Erosion problems from flooding in 1972, 1985 and 1996 had forced the park to close this part of the C&O Canal Towpath in Washington County. It's the only gap in the 184.5-mile towpath between the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C., and Cumberland.

"The C&O Canal National Historical Park is Maryland's largest and most-visited national park," said Gov. Martin O'Malley, "and through our partnership with the National Park Service, we will again make the C&O Canal towpath whole."

"For well over a decade we have been working on fixing what not only is a safety issue, but is also an economic development and tourism issue," said Tom Riford, president and CEO of the Hagerstown-Washington county Convention and Visitors Bureau. "It has been conservatively estimated that once completed, Washington County will see an additional 60,000 visitors annually, creating more than $2 million in new economic impact."

"We are doubly honored to have two entries representing our region as possible venues for World Cup matches in 2018 or 2022," said Gov. Martin O'Malley. "The success of the Baltimore group - using M&T Bank Stadium, and the Washington, D.C., group - using FedEx Field in Landover, shows that we are a world-class player in the international sports arena."

World Cup matches can provide an economic boost of $300 million to $500 million for each host city, said Michael Frenz, executive director of the Maryland Stadium Authority.
Last July, Baltimore got a taste of the impact that soccer can generate when M&T Bank Stadium hosted 71,000 fans for a sold-out exhibition match between two prominent European teams – Chelsea and AC Milan.

Nine arts organizations receive NEA awards
Contemporary Museum, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2009, was awarded a $50,000 Access to Artistic Excellence grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). This grant supports an exhibition and publication featuring works of New York-based artists Bradley McCallum and Jacqueline Tarry in collaboration with the Maryland Institute College of Art's Exhibition Development Seminar. The exhibition, Bearing Witness, opens at the museum and other venues around Baltimore in May.

NEA also awarded similar grants to eight other Maryland arts organizations: Center Stage Associates (Baltimore, $30,000); Enterprise Community Partners (Columbia, $25,000); Frostburg State University (Frostburg, $10,000); Heifetz International Music Institute (Ellicott City, $11,000); Morgan State University (Baltimore, $25,000); National Council for the Traditional Arts (Silver Spring, $40,000); Quest: arts for everyone (Lanham, $20,000); and Round House Theatre (Bethesda, $30,000). The nine NEA awards totaled $241,000.

Grants offered for projects along Bay Network
Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network (CBGN) – a system of more than 160 parks, refuges, museums, historic sites and water trails – has received a $1 million federal appropriation for FY 2010 that will be used to fund projects that:

• create new or expanded opportunities for public access to the Bay and its rivers;
• promote stewardship of the Chesapeake Bay; or
• enhance development of the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historical Trail and/or Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail.

Proposals must be submitted by noon on Friday, March 5. Grant guidelines are posted on CBGN's web site.

Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski had introduced a funding request for CBGN in legislation that was approved by Congress in late October.

MPT production to feature Maryland's SSB Trail
The Division of Tourism Film and the Arts is moving forward with Maryland Public Television (MPT) to produce a 60-minute travelogue on the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail in Maryland. Funded through a federal Scenic Byways grant, the production will highlight the events, people and places that made the Chesapeake Campaign such a pivotal part of the War of 1812. Today, the trail offers attractions that have national significance and locations where visitors can enjoy interpretation of the Star-Spangled Banner experience.

MPT will also adapt this project as a prominent element on Thinkport – a resource-rich educational web site for teachers and families. Thinkport is the product of a partnership between MPT and the Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education.

Online campaign drives more traffic to VisitMaryland
The latest issue of the Maryland Tourism Monitor – the Tourism Office's monthly report that measures visitor activity, advertising response and trends in state travel – is available online.

Among its findings for November: More than 142,000 prospective visitors have responded to online advertising this fiscal year – an increase of 43 percent over last year and 18 percent of all web site visitors. Print advertising has also generated 59 percent more requests – at this point in the fiscal year – even with constrained budgets.

RAM hosts Taste of Maryland
DBED Secretary Christian S. Johansson (l) joins Paul Hartgen, president and CEO of the Restaurant Association of Maryland (RAM), at the 20th annual Taste of Maryland Legislative Reception, Jan. 18 in Annapolis. Guests had an opportunity to advocate for the hospitality and tourism industries with members of the state legislature. RAM's partners for the event included the Maryland Tourism Council, the Maryland Hotel and Lodging Association and the Maryland Wineries Association.

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