Gambrills News

S everal of the restaurants in the new Park Place in Annapolis are national chains, but not the recently opened Carpaccio Tuscan Kitchen and Wine Bar (1 Park Place, 410-268-6569), which features northern Italian food and 40 Italian wines by the glass, as well as some 150 bottles. Carpaccio is part of a local restaurant group, which used to include Cafe Mezzenotte in Severna Park and now consists of a number of casual Italian-themed restaurants like Sazzio, Squisito's and Pomo Grille and the Four Seasons Grille in Gambrills. Carpaccio's menu includes six different kinds of carpaccio and personal pizzas from the wood-burning oven. Dinner entrees run from $15.99 for pasta Bolognese to $32.99 for black linguine with calamari, lobster tail and prawns. The executive chef and partner is Gennaro di Benedetto.

The Middle Ages came to life as 300 selected Cub Scouts from the Four Rivers District participated in the annual Cub Scout Camp held at Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds last week.

In 1953, K. Dale Williams Sr. bought a new Plymouth for $1,975. That was a wince-worthy sum back then, but Williams remembers cringing even more when he was offered - for $13 more - a handy-dandy little gadget called a turn signal.

'It was an option back then, turn signals,' Williams, 77, said. 'And back-up lights.'

Over the years, Williams has learned that turn signals are far from optional; they're vital. As are such good driving practices as checking mirrors and blind spots before moving an inch, merging smoothly and safely, and adhering to the three-second rule when following another car.

Anne Arundel wants to extend a ban on depositing coal fly ash in the county, but the state must be more aggressive in protecting people from possible contamination and its carcinogenic effects, said County ...

Outdoor living once meant a grill, sticky webbed chairs, a crackling boom box and maybe a floodlight - a concept that has since morphed into a sophisticated outdoor kitchen, soft furniture and a fire pit to chase away the late-season chill.

But with the expansion of cocooning, outdoor rooms and backyard entertaining now means good music and lighting are as much a part of the mood-making and fun of these living spaces as is the food.

'Instead of traveling as much, you find more folks are staying home. And in doing so, they want to give their property that resort feel and make it a little sanctuary,' said Joe Caudill, whose Caudill Luminations and Specialties in Gambrills installs outdoor lighting and sound.

Anne Arundel County Executive John R. Leopold said yesterday he will seek legislation to extend a ban on the dumping of fly ash in the county until October 2009.

A new development on Route 3 will add a cache of shops and restaurants to a market its builders said is underserved when it comes to upscale services.

The state government is shopping for a tenant to develop 559 acres of the former Crownsville Hospital Center, dashing the hopes of county officials who wanted control of the site and stirring the concerns of neighbors that the community's landscape will be drastically altered.

Interested developers have until June 30 to respond to a request sent out by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, which has controlled the property since the state-run psychiatric hospital closed in 2004.

A new battle line in Gambrills is in the form of a circle. As county planners look for ways to revitalize the Staples Corner area, they are considering building a roundabout at the busy intersection of routes ...

Two lanes may be added to a section of Route 3 to accommodate a new shopping center, an expansion that some residents say could worsen traffic congestion on the already busy state road.

Back Creek Nature Park is a nearly forgotten gem, but a group of boosters and city officials plan to spend nearly $1 million to install a series of educational exhibits that not only will breathe more life into ...

The cost is $10 and reservations are suggested. 410-626-9796. Watercolor club The Annapolis Watercolor Club will meet at 7:30 p.m. in Room 101 at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, 801 Chase St.

When David Callahan and Jesse Thomas founded the Crofton Go-Kart Raceway in Gambrills 23 years ago, they wanted to make it different.

SLIDESHOW For years, Jesse Leszczynski had an appointment with the bus stop across from his house.

Jan Booth of Annapolis is working with Arcadia Publishing to create a historic book of photos of Crofton and surrounding neighborhoods.

Maryland is suing a power company over what it says are harmful pollutants leaching from a coal byproduct storage facility into a Charles County swamp.

A customer at a Pasadena restaurant was robbed in the parking lot at gunpoint, Anne Arundel County police said.

A 14-screen movie theater with reserved seating and a full-service restaurant with leather seats has been added to the projects planned for the expansion of Village South at Waugh Chapel shopping center. Developers of the 80-acre Gambrills complex said the theater will bring a much-needed moviegoing option for area residents, who now have to go to Annapolis or Hanover to see the latest blockbuster.

14-screen cinema, restaurant on menu for Gambrills project <br/><br/> A 14-screen movie theater with reserved seating and a full-service restaurant with leather seats has been added to the projects planned for the expansion of Village South at Waugh Chapel shopping center.