By: The Baltimore Informer Staff
TOWSON, Md. — The Baltimore County Council approved three major engineering contracts worth up to $9 million on Monday, awarding the work to the only three companies that applied [Fiscal Notes page 11].
The contracts were part of the Council’s first meeting of 2026. They allow three engineering firms—ARM Group, Schnabel Engineering, and EA Engineering—to provide “on-call” services for the county’s landfills and waste facilities [Fiscal Notes page 9].
Each company can receive up to $3 million over a term that could last nine years [Notes p. 9]. However, a review of the contract terms shows the agreements can remain in effect indefinitely until the county decides the work is “complete” [Fiscal Notes page 9].
During the meeting, Councilman David Marks asked why the contracts needed such a long term [Video 00:31:50]. County officials responded that the timeframe was standard, and the Council voted unanimously to approve the spending without further debate [Minutes page 3].
Data Center Freeze
The Council also moved to pause all new data center projects in the county. Councilman Pat Young introduced Bill 3-26, which creates a temporary ban on permits for these facilities [Minutes page 2].
Data centers are large buildings that hold computer servers. The bill states the county needs time to study how much electricity and water these facilities use before allowing more to be built [Minutes page 2]. The pause takes effect immediately.
Middle River Land Deal
Councilman Marks introduced two measures focused on Middle River. One resolution creates a special committee to investigate a new “Logistics Park” [Agenda page 1]. The second resolution removes a piece of county-owned land from the “surplus” list, a step often taken before selling property to developers [Agenda page 1].
Housing Contracts Extended
The Council also agreed to extend contracts for addiction recovery housing [Minutes page 2]. County officials admitted they needed more time to find new vendors because they did not start the bidding process early enough [Fiscal Notes page 4].
One of the previous housing providers, Another Chance Recovery, Inc., is no longer in business, according to council documents [Fiscal Notes page 5]. The remaining providers will continue their work for another seven months [Fiscal Notes page 4].
