Purchased in 2014- the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad’s steam locomotive No. 1309 did not make it official debut until this fall- and it has been a smash hit so far. Cumberland Mayor Ray Morriss, a member of the railroad’s board of directors, said the wait has been worth it as 1309 has already become a major tourist attraction…

The Mountain Maryland PACE Committee today released the following statement on plans for the 2022 events: After a year off due to COVID concerns, PACE is back in Annapolis. The 45th PACE will be here soon and everyone is welcome at the PACE Reception and Breakfast. NOTE: An affiliation is NOT required to attend. The PACE Reception is Thursday evening, January 20, 2022, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., and the breakfast is Friday morning, January 21, 2022, from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. The reception is a cocktail party format featuring hors d’oeuvres and an open bar. The breakfast…

On Tuesday at approximately 1100  am black-in-color Mitsubishi Outlander bearing a Maryland license plate 5CD4575 was stolen from the 100 blk. of Oak Street.  A male wearing white and black clothing was witnessed around the vehicle at the time of the theft.  Anyone with information is urged to contact the Cumberland Police Department at 301-777-1600, callers may remain anonymous.    The Cumberland Police Department would also like to remind the public leaving a vehicle running and unattended increases your chances of being victimized and is also a violation of Maryland State law.

The Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) today announced its 2022 reassessment of 704,430 “Group 1” residential and commercial properties. In Maryland, there are more than 2 million property accounts which are split into three groups, each appraised once every three years. The overall statewide increase for “Group 1” properties was 12.0% over the past three years according to SDAT. The overall statewide increase was higher than 2020’s 8.1% increase. This represents an average increase in value of 12.7% for all residential properties and 9.7% for all commercial properties over the three-year period since the last Group 1 reassessment…

Maryland is reporting thousands of new COVID-19 cases and hospitals are already at or near capacity. Right now, hospitals are mainly focusing on COVID-19 patients and are already being directed by the state to delay non-emergency procedures. The day after Christmas, the Maryland Department of Health is reporting there are 663,414 confirmed COVID-19 cases, which is up 5,826 from earlier in the week. The state positivity rate jumped to 15.85 percent Monday, but had fallen back to 11.09 Tuesday. For the first time in recent memory, Allegany County’s rate (9.25%) is lower than the state average. Governor Larry Hogan said…

The Downtown Development Commission will receive $183,500 in American Rescue Plan Act funds- that announcement made during the December meeting of the DDC. The Cumberland City Council voted earlier in the month to award the money, which will be dispersed over a three-year period. DDC chair Sandra Saville said the money can be used for a variety of reasons including supporting special events, marketing and promotions. With groundbreaking for renovations on the Baltimore Street pedestrian mall set for spring, Saville said the funding comes at an opportune time and will be put to good use…

In one of their final official actions of 2021, the Allegany County Commissioners approved funding for additional staffing for the Sheriff’s Department and the State’s Attorneys office to deal with the growing number of drug arrests. State’s Attorney James Elliott and  Sheriff Craig Robertson made the request at an early December meeting- and the funds were signed off by the commissioners last week.  Elliott said drug-related indictments in 2019 and 2020 totaled 62, while his office has already exceeded 100 indictments in 2021. He called the caseloads significant- and said that unfortunately a big part of the problem results from…

Maryland's Department of Juvenile Services plans to close multiple detention facilities with the intention to expand others.  The state proposal would close the 30-bed Green Ridge Youth Center in Flintstone as well as the six-bed Mountain View facility in Swanton in Garrett County. With the opioid epidemic showing no signs of stopping, particularly among area youth, Delegate Wendell Beitzel is proposing that any detention centers that close, be converted for use as a drug treatment facility…

 Following the Health and Human Services announcement Friday that it was pausing distribution of two COVID-19 monoclonal antibody treatments in the U.S. due to reduced effectiveness against the omicron variant, the state of Maryland issued a directive to discontinue administering these treatments.  As a result, monoclonal antibody treatment – once widely available – has essentially halted statewide until newer, more effective monoclonal treatments become available.   In the wake of that decision, health officials continue to stress that COVID vaccinations and boosters are the best defense against severe illness or death from COVID-19. “Receiving a COVID-19 vaccine series and booster is…

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH), local jurisdictions, and their partners are operating COVID-19 testing sites and vaccination clinics throughout the state. This weekly advisory provides information about free community testing site locations and hours operated by local health departments and MDH throughout Maryland. It also provides information about local health departments’ vaccination opportunities.   Please note that due to rising cases, many community testing sites are expanding their hours or days for additional opportunities for free testing.  The Annapolis testing site at the corner of Calvert and Bladen Streets has changed its days and hours of operation through April 15,…