The BPW considered and approved the following requests and recommendations at its meeting on November 29, 2023:

Allegany County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $420,000 grant to the City of Cumberland for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Cumberland Investment Plan of the Downtown Redevelopment Plan for Columbia. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2018 Capital Budget (Item 4 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Baltimore City

• A request to certify matching funds and enter into a grant agreement for a $1,000,000 grant to the Board of Directors of the Good Samaritan Hospital of Maryland, Inc. to design, construct, and equip an outpatient Center for Chronic Disease Management at the MedStar Good Samaritan Hospital. The Grantee has submitted documentation of eligible expenses to meet the matching fund requirement for this project. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2018 Capital Budget (Item 13 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Baltimore County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $1,000,000 grant to the Board of Directors of Franklin Square Hospital Center, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the inpatient child and adolescent psychiatric unit of Franklin Square Hospital Center. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 5 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Charles County

• A request to encumber funds for a $1,650,000 grant to the College of Southern Maryland’s La Plata campus to renovate the Health Technology Building. The project will renovate the current building to create a contemporary 11,691 SF Student Resource Center (SRC). The SRC will house Admissions offices, advising offices, a lab and conference room, a Career Center office and conference area, Testing Center offices and labs, and the Welcome Center and lounge (Item 15 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Dorchester County

• A request to enter into grant agreements for grants totaling $500,000 to the Board of Directors of the Mace’s Lane Community Center, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Mace’s Lane High School as the Mace’s Lane Community Center. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2022 Capital Budget (Item 6 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Frederick County

• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to grant $187,320.84 of Program Open Space stateside funds to Frederick County for the acquisition of a 30.73-acre Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) easement (Doody property). Acquisition of this CREP easement permanently protects water quality by retaining forested and vegetative buffers along an unnamed tributary to Owens Creek in the Upper Monocacy watershed. As part of the transaction, the landowner will be donating 1.89 acres of the property into the easement for 32.62 acres of total protection. The easement will be co-held by the County and the Department (Item 4A of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda).

Garrett County

• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to commit $9,000 from the Program Open Space funding allocated to Garrett County to construct an additional 400 linear feet of the Black Diamond Trail in Broadford Park (Item 1A.1 of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda);
• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to commit $70,000 in funding from the Community Parks and Playground Program for new ADA-compliant restrooms at the Botanical Garden Park (Item 1A.2 of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda); and
• A request to provide a $459,080.34 grant to the Garrett County Commissioners from Rural Legacy Funds for the acquisition of a 126-acre conservation easement in the Bear Creek Rural Legacy Area (Rosser property). Acquisition of this easement will protect valuable agricultural and forest lands. The easement will also protect 1,800 linear feet of forested stream buffers to Turney Run, a tributary to Bear Creek. The easement will be held by Garrett County. Easement value: $3,408.27/acre (Item 6A of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda).

Howard County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $500,000 grant to the Board of Directors of the Mission First Housing Development Corporation for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Patuxent Commons. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 8 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda); and
• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to commit $436,630 in Program Open Space funding allocated to Howard County to acquire 16.59 acres of property next to the East Columbia Library for use as a park (Item 2A of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda).

Montgomery County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $800,000 grant to the Board of Directors of the Montgomery Village Foundation, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Montgomery Village facilities, including the installation of solar panels on the main office and community center. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2022 Capital Budget (Item 7 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda);
• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $35,000 grant to the Board of Directors of the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows Sandy Spring Lodge #6430, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Sandy Spring Odd Fellows Lodge. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 9 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda); and
• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $150,000 grant to the Board of Directors of the Torah School, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Torah School of Greater Washington and its outdoor facilities, including improvements to basketball hoops, pavement, and lighting. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 10 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Somerset County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $100,000 grant to the Mayor and Town Council of the City of Crisfield for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of an outdoor multipurpose venue at the Crisfield Waterfront Depot Area. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant.  The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2021 Capital Budget (Item 3 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

St. Mary’s County 

• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to commit $427,500 from the Program Open Space funding allocated to St. Mary’s County to design and construct three new dog parks at 5^th District, 7^th District, and Dorsey Parks. The project also includes added ADA accessibility, a pavilion, picnic tables, benches, walkways, fencing, and dog play equipment (Item 3A.1 of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda);
• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to commit $765,000 from the Program Open Space funding allocated to St. Mary’s County to design and construct two skateparks at Nicolet and Chaptico Parks (Item 3A.2 of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda); and

• A request to enter into grant agreements for grants totaling $100,000 to the St. Mary’s County Board of Education for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of Great Mills High School Press Box. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 12 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Talbot County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $200,000 grant to the Board of Directors of Building African American Minds (BAAM), Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the BAAM Academic Center. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 1 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Washington County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $200,000 grant to the Board of Directors of the Douglas G. Bast Museum of History and Preservation, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the Boonsborough Museum of History. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 2 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda).

Wicomico County

• A request to enter into a grant agreement for a $125,000 grant to the Officers of the Wicomico County Memorial Post No. 10159, Inc. Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of the VFW Post No. 10159. There is no matching fund requirement for this grant. The General Assembly previously approved this funding as part of the 2023 Capital Budget (Item 11 of the Department of General Services’ Office of State Procurement Agenda); and
• A request from the Department of Natural Resources to grant $49,000 of Program Open Space statewide funds for the acquisition in fee simple of 19 +/- acres(Parker property) in Wicomico County. This fully forested property is part of a larger block of forest identified as core Forest Interior Dwelling Species habitat and will be managed by the Maryland Forest Service as part of Chesapeake Forest Lands. This acquisition will help maintain and protect water quality in the Nanticoke River watershed, which contains a variety of important fish and shellfish species (Item 5A of the Department of Natural Resources’ Real Property Agenda).