Today in Hampden Construction News

1. A van from Jensen's Plumbing Service has been parked outside the Falls Road site of the future El Rancho Grande for the last few days! The MySpace page only says "soon very soon."

2. The cement truck at the Hampden library on Tuesday got me excited. Maybe they were building a patio? Sidewalk improvements? However, I talked to some workmen, and they told me, "just drain improvements."

"Oh," I said, "I thought it might be something exciting."

"Depends what you think about drains," one of them answered.

That's pure Hampden philosophy. I love it.

3. Learning Inc (on 36th, just west of Falls) is under construction. (Pictured is a recent photo.) The school for troubled youth and adults is going through a full renovation of the former Hampden Trinity United Church building and the construction of a new adjoining building. Money has come from various sources as part of a $1 million capital campaign, but Learning Inc did recently receive a $50,000 grant from the Knott Foundation (a Catholic family foundation focused on strengthening Baltimore's communities.) The school is a last-chance stop for many troubled kids. This article from the City Paper a couple of years ago gives you a taste of the place.