once a date is set for the next meeting, they will provide the requested information to the board.

Have a news tip? Contact Matt Hubbard at mhubbard@baltsun.com, 443-651-0101 or @mthubb on X.

CFG, which serves the national healthcare and multifamily housing markets, will work with Arctaris Impact Investors, a national investment firm that lends in underserved communities. CFG’s investment will help fuel the firm’s Baltimore Investment Program.

“This partnership expands our efforts to improve the lives of others throughout Baltimore,”  Erik Howard, CFG Bank president, said in an announcement Tuesday, adding that Arctaris has a unique strategy in the region.

Arctaris has made five investments in the Baltimore area, including a planned conversion of the Embassy Suites hotel in partnership with GoodHomes. The former hotel, which closed during the pandemic, will be converted into 303 affordable housing units by summer 2026 under a $30 million plan.

Including that development, Arctaris has invested about $50 million in city projects, said Anita Graham, the firm’s managing director. The firm launched its Baltimore program in 2016 in partnership with the Abell Foundation and Neighborhood Impact Investment Fund.

CFG will purchase Arctaris Impact Notes, a way of earning credit under the Community Reinvestment Act, which encourages banks to lend in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.

“We take a holistic approach to community redevelopment that starts by considering the needs of the community,” while investing in businesses, infrastructure and housing, said Jonathan Tower, Arctaris’ founder.

CFG, the largest Baltimore-based bank, has grown from $1 billion in assets at the end of 2019 to more than  $5.3 billion in assets at the end of 2024.

Have a news tip? Contact Lorraine Mirabella at lmirabella@baltsun.com and (410) 332-6672.

The state Motor Vehicle Administration will work with the Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families to steer donations to the Maryland Veterans Trust Fund. The nonprofit group helps veterans and their families who are facing temporary financial hardships with expenses such as rent, mortgage payments and utilities.

“The Maryland Veterans Trust Fund exists to meet veterans where they are — often in moments of crisis — and provide timely, meaningful assistance,” said Heather Geraldes, the fund’s executive director, in an announcement.

The donation option, along with expanded veterans services offices, will help make support for veterans more accessible across the state year-round, MVA Administrator Chrissy Nizer said in an announcement.

The MVA has opened veteran service program offices in nine MVA branches across the state, including new locations in Annapolis and Waldorf. The offices, open by appointment from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, are staffed by professionals who help veterans apply for benefits.

These offices have helped more than 6,000 veterans, dependents and survivors secure more than $54 million in federal benefits.

The MVA also offers services specifically for veterans and military personnel. Some include waivers to skip the skills test when applying for a commercial driver’s license; an exemption from state emissions testing for active-duty personnel stationed out-of-state or overseas and “veteran” labels on driver’s licenses for easier access to benefits.

Have a news tip? Contact Lorraine Mirabella at lmirabella@baltsun.com and (410) 332-6672.

The café, known for its modern take on Mediterranean dining — including inventive hummus varieties, lamb tagines, and fresh panini and salad platters — will open inside the Anthem House apartment complex at 900 E. Fort Ave. in early spring 2026, according to a Tuesday news release.

“We’re thrilled to bring Cafe Fili to Locust Point and become part of the Anthem House community,” said owner Ziad Maalouf in the release. “Our vision has always been to create gathering spaces that enhance the neighborhoods we serve, and this expansion represents an exciting evolution of our concept with the addition of our evening mezze program.”

Founded in 2017, Café Fili first opened at 816 Cathedral St. in Mount Vernon before expanding to Washington, D.C. The Riverside café will offer all-day service, including breakfast, lunch and dinner, in what the company describes as “a welcoming atmosphere designed to serve both residents and the broader Locust Point community.”

Maalouf said the company plans to open two additional Baltimore locations later in 2026, with broader regional growth expected in 2027.

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.

Coker, who stepped in as the commerce secretary in February, paid a visit to Carroll County on Monday, toured several businesses such as Knorr Brake, and met with local leaders.

A lifelong Marylander and former senior executive at both the CIA and the National Security Agency, Coker also has a background in cybersecurity, and has emphasized the importance of investing in technology such as artificial intelligence to help grow the state’s economy.

During his tour, Coker celebrated the 120th anniversary of Knorr’s parent company, Knorr-Brehme, and shared his strategies for helping rural counties like Carroll attract more businesses while also balancing “traditional economies” such as agriculture and tourism.

“The approach that we discussed today is balance and compromise,” he told the Carroll County Times. “With [my policy priorities] of quantum artificial intelligence, and to a degree, another one is computational health, they are going to require more data centers. Data centers require energy, and we have to strike the right balance.”

Energy development has been a major talking point among Carroll County’s local leaders over the past several months. The county has seen an influx of solar developers looking to build community solar farms on land that’s zoned for agriculture. This trend has sparked fierce opposition from the county’s commissioners, who have vowed to slow clean energy developers as much as possible in the name of preserving farmland.

Carroll has also historically struggled to attract businesses to the area, and nearly a third of the county’s population commutes to another county for work.

Coker, who also met with Carroll County commissioners on Monday, said he wants to help “amplify” the message that “Carroll County is open for business.” That message may also invite industries that county leaders have historically been opposed to.

“Speaking frankly, there was a discussion about solar on rural and agricultural land,” Coker said. “We have to talk and strike the right balance. We don’t want to overdo it and take up too much agriculture and lead to food insecurity. … We do need to keep an eye on that. But there’s a sweet spot, if you will, somewhere in there, where we appropriately balance solar with with other land uses.”

Tariffs imposed by the Trump administration have also taken a toll on Carroll County’s large manufacturers, including Knorr Brake. The company’s North America division, which has had its headquarters in Westminster since 1973, employs about 415 people and makes equipment such as brakes, HVAC systems and door systems for trains serving public transit systems — including the MTA Baltimore light rail system.

For Knorr, which imports over 50% of its materials from its Germany-based parent company, the rapidly changing tariffs have been a major hurdle, and have impacted the pricing that they provide to their partners in the train manufacturing business.

“We’re trying to recoup as much from tariffs as we can. But it has been a big hit to our profitability this year,” said Dave Welly, vice president of transit sales for Knorr. “Let’s face it, we don’t know what the tariffs are going to be in six months, a year.”

Coker said his office is working closely with Maryland’s delegation in Congress to encourage the Trump administration to take a more “consistent and fair approach” to tariffs, urging federal leaders to “be clear about it and try to keep them stable.” The state has also been encouraging foreign businesses to come to Maryland through its Global Gateway Program, which Coker said can provide opportunities for companies who might otherwise be discouraged from doing business with the United States due to the tariffs.

Overall, Coker said his goal is to make sure these companies reach the whole state, from major cities such as Baltimore and the Washington, D.C., suburbs to rural counties like Carroll.

“We want to ensure that no one tries to limit the ecosystem to a small geographic footprint in the state. The ecosystem is statewide,” Coker said. “No one should be shying away from opportunities saying, ‘Oh, that artificial intelligence, that quantum is too high tech for us.’ It’s not. Opportunities persist for all of the counties in Maryland.”

Have a news tip? Contact Lily Carey at LCarey@baltsun.com.

On Friday, Skipjack’s Crab House took to Facebook to share that its location at 7703 Belair Road will close as a result of the property’s lease not being renewed. Open since 2009, the restaurant will shutter Dec. 7.

“This place has been so much more than just a restaurant. It’s been a home — where families gathered, friends celebrated, and so many special memories were made around great food & crabs and of course laughter,” the post reads. Addressing the restaurant’s staff, the post adds, “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. You’ve been the soul of this restaurant.”

The brand’s other restaurant under the Skipjack’s name, Skipjack’s Crab Deck at Middle River’s 818 Bowleys Quarters Road, will remain open.

“While this chapter is coming to an end, our story isn’t over,” the post reads. The team added that in Middle River, “you will find a welcoming atmosphere that made our original spot so special.”

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.

The Horse You Came In On Saloon, located at 1626 Thames St., was the backdrop of a series of pictures shared in a now-deleted Instagram post, depicting two people dressed as Nazi soldiers and performing salutes both inside and outside the bar, captioned “The woke reich.”

The post quickly circulated on social media, with several Facebook reviews referring to The Horse You Came In On as a “Nazi bar” before reviews became disabled.

Owner Eric Mathias confirmed the visit in a Saturday Facebook post, in which he reported that “They took photos of themselves saluting, and were courteous enough to tag us and associate us with their stupidity.” He wrote that the costumed patrons have “zero connection” to the bar, adding that “it’s obvious that they came to provoke, antagonize and unfortunately heist quality oxygen that others could be using.”

“My staff is not to blame for the beliefs of these people …” reads the post. “This too will pass and the truth + forward action always win. We’re open for business, come visit us, meet my incredible people and make your own judgement.”

On Yelp as of Tuesday afternoon, reviews were temporary disabled as the company “work[ed] to investigate the content you see here reflects actual consumer experiences rather than recent events.”

Established in 1775, The Horse You Came In On is known as Baltimore’s oldest saloon, as well as the scene of the last sighting of Edgar Allan Poe.

Neither the social media user, nor representatives from The Horse You Came In On, responded to requests for comment.

On Sunday, the user reposted one of the photos, writing in her caption that Instagram had removed the original post.

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.

In October, the Public Service Enterprise Group sued the owners of 64 properties along the proposed route for the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project and asked the U.S. District Court for Maryland to allow it to access the properties for land surveys.

While the landowners argued that a private entity shouldn’t be granted the right to enter their property, the utility wrote Monday that these arguments don’t hold up — and that they’ve already been struck down in two nearly identical lawsuits from earlier this year.

“Respondents’ motion to dismiss lacks merit,” the letter reads. “Given the time-sensitive nature of the surveys … the Company respectfully requests that the Court promptly deny the motion to dismiss and grant the Company’s motion for preliminary injunction.”

The 67-mile transmission line, which would be the longest in Maryland if approved, has drawn backlash from more than 300 residents who live along the line’s proposed route, and has sparked an intense debate over property rights that has reached a federal court of appeals.

All three lawsuits ask the district court to grant the utility company the limited right of entry to these properties, using the legal concept of eminent domain — the idea that government-backed entities can enter private property in service of the public good, as long as landowners are provided with “just compensation.”

PSEG is a private company and does not yet have government backing, since the project has not received a permit from the state. But the company argues that, because the transmission line was agreed upon by interstate electric grid regulators and will be overseen by the Federal Electric Regulatory Commission, it has the right to use eminent domain to enter these properties.

Regulators have argued that the transmission line is urgently necessary to provide greater stability to Maryland’s power grid, which interstate regulator PJM projects could be staring down a dire electric shortage in the next few years if the state doesn’t build more power generators and transmission lines.

Opponents of the transmission line, led by activist group Stop MPRP, have afrgued that the court should change its interpretation of this statute, and that a private company should not have the right of entry to Marylanders’ properties unless it already has a permit approved.

However, the same district court judge overseeing this case has ruled in favor of PSEG in two similar cases, in which PSEG also sued two other groups of landowners and was granted land entry rights.

“This Court has already agreed that [a state statute] empowers the Company to enter private properties to conduct the surveys for which the Company seeks a temporary right of access here,” the letter reads. “While Respondents present limited new arguments to support their interpretation of [this statute] and related statutes, these arguments fall short of warranting a different conclusion.”

The district court is holding a hearing in Baltimore on Nov. 25 to discuss several of PSEG’s requests for preliminary injunctions, including this case and another that would prevent landowners from hunting on their property while land surveyors are present.

Opponents of the transmission line aren’t giving up. After the district court ruled in favor of PSEG in the other two lawsuits, Stop MPRP appealed both of the rulings to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit. The court has not yet set a hearing date for either case.

Several opponents, including Stop MPRP, the Maryland Farm Bureau and representatives from Baltimore, Carroll and Frederick counties, also filed a motion asking the state to dismiss PSEG’s application for a permit for the transmission line altogether.

In a newsletter sent out Tuesday morning in response to PSEG’s recent letter, Stop MPRP organizers wrote that “PSEG is asking a federal judge to overrule Maryland’s own review process and let the company advance the project — and access private land — before the [Public Service Commission] decides whether the project is even needed, complete, or in the public interest.”

The utility company is set to respond to the motion to dismiss their permit application by this Friday.

Have a news tip? Contact Lily Carey at LCarey@baltsun.com.

BANGKOK (AP) — Apple said it has pulled two of China’s biggest gay dating apps, Blued and Finka, under pressure from Chinese authorities, in the latest sign of a tightening grip on the LGBTQ+ community.

An Apple spokesperson said in a statement that the company removed the two dating apps from China “based on an order from the Cyberspace Administration of China”, without further elaborating.

“We follow the laws in the countries where we operate,” the spokesperson told The Associated Press.

A check by The Associated Press on Tuesday found that the two apps are not available on Apple’s app store in China, although an “express” version of Blued could still be found. It was unclear what the difference is between the full and express versions or if an Android version might be available.

Blued was available “only in China,” Apple said. Finka’s developer “elected to remove the app” outside of China earlier this year, the company added.

Another popular gay dating app, Grindr, was pulled from Apple’s app store in China in 2022.

China’s LGBTQ+ community and advocacy groups are under intensifying pressure from authorities, even though the country decriminalized homosexuality in 1997. Some LGBTQ+ groups have been forced to cease operations in recent years in China and activism has been constrained.

Blued and Finka have the same parent company, BlueCity, a China-founded company that focuses on the LGBTQ+ community in China and abroad. BlueCity was delisted from the Nasdaq in 2022, when it was taken private.

Last year, Apple also reportedly removed apps including WhatsApp and Threads from its app store in China under an order by the Cyberspace Administration of China.

“Among all foreign tech companies that provide services to Chinese users, Apple is probably the one which is most willing to comply with Chinese internet regulations,” said George Chen, partner and co-chair of digital practice at The Asia Group.

Apple “rarely pushes back on Chinese government’s takedown requests as Chinese markets,” including sales of iPhones, is “too important” for them, Chen added.

AP writers Kelvin Chan in London and Kanis Leung in Hong Kong contributed to this story.

NEW YORK (AP) — The White House says it is considering backing a 50-year mortgage to help alleviate the home affordability crisis in the country. But the announcement drew immediate criticism from policymakers, social media and economists, who said a 50-year mortgage would do little to resolve other core problems in the housing market, such as a lack of supply and high interest rates.

Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said on X over the weekend that a 50-year mortgage would be “a complete game changer” for homebuyers. FHFA is the part of the federal government that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which buy and insure the vast majority of mortgages in the country.

The 30-year mortgage is a uniquely American financial product and the default way to buy a home since the New Deal. Politicians and policymakers at the time wanted to create a standardized mortgage that borrowers could afford and pay off during their working years, when the average lifespan for an American was 66 years old.

Lower payment

Extending the life of a mortgage to 50 years does decrease a borrower’s monthly payment.

The average selling price of a home in the U.S. was $415,200 in September, according to National Association of Realtors. Assuming a standard 10% down payment and an average interest rate of 6.17%, the monthly payment on a 30-year mortgage would be $2,288 while the payment on a 50-year mortgage would be $2,022. That’s presuming a bank would not require a higher interest rate on a 50-year mortgage, due to the longer duration of the loan.

But significantly higher interest

Because even more of the monthly payment on a 50-year mortgage would go toward interest on the loan, it would take 30 years before a borrower would accumulate $100,000 in equity, not including home price appreciation and the down payment. That’s compared to 12-13 years to accumulate $100,000 in equity when paying off a 30-year mortgage, excluding the down payment.

A borrower would pay, roughly, an additional $389,000 in interest over the life of a 50-year mortgage compared to a 30-year mortgage, according to an AP analysis.

Other analysts came to a similar conclusion.

“Extending a mortgage from 30 years to 50 years could double the (dollar) amount of interest paid by the homebuyer on a median priced home over the life of the loan and significantly slow equity accumulation,” wrote John Lovallo with UBS Securities.

Broader housing issues

A 50-year mortgage does nothing to solve one critical issue when it comes to housing affordability — the lack of supply of homes. States like California and cities like New York have recently passed legislation or made regulatory changes to allow builders to build homes faster with less regulatory red tape.

There’s also the raw cost of homebuilding in the country. Products such as steel, lumber, concrete, copper and plastics that go into home construction are now subject to tariffs under President Trump. Further, many construction jobs were being done by undocumented workers, particularly in the Southwest, where deportations are impacting the ability for homebuilders to find enough labor to build homes.

“Many of the big things that would address supply right now are going in the wrong direction,” said Mike Konczal, senior director of policy and research at the Economic Security Project.”

Pulte said on X that the introduction of a 50-year mortgage was just a “potential weapon,” among other solutions the White House has considered to combat high housing prices.

American don’t live long enough

The average age of a first-time homebuyer has been creeping up for years and is now roughly 40 years of age. A 50-year mortgage would be difficult to underwrite for a bank for a 40-year-old first-time homebuyer, who would be 90 years old by the time that home is paid off. The average life expectancy of an American is now roughly 79 years, meaning there’s 11 years of life expectancy not covered in a 50-year loan.

“It’s typically not a goal of policymakers to pass on mortgage debt to a borrowers’ children,” Konczal said.

Others have tried longer loans

Other parts of the financial system have extended loan terms, to mixed results. The seven-year auto loan has become increasingly common as car prices have risen and Americans keep their cars longer. Despite longer loan terms, auto loan delinquencies have been rising, and the average price of a new car is now $49,740 compared to a price of $38,948 for a new vehicle five years ago.

Student loans were originally designed to be paid off in 10 years, and now there are multiple payment options that extend repayment out to 20 years.

Economists pointed out that a 50-year mortgage may do the opposite of helping with home affordability: by causing home price inflation by introducing more potential buyers into a market struggling with supply.

Trump downplays idea

After significant criticism, President Trump seemed less enthused about the 50-year mortgage. When asked by Laura Ingraham of Fox News about the idea, President Trump said it “might help a little bit” but seemed to brush it off.

Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac cannot insure a mortgage that is longer than 30 years, so any 50-year mortgages issued before Congress amends the law would be considered a “non-qualifying mortgage” and would be more difficult to sell to investors. Congress would have to amend U.S. financial laws in multiple places to allow 50-year mortgage, and there seems to be little appetite for Congress to take this on immediately.