UMd Building 3 Out of State Budget

Some big moving parts of Maryland’s fiscal year 2016 budget remain uncertain as the General Assembly enters its last day of the regular 2015 session. But no likely outcomes  include funds for a University of Maryland research and science classroom building in Southern Maryland.

St. Mary’s state legislators were unable to restore the $3.85 million to Maryland’s capital budget for what is also…

SHA Replacing Rt. 5 Bridge South of Lex Park

The Maryland Department of Transportation’s State Highway Administration (SHA) has begun replacement of the MD Rt. 5 Bridge over the Eastern Branch south of Lexington Park in St. Mary’s County, MD.

Work includes replacement of the existing structure with a 55-foot long pre-stressed concrete bridge, realignment and repaving of one-half mile of roadway, drainage and landscaping.  Crews are…

Plan Abandoned for Wind Turbine Farm

Great Bay Wind Energy Center abandoned plans to build a wind turbine farm in the Chesapeake Bay, blaming legislation of Sen. Barbara Mikulski’s (MD-D) as the ultimate, insurmountable obstacle.

A March 20, 2015 letter to the Somerset County Commission, in part, reads,

One of the most substantial obstacles . . .  occurred in August of 2014. At that time, U.S. Senator Mikulski added language to an…

Chancellor Thanks St. Mary’s for Building 3 Support

University System of Maryland Chancellor Brit Kirwan added his appreciation to St. Mary’s County Commissioners who last week pledged $1 million toward construction of the USM Southern Maryland Academic and Research Center, aka, Building 3. Joseph Anderson, Chairman of the Southern Maryland Higher Education Board of Governors, also thanked the commissioners. His e-mail is excerpted below along…

4th Chancellor Named to Univ. System of MD

Posted for Del. John Bohanan

Effective July 1, 2015, Robert Caret will become the fourth chancellor of the University System of Maryland.

Dr. Claret follows William “Brit” Kirwan who was among the architects of the structure for the University System which has proven a successful model for expanding higher education offerings and raising standards across the state. The successful expansion of the…

UMD UAS Test Site Flies Talon 240

St. Mary’s join Crisfield officials at the first flight operations. From the left are Randy Laird, Somerset County Commissioner; Matt Sasscero, UAS Test Site Director; Doug Taylor, Somerset County Administrator; John Bohanan, Delegate 29B; Charlie Fisher, Somerset County Commissioner; Jack Russell, former Commission President St. Mary’s County; Ken Reed, S. Hunt Aero Co. and helicopter pilot…

From St. Mary’s to Crisfield UAS Airfields

Leaders from the Eastern & Western shores pose at Crisfield Airport at the first UAV launch for the UMd UAS Test Site headquartered in St. Mary’s County, MD

The University of Maryland Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Siteis a part of the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership with Virginia and New Jersey under the FAA UAS Test Site program. The UAS airfields partnering with the University of Maryland…

First UAS Test Flight a Success

The first UAS test flight from the University of Maryland’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site headquartered at St. Mary’s Regional Airport went off without a hitch last week from its partner airfield at the Crisfield- Somerset County Airport.

The Talon 240, manufactured by UAV Solutions, Inc. based in Jessup, MD, launched from the back of a pickup truck Friday morning and soared above a crowd…