Baltimore Grows

It’s do or die time for the Baltimore Red Line.  Sides have been taken and battle lines have been drawn. Rumor has it that a decision will be made soon, perhaps by the end of the summer.

But let’s face the facts.  The Red Line proposal that includes both a combination of tunneling and surface rail offers Baltimore best chance of getting state and federal funding for a transportation project in YEARS (see proposed routing map below).  If we pass up on this, the likelihood of another public transit project coming this way is perhaps another 20 or 30 years off. 

There is currently no reliable public transportation between Canton and downtown, so most people drive. It’s sameful that a city the size of Baltimore doesn’t have a reliable transportation system, so it’s about time we start.

I realize that there is a small, but vocal group of opponents, that don’t want a surface line running along Boston Street or Route 40.  But let’s face it, Boston Street and Route 40 are already noisy and congested disasters.  The new Red Line, along with some proposed nice streetscaping, will serve to reduce and calm traffic.  The tunneling through downtown will keep the train from getting bogged down in traffic lights (one of my chief complaints about the existing north/south light rail). 

The Red Line is necessary for the continued growth of Baltimore City, and would increase the property values of those nearby (just try to get a cheap apartment near a DC Metro stop).

If you support the Red Line, make sure your voice is heard.  Things you can do to help:

Visit – http://www.gobaltimoreredline.com/

E-mail Senator Mikulski – http://mikulski.senate.gov/Contact/contact.cfm

E-mail Governor O’Malley – http://www.governor.maryland.gov/mail/

E-mail Mayor Dixon – mayor@baltimorecity.gov

E-mail Councilman Kraft – james.kraft@baltimorecity.gov

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

Baltimore came in #2 in a ranking of cities with the most number of jobs per capita.  Baltimore has just over 90 job listings per 1000 people.  The top city for job listings was Washington D.C. with a whopping 133 jobs per 1000 people.

To see the entire list follow this link:  http://www.indeed.com/jobtrends.jspedfa

Also see this article from US News: http://www.usnews.com/blogs/the-inside-job/2009/07/10/10-cities-with-the-most-job-postings.html

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

Blue Hill Tavern, which recently opened in the Brewers Hill neighborhood of Southeast Baltimore, might as well be nicknamed Beverly Hills Tavern, as this trendy new restaurant and bar looks like it could have come straight out of SoCal.  

While it looks a little bit out of place, Blue Hill Tavern offers a nice, clean, and hip alternative to Brewers Hill’s charming corner bars and enlarges the dining and nightlife opportunities of the area…which is a definite good thing.  Best of all, the bar has a waterfall…cool beans.

I went there for dinner on Saturday night.  The place was definitely packed, but not overly swamped. The bar was hopping, but not so packed that you couldn’t move. It was a nice night, so all of the windows were open, giving the place an airy and open feel.  Gotta love summertime.  They’ve only been open about a week, so you could tell there were a few small kinks they were working out, but nothing major.  They were out of some of the micro brews that were listed on their menu, so I decided to be adventurous and try the “New old fashioned” (made with vanilla infused bourbon) off of their cocktail menu. It was really delicious, and considering all cocktails are $7.50, it still wasn’t too expensive as far as Baltimore prices go.

The Oysters Rockefeller appetizer came and while the oysters were cooked perfectly, they were a bit under-seasoned.  For the main course, I got the surf and turf, which for $21 ended up being a pretty good deal.  It came with a pretty good size crabcake and a filet mignon.  Both were cooked to perfection and had some unique sauces that spiced things up a little bit.  The fried potatoes that came on the side were kind of bland, but I was happy enough about the filet and the crabcake, that I didn’t really care.  

I didn’t have room for dessert, but from the looks of the stuff coming out of the kitchen, it seems I should have skipped the app and saved more room for later.  I suppose there’s always next time…and there will be a next time, as this place is definitely worth going back.  

I applaud the folks at Blue Hill for trying something different and new and hope others follow their lead with new concepts for older neighborhoods.  

http://www.bluehilltavern.com/

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com