Columbia/Howard County Development News

[MasonsInquiries]

Originally Posted by hpal3

2000 census estimates put Columbia's population around 90,000

2005 census puts it at 94,600.

[StevenW]

So, within a couple of years, say, 2010, we could see a 100,000+ population in Columbia? Would be cool.

[DrzBrooklynChulo90]

THAT MANY PEOPLE IN COLUMBIA?!HOLY SHIT!!THAT'S A LOT!I didn't know that there were that many people down there.

[TheGlobalizer]

Yeah, I think I heard that Columbia would be the 2nd or 3rd largest city in MD if it were incorporated.

[StevenW]

do you think it will ever be incorporated?

[gohorns]

columbia's quite big actually if you think about it...i think a lot of people see the town center area (and a few others like snowden river area) and think that's columbia....but there's a more to it than that...

speaking of nearly 100K people, damn...what's with the traffic in the area?? everywhere i went today was packed....specially town center/mall and the roads in that area. Even the rain didn't keep people away..

[hpal3]

Originally Posted by StevenW

do you think it will ever be incorporated?

Howard County is to affluent for Columbia to even consider this. It wouldn't make any since to me.

[hpal3]

Originally Posted by gohorns

columbia's quite big actually if you think about it...i think a lot of people see the town center area (and a few others like snowden river area) and think that's columbia....but there's a more to it than that...

speaking of nearly 100K people, damn...what's with the traffic in the area?? everywhere i went today was packed....specially town center/mall and the roads in that area. Even the rain didn't keep people away..

Are you a Columbia resident?

[hpal3]

Route 1 is the key to Howard's future growth
Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Jul 3, 2006 by Jen Degregorio
Developers broke ground Friday on a mixed-use development in Elkridge, the first of many new projects set for U.S. Route 1 in Howard County that promise to transform the now-sparse corridor into a dense residential and commercial hub.

Located near the junction of Route 1 and Montgomery Road, Elkridge Crossing will ultimately comprise nearly 500 residential units and 150,000 square feet of commercial space, including a hotel. The project will arrive in phases and take between five and seven years to complete, said John Liparini, a principal of Elkridge Crossing developer Brantly Development Group.

Liparini expects Elkridge Crossing to widen the market as well as tap new demand from military employees and contractors set to arrive in Maryland due to federal base closures in other states.

Route 1 is the long-range answer to the question, 'Where do we grow from here?' said Richard Story, chief executive officer of the Howard County Economic Development Authority.

County zoning laws have strict requirements for maintaining open and green space, limiting development and squeezing the market for housing, office and retail uses.

If you want to continue your employment growth and tax base growth you need to redevelop your existing developed area, Story said.

To that end, the county launched a plan to urbanize Route 1, which is now home to light industry, mobile home parks and a smattering of other uses.

Advertisement
It's hard to tell a mother that her baby's ugly, Story said. But some would say of Route 1 that, if not underdeveloped, it is in many ways obsolete.

In 2004, the county rezoned more than 1,700 acres along the highway to make way for dense, mixed-use development. As a result, a slew of projects are scheduled to fill in the scenery along Route 1.

One of the biggest projects is at the former Aladdin Village Mobile Home Park in Jessup, where Blue Stream LLC plans to build nearly 1,400 residential units and 540,000 square feet of commercial space.

In North Laurel, Ashbury Court will bring 140 apartments and 28,000 square feet of commercial space, while Mission Place in Jessup will bring 378 residential units and 90,000 square feet of commercial space.

Other projects are also being planned, said Dace Blaumanis, a project manager for the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning. But it is difficult to predict the total square footage of commercial and residential space that will ultimately line Route 1, she said.

The good thing about Howard County is that it has a lot of velocity and it continues to grow, said David Fritz, who is in charge of leasing office space at Elkridge Crossing.

Along with courting military contractors, Our goal is to go after community services, the health care industries - and services that the Elkridge community would need, Fritz said.

Ryan Homes is building the residential portion of the project. Condominiums will begin at about $280,000 and townhouses at about $330,000, Liparini said. Five units have already been sold, he said.

Liparini hopes to work with county planners to locate a bus stop at Elkridge Crossing that could connect residents to a MARC train station about two miles away.

It's smart growth, Story said. If Howard County continues to grow, it needs to become more urban.

[hpal3]

http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-s...ent_howard.pdf

Some of the Proposals are a little dated as the article is dated. They should reflect U/C

[StevenW]

Anybody been to beyonddc.com lately?

[gohorns]

Originally Posted by hpal3

Are you a Columbia resident?

I'm an EC resident

[gohorns]

Originally Posted by StevenW

Anybody been to beyonddc.com lately?

anything new worth checking out?

[vivo]

Originally Posted by StevenW

Anybody been to beyonddc.com lately?

yeah, it seems to be going downhill ie less comments

[TheGlobalizer]

Originally Posted by gohorns

columbia's quite big actually if you think about it...i think a lot of people see the town center area (and a few others like snowden river area) and think that's columbia....but there's a more to it than that...

speaking of nearly 100K people, damn...what's with the traffic in the area?? everywhere i went today was packed....specially town center/mall and the roads in that area. Even the rain didn't keep people away..

Lots of people live in Columbia and lots more work in Columbia. I'm in the latter category; I live in Fed Hill. Few people in my office actually live here.

[TheGlobalizer]

Originally Posted by hpal3

Howard County is to affluent for Columbia to even consider this. It wouldn't make any since to me.

Bingo.

The Columbia Association does just fine, IMHO, warts and all.

[hpal3]

Revised 'framework' for downtown urges 'environmental ethic'


01/03/08
By Andrei Blakely

Email this story to a friend


Howard County officials last week released the final version of a redevelopment plan for downtown Columbia that they revised to answer several questions posed by residents.

The 58-page document entitled "Downtown Columbia: A Community Vision," was released Dec. 28 as the final revision of the county's guidelines for developers.

The release of the document -- which officials refer to as a "framework" -- initiates the second stage in the three-stage process of creating a master plan for downtown Columbia. During the second stage, General Growth Properties Inc., the predominant property owner downtown, will release its own master plan in the early part of 2008.

Among the questions the county's new document addresses is that of responsibility for maintenance of public roads, sidewalks and other amenities downtown. According to the "framework" plan, the nonprofit Columbia Association, the county government and General Growth Properties should each bear some of that burden.

Another addition to the document explains that developers should be responsible for making transportation improvements as they construct a project but suggests public-private partnerships could make transit upgrades easier to achieve.

The revised framework adds details about Columbia founder James Rouse's goals for the downtown area. According to the document, Rouse wanted Columbia to be a "real city" that respects the land, helps people grow and turns a profit for the developer.

The framework now urges developers to establish a new "environmental ethic" for downtown that could "protect natural resources and sensitive environmental areas."

The new document also says roads should "respond to and respect natural features" and that downtown should have a public square where people can assemble. Another addition indicates that developers should consider adapting streets or pathways to accommodate Segway scooters, golf cart-type vehicles and Global Electric Motorcars.

'Bold vision'

County officials began gathering public input on the redevelopment of downtown Columbia two years ago when they conducted a week-long series of public meetings called a "charrette" that sought widespread public input into how downtown should be rebuilt.

Officials and residents then developed two working drafts of the plan. One came out in October 2005, a week after the charrette. The second draft, released in February 2006, contained specific recommendations on such details as allowable building heights, housing and commercial densities, and the placement of streets and some buildings.

The framework plan first released on Sept. 28 and the new revision contain no such specifics. They are instead supposed to guide officials of General Growth as they design a specific plan for downtown, county officials said.

County Executive Kenneth Ulman said that to dictate every detail of the redevelopment would "stymie" the creativity in the process.

"I know some people wanted us to be more specific, but we wanted to set the bar high, create the framework and put it on the developer to meet the bold vision we've laid out," Ulman said.

General Growth officials could not be reached for comment on the county's revised framework.

'Starting the process'

Overall, the framework sets goals of preserving existing landmarks, improving public transportation, encouraging environmentally friendly development and making the downtown area more accessible to pedestrians.

The final draft of the framework is a direct response to residents and property owners in the county, said Kimberley Flowers, deputy director of the Department of Planning and Zoning.

"There was lots of discussion in our public input period about how would these projects be maintained," Flowers said. "In areas that people would say were vague or that they had more questions about, we tried to be more specific."

General Growth officials have said they expect to release the company's own master plan for downtown Columbia to the public during the first three months of 2008.

The company then would start the third stage of the planning process by submitting amendments to the county's general plan and zoning regulations in the second quarter of 2008 to the Planning Board and the County Council.

Even though the framework is complete, Ulman said his administration would maintain an active role in the development of a final plan as it moves to General Growth and then goes through public hearings.

"This is just starting the process. I don't want people to think in any way that we're done," Ulman said.

[sdeclue]

Did someone on here say they have started work on the big tower in Columbia by the lake?

[hpal3]

Originally Posted by sdeclue

Did someone on here say they have started work on the big tower in Columbia by the lake?

Site prep work so far.

Construction could forestall compromise on Plaza's height

09/27/07
By Andrei Blakely



The window of time for a compromise to be reached on the height of a proposed 22-story high-rise condominium in downtown Columbia is closing, according to the project's developer.

Florida-based WCI Communities Inc., the developer of the Plaza Residences, is conducting preliminary construction on the building, extending underground utilities in downtown Columbia to the structure, said William Rowe, a vice president at WCI.
The preliminary work could be followed within a few weeks by actual construction. When that happens, the time for WCI to compromise on the building's height will have passed, Rowe said.

"We're rocking and rolling," Rowe said of the project the company is building on Wincopin Circle. "This is real construction, and it is costing real dollars. Every day the construction advances, there is one less day of compromise."

Meanwhile, county officials worked this week to try to schedule yet another meeting between officials of WCI and four county residents who are fighting the condominium's construction in court, said county government spokesman Kevin Enright.

In recent months, the two sides have met with County Executive Kenneth Ulman and Douglas Godine, vice president and general manager for General Growth Properties Inc., Columbia's developer, in an effort to reach a compromise on the building's height.

Both WCI and the residents have said in recent weeks that those discussions have borne no fruit and blamed the other side for stalling.

Quick court decision unlikely

Opponents of the Plaza -- which has the approval of county officials -- have argued that the building's height would make it out of place in downtown Columbia

In addition, four county residents -- Lloyd Knowles, Stephen Meskin, Joel Broida and Joann Stolley -- have mounted a legal challenge against the project, claiming that the Howard County Planning Board approved the Plaza in 2006 using illegal zoning.

Before the courts can rule on that complaint however, they must first rule on whether the residents possess the proper legal standing to challenge the project at all.

The residents have lost several initial rounds in the battle, which now rests in the hands of Maryland's second highest court, the Court of Special Appeals.

The court is not likely to rule on the case for several weeks, said Darrell Pressley, a spokesman for the court.

By then, WCI might be too far along on the building's construction to consider any further efforts at compromise, Rowe said this week.

Knowles countered that WCI would be taking a risk in beginning full construction on the project before the appeal is decided, adding that he is confident the court will rule in favor of the residents.

"They haven't started construction," he added. "They have just added changes to a sewer line. That is just a public relations gambit."

'Plaza still attractive'

In general, at least 40 percent of a proposed building's units must be presold or reserved by future residents before WCI will begin full construction on a project, said Jim Dietz, the developer's chief financial officer.

In the case of the Plaza, the project has maintained its level of reservations on condominiums despite the legal challenges from the local residents, Rowe said.

Though he refused to say what percentage of the building's units have been reserved, he added that the percentage of reserved units is at least as high as it was when WCI reported in 2006 that 40 percent of the units were reserved.

"There is no doubt that the delay in what we've been put through has not benefited us," he added. "But (the Plaza) is still an attractive project for many people."

In the meantime, the County Council is considering a pair of zoning amendments introduced by Mary Kay Sigaty, a Columbia Democrat, that could potentially alter or halt the Plaza project.

One of Sigaty's amendments would cap the height of new buildings in Columbia at 150 feet -- or roughly 15 stories -- until county officials approve a master plan to guide downtown's development over the next 30 years. Officials are now drafting such a plan.

The second amendment would apply the height limit to any building that is facing a legal challenge, even if the project already has the blessing of county officials. At the moment, that amendment would apply only to the Plaza.

The County Council is scheduled to vote on the amendments on Oct. 1.

[MasonsInquiries]

let the building begin.....FINALLY!!!!