By Tashi McQueen
AFRO Staff Writer
tmcqueen@afro.com
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) led a business roundtable in Dundalk, Md., on the anniversary of the Key Bridge collapse on March 26. Roundtable participants included several Dundalk and Turner Station business owners and Baltimore County Executive Katherine Klausmeier (D) and Special Secretary Maria Martinez of the Governor’s Office of Small, Minority and Women Business Affairs.
Photo Credit: AFRO Photo/Tashi McQueen
The press was only permitted to attend the roundtable through the first question Moore asked the attendees. Further specifics were not provided.
Moore acknowledged the strong sense of community within Turner Station, recognizing it as something that shined through and helped the county and state recover.
“Freedom comes in unity,” said Moore at the roundtable in Turner Station, a historic Black neighborhood next door to the Key Bridge. “That’s exactly what this community continued to show one of our state’s greatest challenges. To this community, I want to say, God bless you and thank you.”
At the top of the roundtable, business owners shared their experiences running their company since the Bridge collapse. They shared stories of shock, overwhelming community support and perseverance.
One barber benefitted from the sense of unity within Turner Station, as Moore mentioned.
“It wasn’t that bad for us,” said Jeffrey Sims, owner of Cutting Edge Barber Shop. “The community has always supported my barbershop. I was able to stay open.”
Sims, who’s been running his business for over 29 years, even noted getting support during the COVID-19 pandemic, which helped him stay afloat.
Mark Boucher is chief commercial officer of Amports, a vehicle processing company.
“The entire supply chain that fed our business was gone,” said Boucher, about then the bridge collapsed. “Our main concern was being able to keep our several hundred employees working, which we were able to do for the most part. I’m happy to say that we’re on the back end of that mostly, but it was a perilous time there.”
The conversation included owners and executives from businesses that received aid from the state through the various Moore-Miller Administration programs such as the Maryland Department of Commerce’s Emergency Business Assistance program; the Maryland Department of Labor’s Worker Retention program and the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development’s Business Loan program.
Overall, the attendees spoke as if they were happy with the aid they received from the state during that time, with the support from the community and the regions where they work.
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