Columbia Maryland's Future

New Schools in KingsContrivance: Relief for the Southeast

2012-01-18T13:32:00.000-05:00

In 2012, redistricting on the Elementary Level will take place to provide relief to unprecedented growth and overcrowding in a hand full of Schools. Fulton Elementary will play a key role to directly relieve overcrowding at Gorman Crossing Elementary and indirectly relieve Atholton and Guilford Elementaries by opening up space at Hammond Elementary. Although this change is welcome, the southeast will continue to grow beyond its capacity at both the Elementary and Middle School levels. The County realizes the need for a new Elementary School in the southeast but has yet to realize the need for a new Middle School in the same region.

The southeast includes Columbia's Kings Contrivance Village, whose overcrowding will be subdued at the beginning of the coming School Year by adding Hammond Elementary into the equation. Now for the new Elementary School in the Southeast, the County will have to secure a
new site somewhere in the region to build it. I'm sure like in the case of the Northeast they will look in the Route 1 Corridor but maybe they're already sitting on a few viable School Sites right in our beloved Columbia.

The Kings Contrivance Neighborhoods of Dickinson and Huntington both have sites that were reserved for Elementary Schools but existing Schools such as Atholton, Guilford, Bollman Bridge (which was essentially the rebuilt Savage Elementary) have served the Village and later this year, so will Hammond. I think the Dickinson site will be the optimal site for the new Southeast Elementary School because not only will Atholton continue to grow in size but Hammond will be needed to provide relief for Gorman Crossing, Laurel Woods, Forest Ridge, and Bollman Bridge. Dickinson Elementary will produce a domino effect of redistricting that should provide region wide relief.

Dickinson Elementary won't be large in size it only needs a Capacity of about 450 but its impact will be huge. The Neighborhood of Dickinson in 2015, the projected opening date of the new School will be served by Atholton and Hammond Elementaries while Huntington will be served by Hammond and Bollman Bridge. The Dickinson Elementary District will include the Dickinson Neighborhood south of Guilford Road, Kings Meade Way, and Huntington west of I-95 pulling from the three mentioned Schools.

Atholton will not receive any additional Students given its small capacity of 387. Bollman Bridge will receive from Deep Run the area southeast of I-95 and Route 175, Hammond will receive from Gorman Crossing the proposed Wincopia Farms Development and from Laurel Woods
the Canterbury Riding and Whiskey Run Developments. Gorman Crossing will receive Emerson East of I-95 from Forest Ridge and Forest Ridge will share the Laurel Park Station Development with Laurel Woods.

Now we've seen how in 2015 Dickinson Elementary can provide relief to the entire Southeast but just like clock work a few years after massive Elementary growth, massive Middle School growth will follow. I'm proposing a new Southeast Middle School to open by 2018. The three existing Middle Schools in this region are Hammond, Murray Hill, and Patuxent Valley. All three Schools will be way overcrowded and the County will again have to look for a new site suitable for a Middle School. And wouldn't you know it? Kings Contrivance also has a Middle School Site? It's right next to the Village Center and Hammond High.

Like most new Middle Schools in Howard County Kings Contrivance Middle will have a capacity of 662 and will draw from the entire Dickinson Elementary, the Kings Meade Neighborhood, Macgills Common, and the Glen Oaks Neighborhood. Whether this School District can fill a
capacity of 662 is yet to be seen.

Kings Contrivance Middle was created from Hammond and Patuxent Valley Middles and in order to back fill their districts they will draw from Murray Hill Middle, the School that will be the most crowded. Hammond Middle will receive from Murray Hill, Harvest Way, Settlers Landing, Wyndmere, and Wincopia Farms. Patuxent Valley will receive Kings Woods, Northgate Woods, Country Meadows Apartments, and Hammond's Promise Overlook. Patuxent Valley will have already given the portion of Jessup above the train tracks to Mayfield Woods in 2015 when Long Reach Middle is due to open.

By opening new Schools on sites long reserved for new Schools in Columbia, a dominio effect of redistricting can provide relief for an entire region.

Long Reach Village Center: Set to Fail Once Again

2012-01-17T13:30:00.001-05:00

Surprise! The Safeway in Long Reach has closed! Actually this is only
a surprise if you've been living under a rock for the entirety of
2011. It began with the fact that Long Reach was left out as chain
wide renovations took place and then in the summer time the Pharmacy
closed due to increased competition. Although Safeway insisted this
wasn't leading to a closure of the entire store, everybody including
the Village Center's Owners were skeptical.

America's Realty Corp. whose knack seems to be renting out distressed
properties at below market rent to low income tenants and doing little
to no renovations of the property. In my book, that's a textbook
definition of a slumlord.

Although Safeway closed in November, America's Realty Corp. had been
in talks all year with potential Grocers to replace Safeway because
they saw the writing on the wall just like everybody else. I had
written previously about how I would like Columbia's and Howard
County's only Whole Foods Market to come to Long Reach to make the
Center a regional draw not just for the residents of Locust Park.

Whether America's Realty Corp discussed this possibility with Whole
Foods is unknown, what is known is that Long Reach, for now at least
won't suffer a fate like Wilde Lake. A new Grocer is lined up to
replace Safeway, but in classic slumlord fashion it's an independently
owned one. Without further ado, I give "The Family Market" no the
above image has not been air brushed or otherwise doctored that is the
sign that one sees while driving past the Village Center, I'd park the
car but not to buy anything, just gawk at what passes for an Anchor
Tenant nowadays.

The Family Market is said to be "upscale" but given that it's meant to
cater to the population immediately surrounding it rather than the
Village as a Whole I find that hard to believe. Still, in addition to
Hispanic and Asian Foods there will be a Cafe with Wi-Fi access and
Residents are excited to see a replacement to the troubled Safeway.

The past couole of years have not been kind to Long Reach, in addition
to the Safeway, the Village Center has lost Dog House Pub, Dominos
Pizza, State Employees Credit Union, and Rave Day Spa. The news of The
Family Market's arrival has brought new signed leases to the Village
Center including Subway, a Hair Salon, a Caribbean Restaurant, and
Long Reach which also serves Indian Food.

All and all this appears to be a solution to the woes Long Reach
Village Center has been suffering. This may help in the short term but
I don't believe this to be a viable long term solution for Long Reach.
I believe that like the collections of stores that were there with the
Safeway, the Family Market will continue in the tradition of only
drawing patrons from Locust Park, the distressed Neighborhood
surrounding the Village Center rather a broader clientele this new
roster of tenants will suffer a fate similar to Safeway in a few
years.

So what's the long term solution? Obviously it would be to find a
roster of tenants that serves the entire Village of Long Reach and
beyond starting with a strong Anchor Tenant. That's a simple solution
to a not so simple problem. Notice I've said repeatedly that the area
directly surrounding the Village Center is distressed? Regardless of
the condition of the Village Center, patrons are scared due to the
crime and blight that holds back the entire Locust Park Neighborhood.

Lately the County has been spearheading efforts to redevelop blighted
Neighborhoods such as Guilford Gardens, Hilltop, and Ellicott Terrace
into amenity filled modern mixed income Neighborhoods. Granted these
developments are County Owned but a similar campaign should start in
Locust Park to modernize the Neighborhood and diversify its Residents.
The worst offenders in Long Reach are Lazy Hollow Apartments, Sierra
Woods, Long Reach Knolls, Columbia Landing, and Heatherstone Town
Homes. There are others throughout Locust Park that are in need of
redevelopment as well but these need it the most.

As Residential redevelopment flanks the Locust Park Neighborhood, the
desirability of the Village Center to new Merchants and Patrons
outside Locust Park will go up. Perhaps the long term answer to Long
Reach Village Center isn't the Center itself but the residences
surrounding it.

Long Reach Middle School: 40 Years in the Waiting

2011-06-09T00:02:00.000-04:00

A Middle School in the Long Reach has been "promised" to its residents as early as the first homes were built in 1971. Funding and construction was delayed for decades and the final nail in the coffin for Long Reach Middle was the usage of is site Long Reach High School. Today, Middle School Students living in Long Reach are all bused elsewhere whether it be to Bonnie Branch, Mayfield Woods, or Owen Brown Middle Schools.
Most of Long Reach, in the case of its assigned Middle School puts the Village in the "Northeast Category" of the planning map rather than "Columbia East". In addition to Mayfeild Woods and Bonnie Branch, the Northeast Middle Schools are Elkridge Landing and Ellicott Mills. All four Middle Schools are experiencing overcrowding as are Middle Schools in the Southeast (Murray Hill and Patuxent Valley.) Most of this growth can attributed to new development along the Route 1 corridor. The over crowded conditions in so many Middle Schools on the County's Eastern Edge warrants a new Middle School in that area. The County has planned for this and its expected opening date is the 2015-2016 School Year. Next comes the painstaking process of finding a suitable site.
The way the Route 1 corridor is configured it would be impossible to build one with a large Student Walker Base in fact all of the Middle Schools in the Northeast except Mayfield Woods have a very small number (if any) Student Walkers. That makes for a lot of buses. Now where in the Northeast can we relieve crowding in existing Schools by building a new School and at the same time drastically cutting down on the number of Students bussed to far away Schools?
This is where my idea of resurrecting Long Reach Middle School comes into play. Long Reach, has a dense population especially in the Locust Park and Phelps Luck Neighborhoods. Kendall Ridge also produces a large number of Middle School Students as well.
If Long Reach were to have a Middle School built between the Village Center and the High School, close to the entire Student Population would walk!
Given the preexisting pathways Columbia has been blessed with, only the eastern edge of Kendall Ridge (Summer Cloud Way) pictured above and the northern edge of Phelps Luck (the area closest to Phelps Luck Elementary) would warrant a bus. Also included in the Long Reach boundary line is the Montgomery Run and Shipley's Grant Neighborhoods. Given their location across Route 108 they will have to be bussed. Both pictured below.
With Mayfield Woods and Bonnie Branch not serving Long Reach anymore there's room for them to provide relief for other crowded Schools.
The Rockburn/Lynwood Square Neighborhood can be redistricted from Elkridge Landing to Bonnie Branch.
The northern section of Jessup can be redistricted from Patuxent Valley to Mayfeild Woods.Hammond Middle would provide relief to Murray Hill.
The rebuilt and modernized Oakland Mills Middle will provide relief to Ellicott Mills. Jeffers Hill will remain at Owen Brown also slated for a rebuild and modernization.
Now that I've provided a district for Long Reach Middle and Neighboring Schools, I guess it's time I focused on the site I've selected for it. It's located on Tamar Drive between Foreland Garth and Old Dobbin Lane. There's a small cemetery on the site whose entrance will have to be re located to the stub of Old Montgomery Road that skirts the site's southern border. The School itself will have a capacity of 662 which is the capacity for all new Howard County Middle Schools and its design will mimic that of Ellicott Mills Middle shown below.
From the time the Village of Long Reach was first built in 1971, residents were promised a Middle School. Lack of funding and the availability of larger sites outside of the Village and the original site now being used as a High School, it's easy to see why 40 years later residents of Long Reach think they will never have a Middle School to call their own. But I think 40 years is long enough to wait. Don't You?

Modernization III 2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019

2011-03-14T01:48:00.016-04:00

Well it's been fun but this is the final phase of Modernizing any and all Columbia Schools. I set an ambitious date of January 1st, 2020 for all work to be complete and it appears that I've met that goal. In order to Modernize these last two Schools, they will have to be broken up by sub districts and taken to one of the three holding Schools. Well here come the final Modernizations!

Our first School is in Kings Contrivance. In Phase II I opened two new Elementary Schools in Kings Contrivance on sites that were Master Planned for such Schools when the Village was first planned. Also in the original plan for Kings Contrivance, there was a site next to Hammond High meant for a Middle School. I think instead of modernizing the existing Hammond Middle, the "replacement" Hammond Middle should be built on the Kings Contrivance Site and named Kings Contrivance Middle. This will allow for a larger percentage of the population to walk to School and will ultimately save on long range transportation costs.

2016-2017

The new building will be next door to Hammond High and Kings Contrivance Village Center on Guilford Road with the Ball Fields backing to Weather Worn Way. Capacity will be set at 662 as are all new Howard County Middle Schools. Students will not have to use a Holding School during construction they will remain at Hammond Middle while Kings Contrivance Middle and the new Hammond Elementary are built in the 2016-2017 School Year.
Since the last two Schools to be modernized are large High Schools, one Holding School can't hold all students in fact two Holding Schools can't either, we will have to use all three for different sub districts. Atholton High, built in 1966 is due in the existing Capital Budget for Systemic Renovations. I on the hand, think it's high time for a full blown Modernization.
Atholton has had a lot of additions over the years but still looks ancient. I think for the most part the School Building has reached the end of its life cycle at 45 years of age. Atholton received an addition in 2003 which will be spared and renovated while the rest of the School is torn down and rebuilt.

During the modernization, Atholton will be broken up in three sub districts which will determine which Holding School one will attend during the year of construction (2016-2017)

At the Clarksville Holding Center will house all Students attending Atholton living in the Pointers Run Section of River Hill and the Fulton/Clarksville.

The Cradlerock Holding Center will house all Students attending Atholton living in Simpsonville, Clemens Crossing, Hawthorn, and Rivers Edge.

The Old Elkridge Holding Center will house all Students attending Atholton living in Scaggsville and Emerson.

When Atholton re opens it will be under a new name; "Hickory Ridge High" the new building will boast a new Auditorium, Cafeteria, Media Center, Science Labs, Fine Arts Studios, Auxiliary Gym, Computer Labs, Home Economics, Technology Education, and a new Front Office and Guidance Office. Capacity will be set at 1500.

Summer 2017 Long Reach High will undergo Systemic Renovations

2017-2018

This School Year's Modernization will operate similarly to that of the Atholton Hickory Ridge High. The School in the hot seat this time?
Hammond High opened in 1976 to a mostly rural district which has since experienced a constant boom in growth. Hammond received an addition in 1996 which will be spared in the School's Modernization.Despite the Systemic Renovation in 1998 the School is too small and dated. Like Athtolton, it will need all three Holding Schools for its large population.

The Clarksville Holding Center will house all Hammond High Students living in Kings Contrivance.

The Cradlerock Holding Center will house all Hammond High Students living in Savage, Bowling Brook Farms, Stone Lake, and Emerson.

The Old Elkridge Holding Center will house all Hammond High Students living in Jessup.

The New Building like Atholton will also be renamed "Kings Contrivance High" and will boast a new Gym, Auxiliary Gym, Auditorium, Fine Arts Studios, Cafeteria, Media Center, Computer Labs, Science Labs, Home Economics, Technology Education, Day Care Center, Front Office, and Guidance Office. Capacity will be set at 1500.

Summer 2018 Wilde Lake High will undergo Systemic Renovations

2018-2019 This may or may not occur. Depending the enrollment of Pointers Run, Tridelphia Ridge, and Dayton Oaks, Clarksville Elementary may open as a regular School Again. Since it's in the Columbia Area, it will be modernized before that can happen (modernized building pictured above). If not it can hold the Offices that were housed at the Old Cedar Lane School that was demolished to make room for the new Harpers Choice Middle. It could also hold offices that were vacated when the Faulkner Ridge Center was vacated. Why was it vacated? Stay tuned!

Modernization Phase II: 2014-2015, 2015-2016

2011-03-02T00:46:00.001-05:00

With Phase I of the Columbia School Modernizations an all around success, lets not waste any time in getting Phase II underway. Like Phase I, Phase II will be a mixture of partial and complete rebuilds depending on the condition of the School and if there any recent additions built. There may also be new Pools and Neighborhoods built as the existing ones may be sacrificed to make way for new construction. Something new for Phase II will be the complete relocation of two Elementary Schools ie not being built on their current sites. So without further adieu, here's Phase II.

We'll start the 2014-2015 School Year at the Clarksville Elementary Holding School. In Phase I, Clarksville was large enough to hold two Schools at once, this year time not so much. In Phase I, it was Elementary Schools, this time it's Middle Schools.
The first School in Phase II will be Harpers Choice Middle. Site constraints had to be considered when modernization Harpers Choice with the School being "land locked" for lack of a better term. My solution? Demolish the "Old Cedar Lane School" to make run. I only did a partial demolition here.
The new Harpers Choice be more compact with two maybe three stories. A new thing to introduce to Howard County Middle Schools will be Auxiliary Gyms, and the new Harpers Choice will have one.
Part of the new construction will be a new Science Wing, Main Gym, Media Center, Computer Labs, Front Office Suite, Fine Arts Wing, and Multi Purpose Room. Capacity will be set at 662, a number Harpers Choice has reached in the past and will likely do so again as its feeder Elementary Schools are experiencing major growth.

Across town at the Cradlerock Holding School, the facility will hold three East Columbia Schools in the 2014-2015 School Year. Oakland Mills Middle and Jeffers Hill Elementary will be completely rebuilt while Phelps Luck will have its 1998 addition spared.

Although enrollment at Oakland Mills Middle is low currently, the numbers show growth in the coming years. Coupled with redistricting from overcrowded Schools in the Northeast and Southeast, Oakland Mills could soon see a growth rate of up to 50%. Built in 1972, Oakland Mills Middle is not easy on the eyes. It will be more of an eye sore when the massive Oakland Mills Redevelopment effort goes into effect and nothing were to be done with the School.
Modernization of Oakland Mills Middle will include a complete tear down and rebuild. The new School like Harpers Choice will contain an Auxiliary Gym, a Science Lab Wing, and a Fine Arts Wing.
These are all things that the current Oakland Mills lacks. Capacity will be set at an ambitious 662. Feeder Elementary School Growth suggests that this won't be wasted space.

Also at the Cradlerock holding School during the 2014-2015 School Year will be Jeffers Hill Elementary. Like Oakland Mills Middle a lot of the housing nearby will be redeveloped as part of the Long Reach Redevelopment Plan. This will skew enrollment projections which remain stubbornly low. I think new housing will produce higher numbers as well as redistricting from Waterloo and possibly Talbott Springs to Jeffers Hill.Also with a new building, existing residents may be more likely to send their kids to their Public School rather than a private School. I think Jeffers Hill residents have avoided their Neighborhood School because of the County's disinvestment in the area.
So that's why in addition to the brand new School, there will be a brand new Neighborhood Center and Pool as well. Figuring all this in, I have set the Capacity for the Jeffers Hill at an ambitious 528. Currently Jeffers Hill doesn't serve PreK in its District, I think the addition of PreK will relieve crowding at Talbott Springs where Jeffers Hills sends its PreK Students.

The last School at Cradlerock for the 2014-2015 School Year will be Phelps Luck Elementary. Enrollment here has sky rocketed from just under 500 in 2005 to the current 671. Projections don't see enrollment droppping in th next deacde so a larger Phelps Luck is very much in order.
Unlike most Schools in East Columbia, Phelps Luck got a little attention from the County, it received additions in 1989 and 1998 that will be spared. The addition from 1998 will be renovated into a Kindergarten wing while the 1989 addition will be demolished with the rest of the School.
Everything else will be new construction. Parking lot and bus lane expansions will require a new Neighborhood Center and Pool. Capacity for the new Phelps Luck will be set at 728 almost 200 seats larger than the current School. With crowding the way it is here I think 728 is a very realistic capacity.

At the old Elkridge Elementary, Students from the accient Guilford Elementary will be housed here for the 2014-2015 School Year.
Guilford was built in 1954 and has seen its share of renovations and additions. Guilford will be torn down but not rebuilt on the current Oakland Mills Road site.
That site will be traded with the County to expand the their redevelopment of Guilford Gardens doubling the number of affordable housing units at that site. The new "Guilford" Elementary will be on Volmerhausen Road in Kings Contrivance's Huntington Neighborhood.
This site was once considered to be an Elementary School for Hunington before Bollman Bridge was built. Bollman Bridge will be redistricted to cater to the Jessup area while Huntington will cater to students in Huntington and Guilford. Transportation costs may be reduced as the entire Huntington Neighborhood is bused currently and with a new Elementary School, the vast majority will walk.
Huntington Elementary will have a Capcity of 588.

During the Summer Time, Patuxent Valley Middle will undergo Systemic Renovations and Restroom Renovations as it will now be 26 years old. River Hill High will undergo Restroom Renovations.

2015-2016

The 2015-2016 School Year will see its share of Modernizations, Rebuilds, and Relocations just like the year before.

Well, no time like the present, here we are at Clarksville Elmentary again. This may be the first time since the Dasher Green/Owen Brown Rebuild that Students will be able to walk to their holding School. Clarksville Middle will be the School modernized this year and its Students will be held at its name sake Elementary.The Elementary School is located in the Clarksville Middle District next to River Hill High. Clarksville Middle was built in 1979 and received an addition in 2004. The 2004 addition will be spared and original building will be demolished. The 2004 addition will be renovated to match the new construction and will have a lot more windows than it currently does.The new Clarksville Middle will have a capacity of 662 just like its predecessor but it will be larger featuring an Auxiliary Gym, Science Lab Wing, and Fine Arts Wing, all things the current Clarksville Middle lacks. Also part of the new construction will be a new Main Gym, Media Center, Computer Labs, Cafeteria, and Front Office Suite.
Meanwhile across Route 29 at Cradlerock, the Population of Wilde Lake Middle will be housed here during the 2015-2016 School Year.
Now we come to another Alma Mater of mine; Wilde Lake Middle. It makes sense since last post I revealed I went to Running Brook Elementary. Two interesting things happened during my tenure at Wilde Lake Middle (1995-1998). Wilde Lake Middle underwent a Systemic Renovation over the summers and next door we watched Wilde Lake High fall to the ground and rise again. As we watched the rebuilding of Wilde Lake High (which I went on to attend) we all felt short changed because our School wasn't getting a new Building and our renovation caused for further crowding over the years. Wilde Lake Middle has a capacity of 506 which is about what the enrollment was back then. However, when I entered as a naive 6th grader the School was a relic in a failed Education Concept known as "Open Classrooms." The systemic renovation that ended in 1998 changed the floor plan of the School but no addition was built. What it did was it added more classrooms with smaller capacities which in turn resulted in narrow hallways. With half the Student Population (myself included) ready to fight at the drop of a hat, these tight quarters
made for a violent three years.
There are plans in the works for an addition at Wilde Lake Middle but that's too little too late. Wilde Lake Middle will be the sole Middle School for all the new housing in Town Center with projected enrollments soaring way past 600 and approaching 700 by 2020. It's time every last outdated brick of the current Wilde Lake Middle fall to the ground. I wouldn't shed a single tear.
The new Wilde Lake Middle, in addition to its current features being larger, taller, and wider it will now have an Auxiliary Gym, a Science Lab Wing, and a Fine Arts Wing. The capacity of 662 will show a large Cafeteria, a newly equipped Media Center, a Computer Lab that's the size of the current Media Center, a State of the Art Tech Ed Room with a full supply of lumber all year round, and a new Home-EC Kitchen with working appliances.

At the old Elkridge Elementary, another aged over populated School will be replaced.Atholton Elementary, built in 1961 will have a fate similar to Guilford or should I say Huntington. Atholton's Seneca Drive location will be traded with Parks and Rec to expand Atholton Park and in return the School System will get the site once was considered for a Dickinson Elementary.Dickinson Elementary will be a reality after all! Why? Because it of the long term transportation savings. Dickinson which will walk to its new Elementary School is denser with a larger Population (that's currently bused to Guilford but redistricting will take care of that.) than McGills Common and Allview Estates that currently walk to Atholton Elementary.
Atholton Elementary only has a capacity of 387. In the 2006-2007 it had 418 Students but now that number has spiked to 480 with a consistent rise in enrollment for the coming years. The new Dickinson Elementary will have a capacity of 554.

Over the summer of 2016, Mayfield Woods Middle will undergo systemic renovations and rest room renovations.

Well that concludes Phase II of modernizing every School in Columbia. Stay tuned for Phase III, The Final Phase!

Modernization Phase I 2012-2013, 2013-2014

2011-02-10T23:39:00.003-05:00

Well lets get down to business, I've laid plans for three holding Schools and by fall of 2012 they will be ready to hold the populations of Schools in Columbia going through modernizations by 2020. The cost high: very high, The aim: even higher, to give every School in Columbia a new or as good as new Building to accomodate growth in Columbia and get Columbia's Schools on par with newer parts of Howard County that have brand new Schools. It will be a very tight schedule as the scope per modernization will be one year per School. Now lets get down to Business! Remember, I'm calling for a lot of residential and commercial redevelopment in these School Districts, so why not greet this development with new Schools?

2012-2013

The Clarksville holding facility will host the populations of both Bryant Woods and Running Brook Elementaries. Lets take a look at what their modernizations will intale.

Bryant Woods, Columbia's first Elementary School will be torn down completely, in its place a brand new State of the Art two floor facility will rise in its place.
The Capacity will be 454. To make for a larger parking lot, Bryant Woods Neighborhood Center and Pool will have to be relocated on adjacent Park Land.
This also addresses newer Columbia Neighborhoods and their fancier swimming pools and Neighborhood Centers. In some cases to accommodate the new modernized School, a new modernized Pool might be part of the deal.

Running Brook (my Alma Mater 1989-1995) will also share the Clarksville holding facility during the 2012-2013 School year. Running Brook will not be completely torn down but most of it will be. The Gym will remain (and be enlarged and the current 1st grade, Kindergarten, and PreK wing which I believe to be a 1984 addition will be renovated to make way for a new Cafeteria and Kitchen.
The wing will be enlarged for Running Brook's growing enrollment. Also the "center" of the original Building will stay which currently holds the Media Center, Art Room, Computer Lab, and Front Office and Health Suite. This will be renovated to house the Music Room, Band Room, ESOL Wing, Hispanic Liaison Room, and a new Art Room.
The new Building will contain the pods for grades PreK-5 and a brand new Front Office, Teacher's Lounge, and Health Suite. The second floor will contain the new Media Center and Computer Lab. Capacity will be 534. The "new" parking lot will be engulfed by the new building and will be relocated to the current Neighborhood Center and Pool. The Neighborhood Center and Pool will be relocated at the oddly placed Verizon Building which has no business in the middle of a Residential Neighborhood. This is as in depth as I'll get for a modernization because I was a student here and I still know the lay of the land.

Clarksville is not the only active holding facility for the 2012-2013 School Year. Cradlerock, due to its large size will house three Schools for 2012-2013. All three Elementary Schools in Oakland Mills will be housed here; Stevens Forest, Talbott Springs, and Thunderhill.

Stevens Forest, Columbia's smallest School is growing. Its old Building, which hasn't had a noticeable renovation since its 1972 opening will be torn down completely. It will no longer be hidden in the woods and will be a much larger facility with a Capcity of 454 versus the current 333.
The common areas; Media Center, Gym, Cafeteria, Computer Lab, and Front Office will be larger and more space will be dedicated to the PreK program. No addition was built to accommodate Full Day Kindergarten so more space will dedicated for that. Changing Demogrpahics warrant additional ESOL Space and a Full Time Hispanic Liaison.
The Neighborhood Center and Pool will be spared. However, the Neighborhood Center will be renovated to match the exterior of the new Elementary School.

Talbott Springs will also be razed. It may very well be the fastest growing Shool in the County. In 2006-2007 the population was 426, 2007-2008; 443, 2008-2009; 478, 2009-2010; 495, and this past year (2010-2011) a huge spike; 581! no redistricitng no new development just plain growth. Obviously from a capacity stand point, Talbott Springs is bursting at the seams.
The new Talbott Springs will be at a slightly different location with Basket Ring Road frontage bringing truth to its address.
The new building Capacity will be 688 and will allow for growth in its own District and may have space if other East Columbia Schools become too crowded. The new Talbott Springs won't take from its Neighborhood Center and Pool but both are due for redevelopment.

Thunderhill is projected to continue to experience growth with enrollment blasting past 400 and eventually 500. 528 will be Thunderhill's new capacity. I always thought the location of Thunderhill Elementary was weird being that it's on Mellonbrook Road and not located near the Neighborhood Center and Pool and Thunderhill Road and Log Chain Road.
Well, seeing as I'm proposing to modernize and replace ALL old Schools in Columbia why not change the location of Thunderhill? I mean, when in Rome right? So I'm proposing that Thunderhill Elementary move to where its Ballfields currently are adjacent to the Neighborhood Center and Pool.
Whether the Neighborhood Center and Pool will be redeveloped as part of the School Modernization, is still up in the air. The School's current Mellonbrook Road location will be sold off to developers for some new Single Family Homes known as "Thunder Hill Estates"

The third Holding School will be the Old Elkridge Elementary. The Norbel School will be housed elsewhere during the modernization period. The final modernization of the 2012-2013 School Year will be Waterloo.
Waterloo, though located in Columbia caters to high growth areas in Ellicott City in Elkridge. Waterloo was built in 1964 pre-dating Columbia. Its neighboring Schools are almost all brand new with Waterloo's District being carved up time and time again. The 47 year old building has also been added on to several times as crowding continues to effect it.Waterloo will completely razed and in its place a brand new Waterloo that will be able to house the Community's growth and whose age won't stick out like a sore thumb. The new Waterloo's Capacity will be 728 a good number for Waterloo's current enrollment numbers and if it declines, the School will help neighboring Bellows Spring which is slated to have as many as 1300 students with a capacity of 762.

Now lets start the 2013-2014 School year at Clarksville. Once again a pair of West Columbia Elementary Schools will occupy Clarksville during their modernizations. Which Schools? Longfellow and Swansfield.

Longfellow's enrollment has been climbing for quite some time now and has been added on to a few times. These additions will be spared during the modernization but the original building will be demolished. The additions (built in 1994 and 2008) included a new Gym, new pod, and what will be a new Cafeteria. The new Longfellow will have a renovated Gym, Cafeteria, and Kindergarden wing. What will eventually be a new Cafeteria is also an existing addition.
The new building will contain wings for Grades 1-5 new Art Room, Music Room, Band Room, ESOL Room, PreK, Front Office and Health Suite. This will all be on the first floor. The second floor will contain a new Media Center and Computer Lab. Capacity will be 468. As part of the demolition, a new black top will be added and parking expanded. The Neighborhood Center and Pool will be spared.

Swansfield, also at Clarksville during the 2013-2014 School Year will have its addition spared. It was built in 1984 and also contains the School's Gym. The addition is rather large and will blend very well into the new construction.
New Construction will be on both sides of the existing addition. On the side closer to Little Patuxent Parkway will be the new Art Room, Music Room, Band Room, ESOL, and Hispanic Liaison.
On the side closer to Rock Coast Road, will be Grades 1-5, the new Cafeteria, Front Office, and Health Suite. The existing addition will be renovated and the Gym enlarged. Classrooms will be for Kindergaten and PreK. Upstairs will be the new Media Center and Computer Lab. Due to associated redistricting the new Capacity of the modernized building will be 788.

At Cradlerock, instead of having three Elementary Schools like last year it have one High School; Oakland Mills.
Oakland Mills is the only High School small enough (1100 Students) to fit in just one Holding School. Oakland Mills received an addition in 2003 which will remain a part of the School after its modernization.The original School, built in 1973 will be demilished. The new existing addition will be renovated to stay current with the modernization and will contain standard classrooms.
The new construction will contain a Fine Arts Wing, a new Auditorium, new Cafeteria, new Gym and Auxilary Gym, with other new Phys Ed. rooms, new Media Center, new Computer Labs, new Science Labs, and a new Front Office and Guidance Office. Since Oakland Mills has room to grow, redistricting here will help relieve corwding at neighboring Schools. That's why I gave Oakland Mills an ambitious capacity of 1438.

Meanwhile at the old Elkridge Elementary, Clemens Crossing students will be here eagerly awaiting their brand new building.
The entire School will be rebuilt and will be given Martin Road frontage. The site of the current building will be the new Ballfields. The Neighborhood Center and Pool will be relocated across Quarterstaff Road on a vacant parcel of land.
The new Clemens Crossing will have a Capacity of 688 due to redistricting and climbing enrollment within the current District.

Well that concludes Phase I of the Modernization of old Columbia Schools. During the summer of 2012

Bollman Bridge Elementary, built in 1988 will receive systematic renovations and an addition. Summer 2013 Pointers Run Elementary, built in 1991 will receive systematic renovations but no addition. Stay tuned for future modernization phases!

Introducing.....Holding Schools and Modernization Pre Phase I

2010-12-27T22:12:00.004-05:00

Earlier this year I put forth a plan called the Columbia School Reconstruction Act. It was and is a far reaching plan to Modernize the aging School Buildings in Columbia and put them up to par with new Schools built in other parts of the County. I was very vague on how I would execute this plan, why? Because I didn't have a clue on how I could do it. This post will go into specifics on how to do so. Of course what this doesn't do is indicate how to fund such a bold venture but after decades of funding new School Construction and short changing Columbia Schools, it's time Columbia got a piece of the action. The need for additional buildings has gone down in other parts of the County and not only have Columbia Schools aged but in recent years their enrollment has sky rocketed making the need for intervention all the more urgent. Columbia, it's your turn and here's how it will all be done.

I have extensively researched Montgomery County Schools as they're another rich County in Maryland with Schools that both brand new and aging. Montgomery County has come up with a good way to modernize and or replace old School Buildings that have reached the end of their life cycle and give the student population a place to learn during construction. Montgomery County has what they call "Holding Schools" these are Schools of theirs that have closed and are open to populations of Schools that are modernized or rebuilt. Howard County doesn't have any such Schools right now but it can. I've discovered how it can have three.

The first is Clarksville Elementary, in this region of the County we over built. Dayton Oaks, Clarksville, and Pointers Run are all slated to be just over half full in the coming years. That's a lot of wasted space. Clarksville can close and its district can attend either Dayton Oaks and Pointers Run allowing for full utilization of each School while Clarksville opens its doors to west Columbia Students from 2012-2020.

Next will be Cradlerock School. Cradlerock has ceased to be a Prek-8 and has split into two traditional Elementary and Middle Schools. Presumably the Elementary School will be named Dasher Green like it was before and the middle School will be Owen Brown just like it was before.
The two are slated to continue sharing a roof but I have a plan to change that. Owen Brown was supposed to have its own High School which explains why there are so many ball fields near the School.
Obviously Owen Brown High was never built and students attend Oakland Mills for High School. But the available ball fields will allow for the construction of two new separate buildings one an Elementary School and one a Middle School.These will be the first new Schools built under the Reconstruction Act and construction will begin in the 2011-2012 School year and the new Schools will open Fall of 2012. I'm making all construction projects one year instead of two. Cradlerock will be a Holding School for itself and when it empties, for other East Columbia Schools. The two Schools pictured above are new Montgomery County Schools that Columbia will model its Schools after. The first picture is the new Owen Brown Middle and the second is the new Dasher Green Elementary.

The third Holding School, which won't be used that often will be the old Elkridge Elementary. This stopped being a School when its replacement opened in 1992. It will mostly be used for when High Schools are rebuilt and the districts are carved in three (one at each holding) but will be used for other ventures as well. A couple of Schools won't need holding Schools because their replacements will be built on a different site.

Now I've used a new term that I haven't used before until writing this post "modernization" this is what some of the Schools will undergo instead of a complete tear down while others will undergo a complete tear down. Montgomery County uses this term for Schools that are old but have had recent additions added on and said additions because they're not old will be spared. Only the original part of the building gets torn down and connected to the addition. A modernization is much more than a standard "systematic renovation" that older Howard County Schools get, a modernization is everything but a replacement School, a modernized and a completely torn down School will look exactly the same; brand spankin' new inside and out.

Also during the summer of 2011 Deep Run Elementary will undergo systemic renovations.

Long Reach Reinvestment

2010-12-21T17:00:00.000-05:00

Although I'm calling for a lot of redevelopment in Long Reach there are developments here that need not hit the wrecking ball. At the same time their exterior facades could use a lot of updating so that's when I put out a "compromise" post that involves reinvesting into the Communities in question and modernizing the exterior to give equity to Home Owners so they can do the same on the inside. So, after a month of completely bulldozing Long Reach lets end it on a happier note that doesn't involve displacement.

First we start in Locust Park, believe it or not some of Locust Park will still be standing after the demolition crews have done their jobs. The Wooded Ridge Town Homes on Lambskin Lane have escaped the difficulties that the rest of Locust Park hasn't been able to. The Homes are rather small but that alone isn't reason to redevelop them. Also if you're looking to buy you can get a good price here.

The rehabbed Wooded Ridge will feature brand new bricks, trim, roofs, shutters, and windows. New grass will be planted as will shrubs and flowers. If there are sick trees that hinder the growth of new grass then that tree will be cut down and a new baby tree will go in its place.

Next we go to Phelps Luck to the Town Homes at the intersection of Phelps Luck Drive and Lightspun Lane. These feature brick and stucco exteriors that lets face it are just plain ugly. Maintenance has been so so as a whole but even good maintenance can't cure ugly.

As these Homes are fixed up, the brick homes will get new bricks and the stucco homes will get vinyl siding. Newer more modern looking windows will be installed as well.

Here's a look at what the new backs of the Homes will look like if you're driving down Tamar Drive. If you didn't know any better you'd think these Homes were redeveloped.

Now Bladegreen Lane holds a secret, it would appear that in passing it's just single family homes but guess again! At the end of the road lies the King Charles Town Homes. They're just a little dated and offer some very large end units. Currently their fronts are a mixture of brick and siding, their new facades will be all brick.
Now King Charles Town Homes will be fit for a King.

Now we come to Wood Creek Town Homes. These homes are almost indentical to Bryant Square in Wilde Lake which I'm suggesting to have redeveloped. Bryant Square is in a much worse Neighborhood and the Homes have suffered as a result. Wood Creek just has dated homes and it's located in a much better area.

The newly modernized Wood Creek will also feature brick front Homes with new windows, doors, trim, shutters, and siding on the back.

Here's a look at what one will see from the back of Wood Creek. Just like the Lightspun Lane development, the Homes will appear to be brand new without a single demolition crew.

Finally we come to the small Single Family Home Development at High Tor Hill and Phelps Luck Drive. They lack any sort of front windows whether it's from a Courtyard or simply an absence of windows. These Homes, which are mixture of brick and wood siding will get updated siding and additional full length front windows. Though small in size they're located in a great area and even with new siding and windows, they will be a good deal.

That's it for the reinvestment of Long Reach, how much did you expect me to have? After all, I want so much of it to hit the wrecking ball!

Long Reach: Out of the Hole and into the Mix

2010-11-16T11:58:00.003-05:00

Now I just put forth a bold redevelopment plan for Long Reach Village Center that includes new upscale Merhcants. Now, when one looks around at the Village Center I'm sure you're thinking, "this guy's crazy! how can the surrounding demographics support this?" Well, they can't and as I've hinted in the previous post, I was discussing Long Reach as a whole Village and the Village Center was part 1 and the residential is part 2. So without further ado, I give you part 2! That will put Long Reach into the mix.

Redevelopment will completely makeover Tamar Drive and make Long Reach a worthy contender to all of the new development along Route 108 and Route 103. It will start in Jeffers Hill at Tamar Drive and Old Montgomery Road and extend through the Village to Old Dobbin Lane, past Old Dobbin Lane is Kendall Ridge which is much newer than the rest of the Village. New housing will transform the entire Locust Park Neighborhood and a few select developments in Jeffers Hill and Phelps Luck that border Tamar Drive will all be transformed into mixed income Communities hence the name; into the mix.

Now, lets start at the beginning of our redevelopment journey and take a pictoral stroll down Tamar Drive. Actually this development (Jeffers Glen Town Homes) doesn't have Tamar Drive frontage, it's off of Majors Lane but redevelopment is needed. There have been reports of gang activity here and lots of burglary and petty theft. In its place will be garage Town Homes with all the modern conveniences that Jeffers Glen currently lacks. The mix will consist of 90% Market Rate Home Ownership, 5% Market Rate Rentals, and 5% Affordable Home Ownership.

Now on to Treover Condos built in 1973 as Apartments and converted into Condos in the early 1980s, Treover also suffers from low Home Ownership, Car Thefts, Burglarys, Petty Theft, and Vandalism (tire slashing) and the like. Also a big problem with older Condo and Apartment developments (besides more bathrooms and walk in closets) is the insecure entrances to the buildings. Once redeveloped, Treover will have all these things and more! What more you ask? Those who don't live on the bottom floor will have an elevator to take from your doorstep to your car without climbing a single stair. The mix in Treover will be 55% Market Rate Home Ownership, 25% Market Rate Rentals, 15% Affordable, and 5% Affordable Rentals.

Now we're going to cross Route 175 into Locust Park which will land us at Columbia Landing west (formerly Bentana) These are Long Reach's oldest Apartments. Unlike Treover, the entrances to the buildings are more secure but for very good reason. Crime here is much more vioent than in Jeffers Hill. The drug trade has lured its ugly head all across Tamar Drive in Locust Park and Columbia Landing West is no exception. These Apartments aren't exclusively Section 8 but there are lots of residents on Section 8 assistance. When redeveloped instead of just two flag lots off of Tamar Drive there will be three. The third one will be directly across from Phelps Luck drive and a Traffic Signal will be installed. The last flag lot will be even with Sweet Wind Place. Three story Elevator Condos/Apartments will replace the dated and blighted Buildings. The mix will be 45% Market Rate Home Ownership 40% Market Rate Rentals 10% Affordable Home Ownership and 5% Affordable Rentals.

Now we cross Tamar Drive into Phelps Luck, we're on Sweet Wind Place in the Heritage Walk Town Home Development. It faces many of the same struggling developments along Tamar Drive including sprawling parking lots. It will be redeveloped with two car garage Town Homes that will make for a denser Community. Although most of the new Homes will have their garages in front the ones that abut to Tamar Drive and High Tor Hill (currently no homes do) will have garages in the back. The mix here will be 65% Market Rate Home Ownerhsip and 35% Market Rate Rentals.

On the other side of High Tor Hill is Yellow Rose Court. The Town Homes are a little smaller and more run down than those in Heritage Walk. Yellow Rose Court was featured in an article back in 2001 as "Inner Columbia" where Kids walk the streets at all hours of the night and the drug trade was flourishing. Despite being Owner Occupied there are lots of rentals some of which are Section 8. Residents have complained about slum lords in the past. I'm quoting the article these aren't my words. The redeveloped Yellow Rose Court will feature three story two car garage Town Homes. As development approaches the Village Center the Homes both Apartments and Town Homes will gradually be taller and denser. The new development will actually be larger because there ia a plot of land off of Yellow Rose Court that has eluded developers for the past 36 years. Also just off of Tamar Drive on High Tor Hill will be a driveway to allow for Homes to be built along Tamar Drive with their garages in the back. The mix for Yellow Rose Court will be 70% Market Rate Home Ownership and 30% Affordable Home Ownership.

Now we cross Tamar Drive again to the developments of Long Reach Knolls and Sierra Woods West. Long Reach Knolls is a Home Ownership development in a sea of Rentals so there are a lot of spill over problems. Sierra Woods is a Section 8 development. The two developments will be redeveloped as one large development. It will contain four story elevator Apartments/Condos. Spiral Cut Lane will be relocated to be even with the Columbia Landing East Entrance and Flowerstock Row will be even with Hayshed Lane. A study will be conducted to see if it warrants a traffic signal. The new development mix will be 65% Market Rate Home Ownership 30% Market Rate Rentals and 5% Affordable Rentals.

Once again we cross Tamar Drive where Columbia Landing East will be redeveloped as three story two car Town Homes. This will effect both the Tamar Drive Units and the Hayshed Lane Units. Like Yellow Rose Court there will be Homes that have Tamar Drive frontage that have their garages in the back. New Homes will also have Hayshed Lane frontage but their garages will be in the front. The mix here will be 50% Market Rate Home Ownership 5% Market Rate Rentals 40% Affordable Home Ownership and 5% Affordable Rentals.

Now we cross Hayshed Lane into Long Reach Condos. These will be redeveloped as one car garage Town Homes which will cover more ground than their predecessors with Homes covering its entire flag lot including some with Hayshed Lane frontage. These Town Homes will be 100% Market Rate Rentals.

Further down Hayshed Lane closer to Tamar Drive is Heatherstone, there is also a Tamar Drive entrance to Heatherstone. Like Long Reach Knolls there is a lot of spill over problems from adjacent Rental properties. On Tamar Drive the entrance will be relocated to be even with Cloudleap Court, the existing traffic signal will have to be modified. Like the adjacent Long Reach Condos the new Heatherstone development will be one car garage Town Homes only these will be 100% Affordable Home Ownership.

Next we come to Sierra Woods East. If one were to catch a bullet in Long Reach, this would be the place. I've spoken of spill over into other developments in this post, this is where they're spilling over from, I'm not just saying this because it's 100% section 8 I'm saying because it's the awful. There may be an effort to draw in Market Rate Residents because Sierra Woods was renovated earlier this year. To quote our President renovating Sierra Woods is like putting lipstick on a pig. It will be redeveloped as two on two stacked Town Homes. Each Town Homes will be two stories with a one car garage making a "stack" four stories. The mix will be 100% Market Rate Home Ownership, a symbol for the change to come in Long Reach by putting the ony 100% Market Rate Home Ownership development located on one that was 100% Section 8. Part of the redevelopment will include making Airy Brink Lane even with Foreland Garth.

For the last time we cross Tamar Drive into Lazy Hollow Apartments which abuts to the Village Center. Lazy Hollow, for a rental complex in Locust Park is relatively quiet. However, the biggest complaint has been the upkeep of the Apartments and Village Center spill over. Lazy Hollow will be redeveloped as 5 story Condos with below ground parking. This goes along with the mentality that the closer one gets to the Village Center, the taller the Buildings. The mix will be 45% Market Rate Homeownership, 35% Market Rate Rentals, 15% Affordable Home Ownership, and 5% Affordable Rentals.

On Foreland Garth, Longwood Apartments will be redveloped as Senior Apartments with more units which allow qualified Seniors living in Locust Park who will be relocated to live there. The new Longwood Apartments will be 100% Affordable Senior rentals.

Seniors looking for an affordable Villa for purchase can move to the new Shalom Square. Between Longwood Apartments and Shalom Square, I think the Howard County Office on Aging will be very happy that I have made every unit below market rate to allow for affordable Senior Housing.

Now that I've put forth a plan to redevelop Long Reach as a whole as well as the Village Center Long Reach is truly out of the Hole this time it's in the Mix not just the income mix but the mix of surrounding new construction.

Long Reach: Out of the Hole and into the Whole

2010-11-07T20:46:00.000-05:00

Laundromat?, Beauty Supply that cashes checks?, Lake Trout?, Tax Prep Help?, an unrenovated Grocery Store with expired food on the shelves? in Columbia? This isn't Columbia this is West Baltimore and I would know I frequent West Baltimore for my sister Blog. Sadly the scenario I described was not West Baltimore it's right here in Columbia's Long Reach Village Center. How did this happen? How did Long Reach get into the hole so deep? It's time we got Long Reach out of the hole and into the Whole.

The Village Center was a victim of sprawling subsidized housing complexes and other substandard rental complexes. There are also a few privately owned developments where owner occupancy appears very low. I will address the condition of housing surrounding the Village Center in part two of this post.

Long Reach Village Center also fell victim to big box shopping center development throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s. Not only that new housing in Kendall Ridge and that across from Route 108 haven't used Long Reach as their Village Center. New Neighborhood Retail along Route 108 hasn't exactly increased foot traffic at Long Reach.The biggest elephant in the room for Long Reach is its stubborn crime rate. It was the first Village Center to have a Howard County Police Satellite Office although other older Village Centers followed suit, their crime rate has been much lower than that of the 1990s. Harper's Choice Village Center has made a complete 180 in the past 10 years and I consider it to be a twin of Long Reach. Both have a mix of housing types new and old surrounding it and both have the potential of drawing from markets above Route 108. They alsohave high traffic collector roads driving right by them. If Harpers Choice can do it, why can't Long Reach?

One reason Long Reach has had to compromise its tenant roster has been the new development of new big box Centers like I said before. The next phase in big box trends has been new Grocery Stores that cater to demographics lager than just the Neighborhood. In addition a new Food Lion opened in 1999 and a new Giant opened in 2004 both very close to Long Reach. In 2007, a Costco and a Trader Joe's have also opened in Long Reach's back yard. The Safeway at Long Reach has taken an almost fatal beating due to this competition and the news isn't getting much better. In the next year or two at Snowden River Parkway and McGaw Road a brand new Wegman's is being built as I ink this post. I predict this to be the final nail in the coffin for Long Reach's Safeway.

The Safeway is Long Reach's original anchor and it's teetering and clininging foro dear life due to competition and declining Neighborhoods. The entrance wasn't always as accessible as it is today. One used to have to go through the courtyard to go inside. In 1998 the Safeway underwent a renovation and expansion that involved moving the doors to their current location. I can't help but wonder if Safeway signed a 15 year lease and in 2013 they won't renew and close thier doors for good. One reason I believe this is because when the Safeway chain renovated all of its stores in the past couple years Long Reach has remained untouched. Although Safeway has said all of its stores including Long Reach back in 2006 will be renovated I have seen no evidence of renovations for Long Reach. Why renovate a store you have plans to close in a few years?

So, moving forward lets assume my instincts are correct about Safeway and it leaves Long Reach after almost 40 years (The Village Center Opened in 1974) where do we go from here? Well, you know the old saying; "If you can't beat 'em join 'em" well that has always been my plan for Long Reach. First I tried to get the Wegman's to open there instead of where it's currently being constructed. Long Reach is way too landlocked to support a Wegman's but it's the perfect sixe for a Whole Foods. Whole Foods was the inspiration for this title; out of the Hole and into the Whole.

Whole Foods has yet to stake a claim in Howard County and if and when it does, it should be at a Village Center. David's Natural Market will keep it from Wilde Lake, Oakland Mills's Food Lion's sister brand "Bloom" which is similar to Whole Foods so if Oakland Mills went upscale, that would be the direction it would go. Long Reach is the only other Village Center in danger of loosing an anchor so Whole Foods at Long Reach is the best solution.

Photo From Whole Foods

Whole Foods is much more destination Retail instead of a simple Neighborhood Grocery Store so the addition of such a store would put Long Reach on the map instantly. It will mimic the success of Harris Teeter coming to King's Contrivance where just like in Long Reach its old Anchor was a lame duck Safeway.

Now like I've said earlier, Long Reach as a Village would have to undergo massive redvelopment to support a Whole Foods and I will discuss that in my next post. Also Long Reach's Tenant Roster will be shaken up if a Whole Foods were to move in. New tenants will be more upscale in some cases and in other cases will draw people into the Village Center who may currently overlook it.

The Center itself will have to undergo some long overdue renovations. The building that houses the Police Office and Chick 'N Friends will be demolished. It will be rebuilt across the parking lot with the same number of spaces so let me say what I'd put there. The current vacancy caused by a few ill fated Day Spas, I would put another Day Spa sounds crazy?
I think with a new Market to draw from Long Reach would finally be able to support one. In place of the Laundromat would be a Fine Wine & Spirits Shop, where Liberty Tax Service is will be a Ritas and a Daily Grind Coffee House. The popular local Coffee Chain will make its debut in Columbia at Long Reach. Parcel Plus, the Police Office, and Chick 'N Friends will all remain.

On the undemolished side, Dollar Buys will be replaced with a Hallmark Gold Crown and the Beauty Supply Store with a Jared's the Galleria of Jewelry. All other stores will remain. This will undergo massive facade updates as will the small building that houses the SECU and Delitown.
Neither of these businesses will stay in my plan, Delitown will be replaced with the area's first Sonic Burger the only other one in the area is in Randallstown and that's always packed so I forsee a lot of foot traffic in Long Reach if a Sonic were to open up. The SECU will be replaced by a PNC Bank.To the left of the Safeway/Whole Foods is Richburn Discount Liquors, like I said earlier I'd put a more upscale Wine and Spirits Shop elsewhere in the Center leaving that vacant. It's large enough for two more stores, a Great Clips and a Capital One Bank.

Last but not least are the Offices above, they would move behind the Retail portion of the Center which is currently a no man's land. Well that's my plan to get Long Reach out of the Hole and into the Whole, stay tuned for the residential redevelopment portion to create a stronger market of all these new stores.

True Revitalization For Oakland Mills

2010-10-18T21:51:00.000-04:00

Well, here it is the long awaited streetscape enhancements to Robert Oliver Place. Here it is in all its glory, the very thing promised to revitalize Oakland Mills both the Village Center and the Community as a whole. Nope, this isn't a small piece of the project this is the whole project. If this is the Village's idea of true revitalization, then it's no wonder the Village is struggling. For Oakland Mills, true revitalization will have to come in the form of redevelopment both in the Village Center and surrounding Communities throughout the Village.

Most of the "thru" streets in Oakland Mills have been resurfaced in the past couple months. Only Stevens Forest Road received a lane for Bikes. I've heard differing opinions regarding the Stevens Forest Road Bike Lanes. I am in favor of them, in fact I believe they should extend further towards the Village Center and other "thru" streets like Thunderhill Road, White Acre Road, Basket Ring Road, and Kilimanjaro Road should all get the Biker Markings. Not only that, they should get the streetscape enhancements Robert Oliver Place did which will unify the Village.

The survival of the Village Center's Independent Merchants is nothing short of miraculous. It's also miraculous that Oakland Mills, with the failure of several prior Supermarkets has been able to attract and keep its current Food Lion Anchor.
That being said, there is still a lot of room for improvement in the Village Center. There are vacant storefronts and vacant lots on Stevens Forest Road and the Community Policing Office is in an unattractive trailer. Now riddle me this; where's the Village Green?

The predicament of not having the Village Green, in my opinion is what needs the most attention. I think in order to achieve this, a lot of redevelopment will need to take place. This is good because although I believe in certain fundamentals, Columbia should not be placed in a time capsule.
One of those fundamentals is a Village Green. First and foremost the current building that houses the Second Chance Saloon has to be demolished.
The new Second Chance Saloon will be in a new building on the grounds currently occupying the Bankok Garden Restaurant. Since the Meridian Square Development didn't go through, I think subsidized Senior Housing should where it was proposed to be (the old Exxon Grounds) named "Parkview at Oakland Mills".
Qualified Seniors currently living in Oakland Mills will get first pick. Now, the Meridian Square design should be used to redevelop the outdated Stevens Forest Professional Center on Santiago Road. Speaking of Santiago Road, the Interfaith Center is prime for redevelopment.
One thing requested in the Village Center Master Plan was Spiritual Community Green Space outside the Interfaith Center. Redeveloping the Interfaith will recognize this goal and it will face the extended Thunderhill Road to truly integrate the Interfaith Center into the Village Center. More Green Space will be provided around the fountain outside the current Second Chance Saloon.
The Interfaith Center Green Space and the Retail Center Green Space will be "connected" through the current Robert Oliver Place Streetscape Enhancements as a promenade. All this for a Village Green? Yes and it's worth it! This also allow for Thunderhill Road to be extended past Santiago Road/Robert Oliver Place all the way to Stevens Forest Road.

Before I get to the Retail portion of the Village Center I must send out an SOS to the Columbia Ice Rink. It's outdated and redvelopment is essential. Doing so would allow for outdoor ice skating space, a wish that would be granted from the Village Center Master Plan.

Now for the Retail Portion of the Village Center. Given that I'm calling for major redevelopment Village Wide, the income mix around the Village Center will reflect the need for more upscale merhcants.
Also with increased competition from new Grocers it's time the Village Centers began attracting them as tenants as well. Food Lion has an upscale counterpart known as Bloom. Since Food Lion is the Anchor Tenant a switch to Bloom won't be unreasonable.
Between the Food Lion/Bloom and the Ice Rink is an open space that would be great for a Starbucks. Imagine the appeal Shoppers will have when approaching the Village Center from Thunderhill Road and seeing a Starbucks.
Also with the Second Chance Saloon Building demolished, there's room to expand from the Liquor Store towards the barns. New tenants would include a Coldstone Creamery, a FedEx Kinkos, and a proper space for the Community Policing Office. Along Stevens Forest Road there's room for change too.
The old Bank Building will be the new location for Sam's Mart. It will be the convience store (with a Krispy Kreme Donuts and Boardwalk Fries) for the Shell Gas Station with a touchless Car Wash. That's right after ten long years I'm bringing a Gas Station back to Oakland Mills.
Where Sam's Mart currently is, will become home to an Outback Steakhouse and a Bonefish Grill.

Now for the residential change in Oakland Mills, although I'd like to minimize displacement when possible it's high time that new construction made its way to Oakland Mills. Just like every other old Columbia Village, its higher density housing stock is old, tired, and dated. the Village can't move forward without major redevelopment.
We'll start at Stevens Forest Apartments, originally intended to Senior Housing in my plan it's now for all ages at a 100% Market Rate Home Ownership housing for all ages.
Now Grand Pointe, varying from Garden Apartments to a High Rise its replacement; Talbott Springs Pointe will boast 55% Market Rate Home Ownership 30% Market Rate Rentals, 10% Affordable Home Ownership and 5% Affordable Rentals.
Autumn Crest, renamed Talbott Springs Overlook, will have 60% Market Rate Home Ownership, 20% Market Rate Rentals, 15% Affordable Home Ownership, and 5% Affordable Rentals.
The Verona at Oakland Mills will retain its name but will ultimately hit the wrecking ball. It will include 35% Market Rate Home Ownership 30% Market Rate Rentals, 20% Affordable Home Ownership, and 15% Affordable Rentals. As you can tell from the pictures what I have envisioned for the new developments will be of the same density as their current predecessors however, they include all modern conveniences that newer parts of Howard County are known for.

Now for the hard part, redeveloping privately owned developments. Just like the rentals they too have seen their day in the sun. Again we want displacement to be minimal and there will be some "buyouts" mostly to people who rent out their homes in the first place.
First up will be the Shadow Oaks Condos. In it place will be Oakland Mills Town Centre. It will be 40% Market Rate Home Ownership, 50% Market Rate Rental, and 10% Affordable Home Ownership.
Next comes the Cinnamon Tree Quads, they have suffered from poor maintenance and low Home Ownership Rates as well as high turnover. Cinnamon Tree has two sites one on Thunderhill Road, the other in Stevens Forest. Both sites make for an entrance from nicer Single Family Homes into the blighted part of the Village. The perception of safety plummets upon entering through Cinnamon Tree. The Thunderhill site will be renamed The Townes at Talbott Springs I
and the neighboring Emerson Hill Development will be renamed (after redevelopment) The Townes at Talbott Springs II. The new Stevens Forset Cinnamon Tree will be called the Towns at Stevens Forest.
Going down Kilminjaro Road we come to a Town Home known as Antorun. After redevelopment the new homes will feature one car garages and better front door street access.
Past the High School we come to Tarleton, perhaps the ugliest Town Homes known to man. Like, Antorun they will be redeveloped with two car garage Town Homes that will be larger and taller. Finally we come to Holly Court, just like other Town Home Developments it's dated and is ready for redevelopment. It will also feature Town Homes with two car garages.

Now I haven't forgotten Single Family Homes they will be developed not redeveloped where? Blandair! That piece of land was to be developed as part Rouse's original dream and I think we should honor him by doing just that. The park idea was brought about by aging hippies who think a time capsule is the best form of revitalization. I just showed you what real revitalization is, it has road bumps and many of you will disagree with me but this is the way to a successful 21st Century Oakland Mills.

If you Redevelop It They Will Come

2010-09-29T21:38:00.000-04:00

One thing I've neglected to mention when I put up posts is that they all fit into a broad Master Plan I have for Columbia. Every post is a piece to that puzzle. When I do redevelopment posts, Village Center Posts, reinvestment posts, new School construction posts, or mass transit posts; I have that entire vision in my mind and every post is crafted carefully to "fit in the puzzle" Let me give you an example.Well here's a surprise, my example is Wilde Lake Village Center. I'm sure you're sick of me constantly writing about and being convinced that it can attract a Full Service Grocer. Well, I'm kind of sick of writing about it myself but it doesn't have one yet so I will write on. Now, why did Giant leave? Because it refused to compete larger Grocers nearby and did not want to commit to expansion which would be its only means of doing so. Now how may I ask will that convince another Grocer to build a larger store in the same spot and compete with the same Grocers Giant waved a white flag at? The truth is, it can't and it won't.So, does that mean I have given up on Wilde Lake? Of course not. My plan for Wilde Lake Village Center fits into a puzzle of other things I would like to see throughout Wilde Lake and Columbia. What has been true for Village Centers across Columbia for the most part has been the old saying "if you build it they will come" by "They" I mean Grocers. With Wilde Lake that's not possible seeing as the Village is 43 years old and is built out. However, new home construction can do wonders in attracting merchants to an area and old outdated construction with a reputation for crime can do wonders in keeping them away. But that old saying continues to stick with me, If you build it they will come.Now this isn't a lost cause, we just have to fine tune the old saying to fit Wilde Lake. How about "if you redevelop it, they will come"? If you remember a post I did back in 2008 regarding the need for redevelopment and new construction in Wilde Lake to broaden the income mix and make Wilde Lake viable on the ever evolving Real Estate Market known as Howard County? Suppose I wasn't just thinking of Wilde Lake's housing stock when I inked that post back then? Truth be told I wasn't. I looked over that post and I realized I left something out, something very important; the new found potential and leverage brought about by lots of new construction around the Village Centers will make Grocers take a second look at Wilde Lake. The demographics and statistics of the Village Center's surroundings i.e. "the Market" will be more favorable to a perspective Grocer or any new Village Center Tenant for that matter. If you redevelop it, they will come. Still not convinced? Let me take you around Columbia and see how the "if you build it they will come" mentality has shaped Columbia's Village Centers.Now Harper's Choice Village Center in the mid 1990s was doomed just like Wilde Lake is today. The Center's pathetic excuse for an anchor; Valu Food which was much smaller than today's average CVS, had closed and the Center was desolate. But how did it come back? As you can see it's anchored by a very large and modern Safeway today. The answer is in part new construction. Hobbit's Glen, the Village's newest Neighborhood was mostly built in the 1990s as were Neighborhoods across Route 108 along Homewood Road which Harper's Choice I'm sure was eager to draw. See? If you build it they will come.
Long Reach, in the late '90s was in danger of loosing its small Safeway. Unlike the Wilde Lake Giant, Safway was convinced to expand and modernize its store to the standards of the time i.e. relocating the front doors to face the parking lot instead of the parking lot. Kendall Ridge, was still under construction during the expansion of the Safeway bringing a larger Market to the Village Center's door step. The past several years has dealt several blows to the Long Reach in the form of newer, fancier, and specialty Grocers in Columbia's Big Box Centers and Out-parcels. Safeway stores (including the new one in Harper's Choice) have all been renovated lately, the one in Long Reach has not and it doesn't seem to be happening any time soon. Could Safeway be letting its lease run out?Owen Brown Giant, for a long time was the only game in Town for East Columbia. Oakland Mills Giant failed in comparison, the Long Reach Safeway as well, and the newer Valu Food in King's Contrivance was not a draw to the Center (smaller tenants were draws in and of themselves) So it really wasn't a surprise when Owen Brown Giant became dated and obsolete, it didn't loose much of its Market Base. When Oakland Mills has lost Grocers time and time again, Owen Brown has captured up its Market Share time and time again. Owen Brown Giant has since been expanded and renovated several times. Although past due, that Giant stayed viable the rest of the Village Center was not so lucky. Time will tell how Owen Brown Giant will react to newer Super Markets throughout the region. I do think it can gain a larger customer base through redevelopment throughout the Village. If you redevelopment it they will keep coming.
(Remind to take a picture of the completed redevelopment) Now Kings Contrivance for all intensive purposes survived very well without an anchor from its opening in 1986 to 2008 when it had two lame duck anchors. From 1986 to Thanksgiving 1999 it was a Valu Food and when that chain went belly up, Safeway had signed a lease within days end. Safeway was just like Valu Food in terms of attracting a customer base, the Center itself kept the lot full not the Grocer. When Safeway left in 2006 the amount of cars in the lot remained virtually the same. In the summer of 2008 marked an historical day for Kings Contrivance; the arrival of a brand new Harris Teeter. This was also the first and only Specialty Grocer to open in a Village Center. Now wait a minute.. Kings Contrivance's build out was 20 years ago, how could it attract such a prize? Well, look to the south to new Communitys like Maple Lawn and Emerson Kings Contrivance is not far from them at all. It might not have been in the Village itself but the Market share in Kings Contrivance grew due to new housing. If you build it, they will come.Dorsey's Search marked a new era for the size of Giants. Although renovated this Giant has not expanded since its opening in 1989. Dorsey Hall was nearing completion at the time of the Center's opening but Fairway Hills was just beginning. The Neighborhoods of southern Ellicott City; Burleigh Manor, Font Hill, and Gray Rock Farms also grew with Dorsey's Search and account for a large chunk of its Market Share. If you build it they will come. Hickory Ridge is different. The Village Center opened in 1992 but two of the Village's Neighborhoods were built in the mid to late 1970s. Clary's Forest however, was built in the 1980s. A few final touches came up in the '90s but Hickory Ridge went without a Center for a good 18 years from when its first houses came up and the Village Center opened. The Giant, although new in Village Center Years was new and large in 2008 inside it was showing its age. It has since undergone a massive renovation making brand new once again. If you build it they will come, 18 years later but they came none the less. I saved Oakland Mills for last because it defies logic! How could three Supermarkets fail yet it was able to attract a Food Lion? The Surrounding Village has stood in a virtual time capsule from 1971 with the exception of its renovated Village Center. Oakland Mills needs more redevelopment than Wilde Lake. Did I forget to mention that Oakland Mills Village Center has perhaps the worst location and the lowest traffic count of any Village Center. Just because it has a Food Lion doesn't put Oakland Mills out of the woods, I'd like to see more renovations, a larger tenant roster, and massive redevelopment throughout the Village. Perhaps the Food Lion could level up to a Bloom giving Oakland Mills a "niche".Now that I've showed you other Village Centers and the Historys of their Grocers, in most cases you will see that the construction of new homes has played an integral part in attracting Grocers to a new Village Center, keeping it at an older one, or reviving an old one. So it's obvious, to get a new Grocer for Wilde Lake there will have to be new construction around the Village Center. For further reading, I refer you to my Wilde Lake Redevelopment post here and my Wilde Lake Reinvestment post (not redevelopment, new exterior facades on viable housing) here.

Wilde Lake Village Center: The Plans Are In!

2010-07-27T01:27:00.006-04:00

Photo from the Columbia Flier

Now I made a promise to myself that I would wait until Kimco unveiled its plans for Wilde Lake Village Center before I ripped them to shreds. And rip them to shreds I will. Those of you who attended the meeting this past Thursday heard me ask where the Full Service Grocer was (I was called on first) Kimco remains firm that no Grocer is interested. Now being the good little residents that we are have no option but to believe them. If you've ever read this blog you will know that I am anything but and I will question how strongly Kimco pursued Full Service Grocers.

Now would I bad mouth Kimco's plan if I didn't have my own plan? Nope, it's easy to bad mouth something without a viable solution of your own (just ask a member of the Tea Party) but a big reason I don't like what Kimco has brought to the table is because I do have a viable solution that includes a Full Service Anchor and the Apartments Kimco is so enthusiastic about. I was never against them. At one point I had a plan that a Full Service Grocer AND all 500 apartments. This one has the 215 that Kimco's current calls for.This parking lot and the vacant Giant (far left) once demolished will be the site of the new Full Service Grocer. It will face Twin Rivers Road and will be easily accessible through any part of the Center whether it be the old Village Green Shops or Lynx Lane. It will house Offices above it. I'm thinking a Mars or a Superfresh would love to stake a claim in West Columbia which is dominated by Giants and Safeways to capture its share of the Market which will undoubtedly grow with 5500 new units of housing in Town Center. The building will be demolished to make way for additional parking. The Village Green in the foreground will remain and may be enhanced to provide more plush landscaping and better lighting. Although the Village Green will stay intact, some trees may have to be cut down in favor of shorter vegetation to give a more open feeling. All the businesses in the demolished buildings except for Pizza Bolis will be reloacted to a new building on Lynx Lane.
One thing that got my attention in Kimco's plan was the idea of locating the Bank in its own Building. I support this so the Columbia Bank will get its own Building at the southern end of Lynx Lane just before Cross Fox. This will allow for the demolition of the Columbia Bank's current drive up banking structure. Now the Columbia Bank paired with the second entrance to the vacant Giant (pictured below) once housed as any as three businesses; Ridings Liquors, The Cheese Shoppe, and the Butcher Shoppe.This "new" entrance to the vacant Giant (early 1990s) paired with the Columbia Bank, which will gets its own building will make room for three new tenants. The one closest to Star Nails will be a new Pharmacy Counter similar to the departed Medicine Shoppe. The new Grocer may not have a Pharmacy of its own. In the middle will be a Pizza Bolis. Its current foot print is way too big for its purpose. Nobody EVER sits at its tables and they add to the desolate feeling in the Village Green. All other Pizza chains that are delivery based have very small foot prints. Now the space that roughly housed the old Ridings Liquors will be a home to "Yogi Castle", a Frozen Yogurt place that just opened in Ellicott City and has been a draw to that Shopping Center and with its strategic location in Wilde Lake, it will draw patrons into the Village Green.David's will move roughly to where the vacated Produce Galore sits (more about that later) Here is where the demolished businesses will relocate (The current David's will be demolished and a new building will rise in its place). Above will be one of the four story Apartment Buildings with 108 units. Below will be the Melting Pot, Wilde Lake Karate, The Bagel Bin, Quiznos, and Tokoyo Cafe. These are some of the healthiest businesses in the Center most notably the Melting Pot and Wilde Lake Karate. This may also be a good opportunity for some of the Businesses moving here to retool and recapture their market share. The Bagel Bin can shift its focus on Coffee and Tea and market itself as a Coffee House. There was desire by a meeting attendee for a Starbucks and a Starbucks will drive the Bagel Bin out. When Tokyo Cafe opened several years ago Japanese Restaurants weren't a dime a dozen like they are today. It needs a gimmick to set it apart. My suggestion? Have the cooks prepare your meal table side. The Quiznos will be a new business that will be a draw. West Columbia lacks one yet EVERY other Village Center in West Columbia and two in East Columbia have a Subway. This will further set Wilde Lake apart and draw patrons into the Center.
Now the vacated Produce Galore will be demolished and just like the Kimco plan will house 27,000 Square feet of retail. David's will take 18,000 and the remaining 9,000 will be divided evenly to the other three existing Lynx Lane businesses (Acheiver's Hair Salon, The Ups Store, and Hunan Family) and the other 107 Apartments. I would like to point out that Lynx Lane was once home to a lot more retail businesses. Both Produce Galore and David's expanded once their leases expired. David's was tiny it has since taken over Wilhides Flowers, Mailboxes Etc, Omaha Steaks, a Bakery, a Maternity Consignment Shop, JK Pub, and Duron Paints. Produce Galore was also small, it shared its building with a Hardware Store which it over took and the Building's footprint was expanded at least twice during the 1990s to house the growing business. It's quite remarkable that Produce Galore thrived in the same Village Center for over 25 years.Now Kimco's plan for the Apartment Buildings is to give them their own green spaces in the back. I'm scrapping that because of their ground floor retail. But in between the two I will put in a second Village Green roughly where the above picture was taken. This would have been a parking lot in Kimco's plan. My plan gives not only a Full Service Grocer but more public Green Space.Now back to the Village Green. With the Melting Pot building demolished the Village Green will be visible from Twin Rivers Road. This will make back filling the vacancies left by the Medicine Shoppe and Feet First easier. Also struggling businesses (with the help of the new Grocer) will see new business. I'm thinking a Day Spa for the old Feet First space and a maybe a Jewler and a Florist for the Medicine Shoppe.Now this covered area will remain largely the same. Of course the vacant Giant in the background will be demolished and the end of the covered area will lead to the new Grocer which will be set back from existing retail. Well that's my plan for Wilde Lake Village Center. It includes keeping the Gas Station (Kimco's doesn't) a Full Service Grocer, (Kimco's doesn't), and two Village Greens (Kimco's doesn't) now be warned Kimco, I'm not convinced that you've exhausted all Full Service Grocer options. I will be trying to get in contact with a number of potential tenants to see if you've wooed them. If you haven't, I will and I would suggest to anyone reading this post who agrees with me to do the same.

Now in order for this to work, Wilde Lake as a Village needs both reinvestment and redevelopment of older blighted properties. With Wilde Lake full of new construction, new tenants for the Village Center will be easier to attract. Below are links to older posts I've published calling for reinvestment of existing housing stock and the redevelopment of housing stock that's too far-gone.
http://columbiafuture.blogspot.com/2010/01/wilde-lake-reinvestment.html
and
http://columbiafuture.blogspot.com/2008/12/wilde-lake-redevelopment.html

The Green Line's Connected to the Yellow Line I: From Greenbelt to Columbia

2010-07-05T15:39:00.000-04:00

This is a particularly exciting post for me because it overlaps this and my sister blog "Baltimore City's Past Present and Future." This post is dedicated to bringing Rail Transit to Columbia both from Baltimore and Washington DC. Although this is not a priority for the MTA, I will press on, perhaps taking this proposal out of the hands of the MTA. With that I give you the separate entity known as the "Columbia Rail Transit Association" still funded by the State with matching Federal Funds it won't be gridlocked with MTA projects and the State will fund it separately thus speeding up the process.
First lets start off in the Suburban Washington DC Community of Greenbelt. This, like Columbia is a "Planned Community" for the purposes of this post that's a moot point. Greenbelt is the northern terminus of the DC Metro's Green Line. Now there have been proposals to extend the Green Line along the MARC lines into Howard County and into Columbia that way. Although localizing existing MARC Lines is a good idea, I'd like to create a new route that will give Rail Transit to other Communities that currently lack it while en-route to Columbia.
At first it will follow the MARC lines until its first stop in Beltsville. After that, things will get interesting. It will make a sudden turn northwest into the eastern edge of Calverton. Calverton straddles the Montgomery County and PG County Line. The Calverton Stop will be located in PG County at the intersection of Briggs Chaney Road and Old Gunpowder Road. Although this stop is located in PG County, Montgomery County will see traffic relief from this.Now rather than going into Montgomery County, the expanded Green Line will continue on old Gunpowder Road through what appears to be nothing. Now why wasn't this ever developed? I believe this was to be a right of way for the ICC. The ICC did not use this route (it will be south of here) so with a new Metro Line running through this outback, I think it only fair to develop a TOD Village known as "Greencastle", named for Greencastle Road which ends at the new stop here. The Green Line will turn easterly to meet Sweitzer Lane which is becoming a developing Commerce Area in its own right anchored by the UPS Customer Service Center. This area is known as "West Laurel."After West Laurel the Green Line will travel along Route 198 until its intersection with Route 29. When Route 29 was relocated to build the interchange Commuter Bus were added making Burtonsvillle a good location for a Multi Modal Transit Hub. This will also help the Shopping Centers that used to be on the main line of Route 29. Burtonsville can also be the ending point of a "Red Line Spur" I'm proposing as well.Well we've made it into Howard County with a stop that will generate a lot of Commuter Traffic with the APL, Tai Sophia, Rivers Corporate Park, and Maple Lawn all within a short walk. Next Stop Columbia.And we've done it! The DC Metro has been extended to Columbia! Next stop is Baltimore.

The Columbia School Construction and Equity Act

2010-06-10T01:32:00.002-04:00

One thing about Howard County you can't help but notice is that it spends record sums of money on School Construction. Each School is fancier than the next. Since Howard County has seen record growth in the past 2o years, it seems only natural that the School System would have to expand its portfolio right? In that same amount of time, Columbia had a decline in enrollment in its Schools. Well now it's 2010 and future projections show areas with new Schools catching up and Columbia School's enrollment having a large upswing. With a few exceptions, Columbia's Schools have seen better days and fail in comparison to the rest of Howard County's Schools. This is why I'm proposing the Columbia School Construction and Equity Act that will put Columbia Schools right on board with the rest of Howard County. Redistricting will also be included as these new Schools are built.

First lets start off with Atholton Elementary. Redistricting associated with building a new Atholton Elementary will include receiving Dickinson and losing the Huntington Island. Atholton's enrollment jumped from 420 to 480 in just three years. In its peak years, Atholton has had as many as 550 students before adding PreK and all day Kindergarden. Built in 1961 its Capacity is 387.Picture from Bcps.org
Here is a new School that the new Atholton can model itself after. It will boast a Capacity of 588 to allow for Kings Contrivance and Allview Estates to have its young families attend a brand new School with room for growth.

Image from Google Earth
Here is the associated redistricting with the rebuild of Atholton Elementary. (blue is a gain, red is a loss) The Patuxent Valley feed has been eliminated. Students attending Hammond Middle will attend Hammond High and those attending Oakland Mills Middle will attend Oakland Mills High.
Now we come to Bollman Bridge although its relatively new having opened in 1988 it's had to adjust its capacity to accommodate all day Kindergarten and up until recently was always very overcrowded. With Huntington projected to yield large numbers of young families again, redistricting, and the Savage MARC TOD; Bollman Bridge is due for an addition. 222 seats from its current 566 to 788 the largest an Elementary School can be in Howard County. Given that Bollman Bridge is 22 years old, it's time for a complete renovation to complement its addition.

Here's a look at the Bollman Bridge redistricting I have proposed.
Next is Bryant Woods. Hawthorn has provided most of Bryant Wood's population until very recently. Hawthorn is still yielding large numbers but Faulkner Ridge and Bryant Woods itself are beginning to have young Children. Enrollment jumped from 299 in 2002-2003 to 398 in 2006-2007 it's very clear that Columbia's first Elementary School, which opened in 1968 is due for a new larger building. Redistricting to Running Brook dropped enrollment down to 337 in 2007 but now enrollment is back up to 373. With a Capacity of 355, Bryant Woods is projected to keep growing well past 400. No redistricting here.Here is a picture of what I envision the new Bryant Woods to look like. With a Capacity of 454, allowing for growth and making a great selling point for young Families to buy a house in its district.This will be the crown and jewel of my proposed "Wilde Lake Redevelopment." Despite no redistricting in Bryant Woods all students will now attend Wilde Lake High.
Next is Clemens Crossing. At its peak Clemens Crossing topped at 700 Students. It bottomed our at 459 a few years ago and is almost back to 500. Projections show enrollment soaring past 600 and quite possibly 700. With a capacity of 522 and 31 years of age Clemens Crossing needs a new building that can hold all these additional students.Here is the face of the new Clemens Crossing. It will have Martin Road frontage allowing for construction of the new building while keeping its current building in operation. The Pool will be relocated across Quarterstaff Road on a piece of vacant land. The current building's location will be the new ball fields. The new Capacity will be 688.One reason the building size is so large is so Clemens Crossing can help relieve crowding at neighboring Fulton. The Clarksville Hunt Neighborhood will be redistricted here and Cedar Acres, currently at Clemens Crossing will be sent to Swansfield. This eliminates the Harpers Choice Middle/Wilde Lake High feed and expands the Lime Kiln Middle feed. All Students regardless of Middle School (Wilde Lake or Lime Kiln) will attend Atholton High.
Next we come to one of Howard County's oldest Schools; Guilford. Opened in 1954, it has seen the development of Columbia and has been added on to redistricted into and out of more times than anybody can count. In 2003 Guilford's population was at 412 and in 2009 it's surged to 511. This trend is expected to continue to least 600 and with 462 as its current capacity and the building's old age something must be done.
It's time we replaced Guilford with a newer larger building that can handle its continued growth.
It will have a capacity of 610 allowing room for growth. The Hammond Middle feed will be eliminated through the following redistricting proposal.Dickinson will go to Atholton which is closer than Guilford. In turn Guilford will receive the high growth area of Jessup from Bollman Bridge and Deep Run. Route 1 has a lot CAC districts which allows for new high density housing among other uses and this section being redistricted to Guilford. This part of Jessup will also contain the Jessup MARC TOD area where BRAC families may locate. A new Guilford will allow for this growth to be absorbed easily. Students attending Owen Brown Middle will attend Oakland Mills High and Students attending Patuxent Valley Middle will attend Hammond High.Next is the 36 year old Jeffer's Hill. For a couple of years, Jeffer's Hill was very crowded. Redistricting took care of that making enrollment better suited for its capacity of 421 with room for growth. Redistricting dropped Jeffers Hill's enrollment from 512 to 358 in just one year. It has slowly climbed since then to the 380s. It should top out at its capacity of 421. That's before you factor in my "Long Reach Redevelopment" which has the Trevor Condos and Jeffers Glen Town Homes hitting the wrecking ball for new housing. This will certainly yield more students and will have a ripple effect making the School more desirable for those wishing to buy an existing Single Family Home in Jeffers Hill. April Brook Circle and Eckers Hollow, two existing new Communities in the Jeffers Hill District will continue to yield high enrollment numbers.Now wouldn't this Elementary School make a much more attractive and modern looking Jeffer's Hill? I think so, I'm giving it an ambitious capacity of 528. I think it can be filled with a little help from Waterloo and some TOD.The Developments near Long Reach will be redistricted to Jeffer's Hill from the overcrowded Waterloo. The TOD will be built on the grounds of the recession casualty known as Columbia Crossing II. (This will be explained in a future post) this should bring growth to the Jeffer's Hill Community. The Bonnie Branch Middle Howard High feed will be eliminated.
Now we come to Long Reach's first School; Phelps Luck which opened its doors in 1972. It's been East Columbia's most crowded School for quite some time. With new students arriving constantly from the new Montjoy Development it won't be letting up anytime soon. In 2004, after redistricting Phelps Luck's enrollment was trimmed down to 496. Since then it has sky rocketed (with no additional redistricting) to 651. It should top out at around 725 where it will stay.The new Phelps Luck will be a carbon copy of the new Clemens Crossing. With a capacity of 688 it will be much better fit for the density of Phelps Luck. The district is very small in size. Speaking of the Phelps Luck district lets see what redistricting tactics I have up my sleeve.As you can see I flip flopped Phelps Luck and Waterloo. Why? Two reasons; Middle and High Schools feeds and distance. Each neighborhood is now located closer to their new school than their previous one. Also Phelps Luck will have eliminated the Mayfield Woods Long Reach feed. Whether Phelps Luck Students attend Bonnie Branch, Ellicott Mills, or Oakland Mills Middle they will attend Howard High. At Waterloo whether they attend Bonnie Branch or Mayfield Woods, they will attend Long Reach High. None of my "Long Reach Redevelopment" properties are in the Phelps Luck District, they're now in the Waterloo District.
No here we are at my Alma Mater Running Brook Elementary ('89-'95.) Rebuilding a new Running Brook is my answer to the new Town Center Development. They want to build an additional School for said School all the while Schools in West Columbia continue to age not so gracefully. With redistricting handling some of the blame, Running Brook's enrollment exploded from 299 in 2002-2003 to its present enrollment of 434. Its projected to blast through the 500 mark in the coming years and if Running Brook takes all the Town Center Students it could be as high as 600!Say hello to the brand new Running Brook Elementary School, as a '95 graduate, I can say that I won't miss the old building. The new capacity will be 588 allowing for Town Center, the part of my "Wilde Lake Redevelopment" post that's districted her, growth and some small redistricting.To relieve crowding at neighboring Longfellow, Running Brook will be the new home to students living in Beaver Brook. All Running Brook students will not only attend Wilde Lake Middle but Wilde High as well. The Atholton High feed will be eliminated.
This next entry takes us to Oakland Mills, Stevens Forest to be exact. Stevens Forest Elementary once played host to almost 400 students. It receives an addition in 1995 bumping its capacity to 333. Since peaking at 391 in the late '90s enrollment has been on the decline. In 2002 it was at 306. The following year redistricting of a projected 91 students from Talbott Springs to relieve crowding there and boost enrollment at Stevens Forest. In 2003 enrollment jumped to only 358, that projection was off. Enrollment continued to decline until 2008 when it bottomed out at 282. Enrollment went up this past year for the first time without the help of redistricting to just under 300. I think Stevens Forest has more kids in its district than are enrolled at their neighborhood School. The same can be said about Dasher Green. Now I project enrollment to be on the rise again and so does the county. I think Stevens Forest at its current district can have almost 500 students. It had 391 prior to redistricting, and with its larger district it can boost past 450 to just below 500.A new Stevens Forest like the one pictured here would usher more kids into the District as well as existing Private School kids who might give Steven's Forest another look. Also, a small part of my "Oakland Mills Redevelopment" post involves homes in the Stevens Forest District.Now I don't think Talbott Springs was finished with Stevens Forest. It remains crowded while Stevens Forest can take students. So, the redistricting of a few Oakland Mills Road side streets to Stevens Forest (it's closer) will be in order. Ah, Swansfield my current Home School. If I had kids they'd go here since I'm a Clarys Forest resident. Speaking of Clarys Forest it was supposed to have its own Elementary School. Instead they built an addition to Swansfield bumping its capacity to 484. That really wasn't enough. In the mid 1990s Swansfield peaked at 692. It's now at a more reasonable 521. For all day Kindergarten its capacity was again bumped up to 528. However, the decline in enrollment at Swansfield is not permanent. In the time I've lived in Clarys Forest I've seen the population grow younger once again as well as Swansfield proper. 600 Students in the coming years doesn't seem that far fetched. In the long term it could hot 650 or 675.The new Swansfiled will be the largest an Elementary School in Howard County can be. It will have a capacity of 788. Why so high two reasons. One, a lot of my "Harpers Choice Redevelopment" properties are in the Swansfield District which will produce larger numbers of Students. And the other is redistricting. With Clemens Crossing providing relief for Fulton, what School will provide relief for Clemens Crossing? The answer is Swansfield. It's easy to fathom because Swansfield's closer for the neoghborhood in question (Cedar Acres) these are the reasons that the new Swansfield will be so large.
Now we come to the School whose District has always been non contiguous; Talbott Springs. This can be blamed for proposed Schools that were never built in Hopewell and Elkhorn. Talbott Springs (with Dasher Green) has stepped up to the plate in providing a home to Students who would have attended these Schools that never came to fruition. At times Talbott Springs with a capacity of 443 can handle these students while other times Talbott Springs has been over crowded. Enrollment at Talbott Springs changes drastically every year, this can due to a large number of Rental Apartments in its District. In the 2004-2005 School Year enrollment was 507, then in the 2006-2007 School Year it was 426, today it's back up to a whopping 532.The new Talbott Springs will have a capacity of 610. This was set higher because the Talbott Springs District will so many of its older Apartment Complexes redeveloped as part of my "Oakland Mills Redevelopment Plan" The redeveloped Oakland Mills will have a higher home ownership rate that will keep enrollment steadier. The Talbott Springs District will still be non contiguous. Redistricting includes adding some Thunderhill kids as it will play a role in providing relief for the northeast. A small part of the Sewells Orchard/Fairmead Lane area will go to Stevens Forest. If crowding continues, consideration should be paid to one or two parts of Hopewell and consider redistricting one or both of them to Dasher Green.
Now come to our final School in Oakland Mills; Thunderhill. I'm using Thunderhill as a School to help relieve the north and northeast. Northfield is undergoing a renovation and addition as I pen this post in order to house its current District comfortably. I think redistricting some of Northfield into Thunderhill, allowing Northfield to relieve crowding at Centennial Lane and Veterans is a better idea. Why? That way we can build a new Thunderhill. It's 368 capacity is too small as is and with the additional Northfield Students forget it. This is what I envision the new Thunderhill to look like except with a grander front entrance.Look grand enough for you? I think so. The new capacity for Thunderhill will be 555. That will allow for a bigger District.The new district will include the remainder of Dorey Hall not currently districted here. It will eliminate the Northfield Wilde Lake High feed. Also eliminated will be the Ellicott Mills Howard feed. Thunderhill Students will either attend Dunloggin Middle and Wilde Lake High or both Oakland Mills Middle and High. Last but not least we come to Waterloo. Enrollment jumped from from 560 in 2005 to 723 today. In my Phelps Luck section I called for "flip flopping" its district with Waterloo's The new Waterloo District will look like a lot like the curent Phelps Luck District with Waterloo having more Students living closer to it attending. Waterloo spent many years having its District cut up as new Schools were built to relieve crowding now it's Waterloo that will get the new School after 46 but it will still relieve crowding at other nearby Schools.
The new Waterloo won't be much larger than its current School. Its capacity will be 610 versus the current 594. It's not about numbers it's giving Waterloo a new building to accommodate all the new growth coming to the area. Remember when I said Phelps Luck will not have any Students from the Long Reach Redevelopment? That's because they've been redistricted to Waterloo.The new Waterloo District will now absorb growth from Locust Park via my Long Reach Development and the new Shipley's Grant. Gone are the days that Waterloo draws from far away neighborhoods that are closer to newer Schools. Now Waterloo itself will be a new School with a District that draws for closer neighborhoods.

Well it's great to be back blogging about this is the first of many new posts. It's high time that the School System addressed the inequities between Columbia Schools and those in newer parts of the County. One good thing is that there are plenty of temporary buildings that can house Students while their Schools are rebuilt. I'd like to see all Schools complete by 2025. Starting.....NOW!

New Posts Coming Soon!

2010-06-07T00:56:00.000-04:00

After a long winter of writer's block Spring has sprung and so have my ideas for new posts. Stay tuned! Expect a big one in the next 72 hours!

Wilde Lake Reinvestment

2010-01-27T19:40:00.003-05:00

Wilde Lake has perhaps the largest number of small developments with many different housing choices. Some have aged better than others. Those that haven't aged well were published in my Wilde Lake Redevelopment post back in 2008. Those that have aged better are for the most, larger homes that have been privately owned their entire lifespan, those that haven't were converted as such and maintain a high home ownership rate. In order for these homes, when they start coming on the market again not to be skipped over by potential Buyers and Real Estate Agents alike their exterior facades are due for a major reinvestment to keep them viable for decades to come.
First we start with Columbia's very first homes, Bryant Gardens. Originally Apartments these have been created into Condos and the upkeep is great. However, the exterior facades mimic those of dated crime ridden Apartments despite their great upkeep. Unlike many many older Columbia Neighborhoods, trees appear very healthy and green grass can grow all around.The updated Bryant Gardens will feature vinyl siding where the stucco was and new bricks where the old ones are. The windows will be upgraded allowing for decks and balconies. Buildings will be enclosed and guests will be "buzzed" in. The interior of the Buildings were be illuminated and carpeted and the steps will be upgraded.The Cove is almost identical to Bryant Gardens with both developments being built in 1967 as Apartments and being converted into Condos in the early 1980s. One the Cove does have a leg up on Bryant Gardens is the fact that it's on Wilde Lake. If ever Columbia had Million Dollar Condos outside of Town Center, The Cove might be it. Getting their facades upgraded might be a challenge seeing that Oprah lived here they might qualify for Historic Designation.Be that as it may, I still say a more modern look is needed. Seeing that Bryant Gardens has been a virtual twin to the Cove for 43 years, I say their updated looks be identical as well. The Cove will feature new windows, siding, and balconies, and enclosed buildings. Like Bryant Gardens The Cove already has great landscaping.Russett Ridge town homes, located along Windstream Drive, Greek Boy Place, and Barcan Circle appear to have aged worse than Bryant Gardens and the Cove despite never being rentals and being two years younger having been built in 1969. Homes here are either two or three stories as depicted by the photos above.The revamped Russett Ridge will feature updated siding, bricks, or stone with new windows and decorative dormers. As you can see I've provided examples of what the two story and three story homes would look like.Beechin Hills Town Homes have aged very gracefully. As Columbia's first town homes a mild freshening with new siding is all that's in order. The structures don't really warrant much overhauling like other developments.Like I said just fresh siding and trim. Very little is needed for these diamond in the rough town homes.Hollow Oaks features town homes that are three to a row. Unlike Beechin Hills they need more than just a freshening. But don't fret! I have a good idea on how to transform these threesomes.I found some three to a row town homes in Baltimore that part of a Hope VI redevelopment known as Heritage Crossing. Like Hollow Oaks Heritage Crossing has the two end units larger than the middle one. Hollow Oaks can adapt the brick end units and the vinyl siding middle unit.
Also in Hollow Oaks lies large three story split foyer town homes. These are more than three in a row but reinvestment is needed none the less.Here we have brand new large Town Homes that also happen to be split foyer. These would be the perfect model for the larger Hollow Oaks Town Homes.In Hollow Oaks there is space for new construction! With the existing homes redone new homes won't look out of place. The new homes in Hollow Oaks will be two car garage Town Homes. The ones pictures above are in the same development as the split foyer ones I suggested for the existing Hollow Oaks.Finally we come to Cross Fox. Cross Fox is Condos and back to back Town Homes which started as rentals and were converted to home ownership. These are a little than the other developments listed here being built in 1975. Their brick exteriors lack any accessories.The perfect solution is to give them partial siding and window treatments as shown here in an Apartment Complex that was all brick lack luster and has been transformed into what you see here. These original Apartments were built in 1974.

Well that's it for the reinvestment of Wilde Lake! This one's been a long time coming.

The Plans Don't Exist!

2010-01-12T22:56:00.001-05:00

Month after month I hear there's going to be a meeting where Kimco will announce its plans for Wilde Lake Village Center. The residents who attend those meetings time and time again find out they're just "listening sessions" to seek "Community Input" well in case you haven't figured it out there are no plans and there never have been any.
Kimco and the County are creating a smokescreen to make it look like progress is being made when in fact, it's going backwards. The New Zoning Amendment for redeveloping Village Centers passed by the County simply prolonghs the process by having meeting after meeting review board after review board before anything is passed. That hasn't even started yet because Kimco has yet to come forth any development plans. It's also holding me back, if there aren't any plans, I can't write about how flawed they are.Many of the residents who attend these meetings have lived in Wilde Lake since the late 1960s and they're aging hippies. They want to see preservation of everything that hearkens back to the Wilde Lake they moved to 40 years ago. By not redeveloping the Village Center earlier like other Centers have done, that created the problem Wilde Lake faces today. Congratulations, old hippies you're part of the problem, not the solution.
I, unlike Kimco or the County have come up with plenty of solutions, some of which I had back logged long before Giant Closed. The ideas for new stores that residents have suggested aren't bad but they won't come to the Center as is and if they did take the gamble, they wouldn't last. None of those stores are anchors therefore they don't draw a large enough percentage of the market to the Center. Village Centers have always been Grocery anchored. The only thing that will bring Wilde Lake back to life is another Grocery Store.
15 years ago Harpers Choice Village Center was all but abandoned, then Safeway built a store there and the merchants and shoppers came back in droves.Now if Oakland Mills can attract a Grocery Store why can't Wilde Lake? Oakland Mills Village Center has the worst location of any Retail Center I've ever seen, yet when they lose a Grocer, they can get another one. Heck, Kimco bought Oakland Mills after the Metro closed and while Kimco owned it, they attracted the current Food Lion before selling it to Cedar Shopping Centers. Back then, the red tape didn't exist for Village Center redevelopment.
Now people talk about blending in Wilde Lake with Town Center. The only time Town Center should be mentioned is in a pitch meeting to a potential Grocer citing the 5,000 new homes projected to be built there and how they would use Wilde Lake to go Grocery Shopping if you opened a store there. I don't hold onto vestiges of yesteryear and hope they will one day become viable again, I think what's viable now and what will remain viable and that is a new bigger Grocery Store. Like I've said many times, there are plenty of reputable Grocery Stores that don't have a niche in West Columbia or Columbia at all that love to stake their claim. Well, Grocers the place you can expand your market base into Columbia is Wilde Lake.
While Kimco and the County have scratching their heads and buying more times I have published both a short term and a long term solution for Wilde Lake.
It might not ultimately keep the current "Village Green" but it can be relocated and thus preserved in a viable manner. I will make no apologies for any of the statements I've made on this post. Here are my two solutions
http://columbiafuture.blogspot.com/2009/06/walgreens-to-rescue.html Short Term
http://columbiafuture.blogspot.com/2009/06/how-to-best-redevelop-wilde-lake.html Long Term

Hickory Ridge Redvelopment

2009-12-25T23:03:00.001-05:00

There are those who think that Hickory Ridge doesn't need any redevelopment because it's one of Columbia's newest Villages. Fact of the matter is Hickory Ridge is Columbia's Fifth Village with the first homes going up in the early 1970s before Owen Brown. Hickory Ridge was built in stages and three big reasons that it's thought of as a new Village is because its Village Center is Columbia's second newest opening in 1992, the newer housing st along Broken Land Parkway and Hickory Ridge Road, and Clarys Forest. Even Clarys Forest has a few developments that need redevelopment and with that I give you the redevelopment of Hickory Ridge.First comes Sierra Villas. I don't ever recall these ever being attractive in their 35 year existence. Located at the high traffic Cedar Lane and Hickory Ridge Road intersection they serve as a Gateway to Clary's Forest.Villas can be done right. First off, these have Garages allowing for more homes to be built on the land locked site Sierra Villas sits on. Garages are much better than carports when it comes to security, protection, and cosmetics. These villas are built with vinyl siding and brick compared with the yellow stucco and brown wooding siding of the current Sierra Villas. This will be 100% Market Rate Home Ownership.Next there's the Bluffs at Clary's Forest, surrounded by newer looking developments like Clarys Chase, Reflections, The Club Merion, and Clary's Crossing. There haven't been any interior renovations here and the trees are sick not allowing grass to grow here. In its place will be new elevator mixed income Apartments/Condos 55% Market Rate Home Ownership 35% Market Rate Rentals and 10% Subsidized Home Ownership. It will also complement the existing developments nearby.The Greens at Columbia, now why this one? There haven't been interior renovations and the amount needed (I toured this complex) would require vacating the complex and gutting the interior and updating the exterior facades. A full redevelopment would be just as viable.In its place will be a new courtyard style Condo Complex that would complement the way the Greens at Columbia are currently configured. A new development would put a new face on another Clarys Forest "Gateway" Complex like Sierra Villas. It will be 50% Market Rate Home Ownership and 50% Below Market Rate Home Ownership.The Bluffs at Hawthorn is identical to the Bluffs at Clarys Forest. Surrounding Developments along Hickory Ridge Road are newer and have had substantial reinvestment at the same time. The Bluffs at Hawthorn has neither of these things. It's time this aging development be replaced with new 100% Market Rate Rentals that would go with its surroundings better. The old Bluffs at Hawthorn shares the same flaws as the Bluffs at Clarys Forest.Hickory Ridge Place might be the first Apartment Building in the Village. Even though it's had interior renovations it's still seen better days. In fact, I would have it redeveloped as a 100% Subsidized Senior Apartment Complex.Here's a good example of a new Senior Apartment Building that would be a great replacement for Hickory Ridge Place. It has the same branching off that Hickory Ridge Place does.

Well most of you would think that these developments don't need to be changed. I do mostly because they haven't withstood the test of time. In order for Columbia to be a contender in the 21st Century all developments need to look in pristine condition. And I do mean all of them.

Vantage Point Reinvestment

2009-12-05T18:47:00.000-05:00

Town Center is almost exclusively new housing. Banneker was built in the mid 1990s and that's the second oldest part. Vantage Point is the oldest part and most think of it as an extension to Running Brook (I grew up in Vantage Point and had to explain it that way when somebody asked where I lived). I didn't even count Creighton's Run (Davidge Drive) as Town Center because it's too weird to think of that as Town Center. Vanatage Point is full of subdivisions that were built from 1974-1986. Vantage House was completed in 1990 but I'm concentrating on all ages housing stock. How about we reinvest in Vantage Point and make it look brand new just like the rest of Town Center? Also the part of Running Brook that Vantage Point abuts to I would have redeveloped.
First lets start off with the Condos on Smooth Meadow Way. They were built in 1983 and with a minor facelift they can look brand new.The new look for Smooth Meadow I'm taking cues from Island Club Apartments in Dorsey's Search which believe it or not were built in 1986 and just received a face lift themselves.Now we come to Ring Dove Lane town homes built in 1974 these were the first homes in Vantage Point, I resided at 5477 from 1988-2003 age 4-19, I attended Running Brook Elementary and Wilde Lake Middle and High. They've already received face lifts in 2000 but I'd like to kick it up a notch. Two story town homes will lose the front storage patios (which were always a carpenter bee's haven) to make way for larger front yards and more decorative front windows. The bedroom balconies and bump outs will be taken out as well. Up stairs windows will be moved away from the sides to allow for decorative shutters. The bricks that separate each home will be done away with.The three story town homes will have garages built where the carports currently are. Front doors will be bumped out to reflect this as well. Balconies will be done away with just like the two stories for decorative windows as will the separating bricks. Windows here are in a much better location for shutters.Here's what I have in mind for the two stories, notice the clean fresh appearance and the decorative features currently lacking. The three stories, now garages will give Ring Dove Lane a more modern look than the dated car ports and will make them a bigger selling point.
Waterbury town homes have held up quite well. Built in 1984, a good 10 years after the first houses in Vantage Point they still use wooden siding and every row of houses uses the same light blue color.
I'm using Foregate on the Green in Dorsey's Search as a good idea for putting on new siding in Waterbury. It will use vinyl siding and use different colors to create a more interesting mix of homes.Now we come to Glen Meadows, which consists of both Condos and Town Homes. Built in 1986 they're Vantage Point's newest homes yet they look the most dated. The dark wood siding and the lack of front windows over the front doors don't do these homes any favors. The condos, although their siding is dated don't need any real design changes. The new siding will take care of everything. I might add enclosed building entries as a safety measure.I took design cues from a rental Apartment/Town Home Complex known as Kaiser Park in Ellicott City. Although it was built from 2003-2004 a good 17-18 years after Glen Meadows it's easy to plug in the design of these homes into Glen Meadows. I'm aware Glen Meadows has garages and these don't but look beyond that. The condos are even easier to transform. Just add new siding and an enclosed building entry and there's your new Glen Meadows. These are the Apartments at Kaiser Park in Ellicott City same development as the Town Homes.Water's Edge is Vantage Point's second development. Built in 1975 these town homes are huge! They use a stucco exterior which is dated and that's putting it nicely. Unlike the rest of Vantage Point it's hard to grow grass here. That's a sign that the trees here are sickly and need to be replaced with new healthy trees allowing grass to grow once again.For Waters Edge I used Summerfield at River Hill as a design cue. Their brick fronts provide a fresh modern look. They also have fireplaces in the front like Waters Edge which has and this shows this design can look in the 21st century.

Well that's for Vantage Point, the neighborhood that raised me, after the housing stock is updated it will look brand new just like the rest of Town Center making it fit in perfectly.

Owen Brown Reinvestment

2009-11-25T00:09:00.000-05:00

Like I've said before Owen Brown has some of Columbia's most dated housing stock yet it one of the fewest number of rental properties of any Columbia Village. Also the size of most homes in Owen Brown are very large. These reasons and more are why redevelopment on a large scale in Owen Brown isn't the answer to put it in the 21st century.
Other Villages warrant redevelopment so much more than Owen Brown but that doesn't mean Owen Brown doesn't need a massive face lift to stay viable. So, I will start a serious of posts that support the massive over haul of exterior facades in almost all Columbia Villages starting with Owen Brown. So here's the reinvestment of Owen Brown.First we start with Southwick. Southwick is a town home development located on both Knighthood Lane and Talisman Lane. The uniform brick design leaves a lot to the imagination. There is also a lack of windows here. The windows that are here have no decorative trimmings and bump outs on the front doors.
Although these are apartments, they were built in 1974 and underwent a massive exterior facade overhaul. It's a mixture of the original uniform bricks coupled with siding, shutters, and slanted roof decorative trimming. This would be a great new look for Southwick although they're town homes.Elkhorn Landing town homes also need a major overhaul. The chimneys on the front need to disused to create a more uniform appearance. The homes use wooden siding and brick fronts. Elkhorn Landing is located on Lasting Last Way and Winter Rose Path. Vinyl siding with stone and shutters and bay windows would make a great new appearance to Elkhorn Landing. Also there are many more windows in the new Elkhorn Landing allowing for more natural lighting.Here we are in Woodlake, whose design is similar to that of Southwick only the homes are much larger. The front yards here have also turned for the worse. Old and sick trees have caused grass to stop growing around their bases. A good investment in this neighborhood would be to remove said trees and plant new healthy ones in their place and reseeding lawns. Woodlake is located on Kerry Hill Court, Mossy Brink Court, and Hickory Log Circle.This new design concept is probably the easiest to see. The homes here are split foyer like those in Woodlake, and are brick front. They incorporate many more windows which in Owen Brown are an endangered species or at least they were in the mid to late 1970s when these homes were built. One thing to point out is that newer town homes have a uniformed look to their backs. This is something that homes in Owen Brown currently lack and that should be incorporated in its reinvestment.Swanpoint is probably Owen Brown's modernist looking development. That's probably because it's newer having been built in the 1980s rather than the '70s. All it needs is some new siding for a fresher appearance. Swanpoint is located on Swanpoint Lane and Harbor Lane.As luck would have there is such a development built just a few years later in Clary's Forest which Swanpoint can model itself after.The last two developments off of Cradlerock Way that are blighted look exactly the same and their new look will also be the same. The are Dockside and Lakeside and they're located on Dockside Lane and Broken Staff respectively. The trees here are also sick and need to be cut down and replaced with healthy ones to allow grass to grow.
I looked to Baltimore for inspiration on the Dockside/Lakeside renewal. I used the Townes At Orchard Ridge which is a redevelopment in and of itself. It replaced the Claremont Homes and Freedom Village Public Housing Projects. You can see some of them are two stories and others are three just like the homes they're modeling to be.The Duplexes in Hopewell at the end of Carved Stone and Stag Horn Path could use a freshening. Like Woodlake, the landscaping is at the mercy of sick and old trees. It's time to replace these tress as well with healthier ones to let the grass grow.These town homes don't look much different than the duplexes but like I said they just need a freshening.

Well that's it for the reinvestment of Owen Brown. Along with the redevelopment, Owen Brown will look completely renewed and you'll barely recognize it.

Dorseys Search Village Center

2009-11-23T14:46:00.001-05:00

Dorsey's Search Village Center set the benchmark when it opened in 1989. First, it was the first Village Center to be built with an open air strip concept, it was the first Village Center in West Columbia to be built in 18 years, and it was the first Village Center to use a large Grocery which, 20 years later is still the same size and needs no expansion.
Dorsey's Search has set the benchmark for newer Village Centers and the redevelopment of old ones.
Over the years, like many Village Centers Dorsey's Search has hosted many tenants in its life time. They include; Video Library, Crown Books, Sundaes, Roy Rogers, Amore Italian Deli, Venture Travel, Party Party Party, Bruggers Bagel Bakery, ZiPani, The Dark Room, Cingular Wireless, European Touch of Beauty, Nationwide Insurance Office, and Beverly's Hallmark.
Today Dorsey's Search plays host to a lot of restaurants and hair salons. The current tenant roster is Giant (which was just renovated inside), Parcel Plus, Cleaners Plus, Great Clips (from Wilde Lake), Hunan Legend, Subway (I worked there from late 2000 to February 2002) Honey Baked Ham (nee Heavenly Ham), Dorsey's Search Wine & Spirits, Avalon Hair, Nails & Spa, Trattoria Pizza Pasta & More, Casey's Coffee, Master Barber, Blockbuster Video (Going Out of Business), Chevy Chase Bank, and a Sunoco Station.
Just like any Village Center or Retail Center for that matter Dorsey's Search has had a turnover of tenants and expansion into different spaces. Video Library left and Party Party Party took over its space, Crown Books left and in came Bruggers then ZiPani then Subway (Subway took most of the space while Hunan Legend expanded into the rest. Venture Travel left after 9/11 and Heavenly Ham (now Honey Baked Ham) expanded into that space.
The Dark Room left and hosted a couple short lived businesses; Cingular Wireless and a Nationwide Insurance Office, now it's home to a Great Clips. Amore, a seemingly successful Italian Deli left or was bought out by the far Superior Trattoria Pizza Pasta and More (They own several Restaurants in Howard County) Sundae's left a while ago and Casey's Coffee has made good use of that space.
When vacancies came on the scene at Dorsey's Search, they were back filled pretty quickly. The vitality of the Center has kept it "hot spot" for chains and Mom & Pop businesses alike. Roy Rogers was the only long standing vacancy in the Center. There is one vacancy right one whose last tenant was Beverly's Hallmark (formerly Party Party Party) this is a large vacancy which may be hard to back fill with just one business.One reason that the old Roy Rogers space stayed as long as it did (roughly three years late '96 to late '99) was that McDonalds bought out Roy Rogers and there were rumors that the Golden Arches might take over the space. This never came to fruition and a Blockbuster ultimately moved in. Now 10 years later, the last Blockbuster in a Village Center (this one) is closing its doors. I don't blame the location or the bad economy for this, I blame the evolution of retail i.e. Netflix. Netflix has killed the Blockbuster chain. Blockbuster is fighting back with its own Mail Order Video Rental and boasts that rather than sending back your rentals through the mail, you can simply return it to your neighborhood Blockbuster, too bad they're all closing.
I don't see this space as being any easier to back fill in 2009 than it was in the late 1990s. This time, it's the economy rather than McDonalds deciding what to do with it. Luckily, I have my own ideas about how to back fill not just the soon to be vacant Blockbuster Space but Dorsey's Search Village Center as a whole. In case you haven't figured it out all my posts eventually tell people what I think needs to be done. Kimco (the Center's Owner) can look within the Center to back fill Blockbuster. Yes, it's Subway as pictured above.
Although it spent a the past 10 years as a Blockbuster, the space still has the bones of a Fast Food Restaurant. Pictured above is the retired Drive Thru path and Window used when the space was a Roy Rogers. Currently, the Subway doesn't have a Drive Thru here but there are Subways that do have them. Moving Subway here will give it a cutting edge advantage of being the only area Subway with a Drive Thru Window. It will also increase business. It's a win win all around.Drive Thrus have evolved since the departure of Roy Rogers and before Subway can take it over, there will have to be some minor changes. The biggest one being the addition of a second window. Judging by the appearance of the back of the space this can be easily accomplished. One window is for paying, the other for picking up your order. That's how Drive Thrus have evolved in recent years. Of course an ordering screen and speaker will have to be reinstalled.
Now we didn't decrease any vacancies with the Subway move we just made a shift in the location of one tenant. The current Subway Space will now be vacant and would have to be back filled. I would suggest a Jeweler. The area boasts a very high median income especially when one factors in that Ellicott City Neighborhoods such as Font Hill, Burleigh Manor, Dunloggin, and Grey Rock Farm use this Village Center as well. Maybe a Jared's or another Everett.

Now to back fill the large space vacated by Beverly's Hallmark. Like I said before, I don't foresee it being one large business but two or three smaller ones. Like I also said before, Dorsey's Search has a lot of Restaurants and Hair Salons so to mix up the Tenant Roster it would be wise not to add more of those. Half of the space can be a High End Consignment Boutique. There's been a successful one in Hickory Ridge forever and one just opened in King's Contrivance. This part of the retail niche has been a good alternative to buying new during the recession. One fourth of the space could be a "Tan Stand" a tanning salon, and the last bit could be a photo framer. In Waverly Woods Village Center there's a great example of one and perhaps the Owners of that one could open another location in Dorsey's Search.

Casey's Coffee is a business that I think of as a competitor to Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks. Now Dunkin Donuts also host a Baskin Robbins these days, a good way for each business to expand while keeping costs manageable. I think Casey's Coffee, although indepently owned has room to host another business within itself. The Other Business? Smoothie King. Smoothie King is a rapidly growing business that needs to find a niche in Columbia. I suggested one for Owen Brown Village Center and now I'm suggesting one here in Dorsey's Search. I think the brand recognition of Smoothie King will in turn boost business in Casey's Coffee. Another win win. I'm not suggesting Casey's Coffee is struggling by any means I'm just saying that when was the last time a Business Owner has said: "I wish we didn't have so many Customers"

Chevy Chase Bank has been a long time tenant (I believe it's an original) but when facing Dorsey Hall Drive it appears its free standing building is vacant. This picture faces the main strip where the Bank appears as it should; Open For Business.I took this picture when I was getting gas at the Sunoco Station adjacent to the Bank. This is what is seen from Dorsey Hall Drive. I thought Chevy Chase had left the Center because I hadn't taken any pictures yet. There needs to be an illuminated sign and perhaps a second ATM on this side of the Building to attract more Business from Dorsey Hall Drive.Now for some minor Cosmetic Improvements to the Center. There are archways that are freshly painted bright white. This makes the siding and stucco trim in the Center look washed out and faded. So, the siding should be replaced with the same bright white color and the stucco should be painted that same white as the archways. This will give the Center a new and refreshed look. In 2000, the Rouse Company (Center Owners at the time) put up signs to let people know what Businesses were in the Center. One thing that signs don't have for the most part are logos for chains and they're not illuminated for night time passers by. This is an improvement I'd like to see and it will pay off.Last but not least is the intersection of Dorsey Hall Drive and the Main Entrance to the Village Center. This has become difficult to negotiate during peak day time hours and a traffic signal should be installed here to control the growing traffic volume.

Now, Dorsey's Search is one of Columbia's healthiest most vibrant Village Centers yet I wrote a very long post about it, Like any Village Center or any Retail Center for that matter, it needs to be closely examined to make sure it continues to do so.

Owen Brown Redevelopment

2009-11-18T01:16:00.001-05:00

Owen Brown has some of the most dated housing stock in all of Columbia. That being said, it has very few rental complexes; two to be exact and one is still new.
Redevelopment in Owen Brown will be constricted to areas along Cradlerock that have struggled with crime and can't be modernized with major exterior facade over hauls. Other older Columbia Villages have more of this housing stock, therefore much more of their housing stock falls in the redevelopment category. Owen Brown's housing stock has gone stagnant and much of its housing stock needs a massive exterior face lift that will be discussed in another post. Now for the redevelopment of Owen Brown.
First off, will be the "Chimney's of Cradlerock. Their dated appearance and safety issues and lack of maintenance have put a damper on this "entrance to Owen Brown" when entering Cradlerock via Broken Land Parkway. There is also a lot of Section 8 housing that home owners in neighboring Communities are concerned about. In its place will be new Apartments/Condos known as "Owen Brown Crossing that will greatly improve and renew the appearance of Owen Brown when traveling on Cradlerock and Broken Land Parkway. This will also allow for affordable home ownership in Howard County in 25% of its units with the rest being market rate rentals. This surely will revamp outside interest in Owen Brown and East Columbia as a whole.The next development is privately owned town homes on Quiet Hours across from the Chimneys at Cradlerock and the East Columbia Library has long been the victim of loitering and spill over problems from other Communities. There are also lots of rentals here that have been neglected. The small size of these homes have made them less attractive to buyers where a larger could be found at the same price. Exterior facade improvements can't make the houses bigger.In its place will be "Dasher Green Pointe" which will consist of "stacked" two level town homes that are wider than what is currently there allowing for larger homes without compromising density with two homes where there used to be just one. These will be 65% Market Rate Home Ownership and 35% Market Rate Rentals.
Now we come to Greenleaf. This neighborhood has seen its share of crime over the years. The homes are some of the ugliest Columbia has to offer and the ones with separate basement Apartments have created problems with their upstairs neighbors. There have been lots of rentals here in the past adding to the blighted appearance. Landscaping is barren and makes the homes that much more prominent. During the late 1990s the drug trade raided this neighborhood. Pathways along here have become less safe as well.The redeveloped Green Leaf will be named "Broken Land Crossing" and although they're larger One Car Garage Town Homes there will be more units. The infrastructure will be completely redone and will stretch closer to Broken Land Parkway to further reiterate the new Owen Brown.The Cradlerock Mart and Cleaners replaced the long vacant High's Store. The High's Store left due to robberies and petty theft. This has been a blighted eyesore on Owen Brown for far too long. The Cradlerock Mart has also been the victim of robberies and has barred windows. We're not in West Baltimore people!Royal Farms would make a great replacement for the blighted Cradlerock Mart. Shown here is a Flagship Royal Farms Store that Owen Brown should follow when redeveloping the Convenience Store. The Day Care Center on Homespun Drive is the last part of Owen Brown that needs to be redeveloped, this is Elkhorn's Neighborhood. There should have been another pool and Elementary School here.I'm not proposing the New Building be a Goddard School but they should use this as a model.

Well, like I said there's not much in Owen Brown that needs redeveloping. Stay tuned for the Owen Brown Reinvestment Post that will cover more of Owen Brown and really renew Owen Brown.

Harpers Choice Redevelopment

2009-11-02T13:34:00.003-05:00

I'll be the first to say that Harper's Choice has made a huge come back in the past several years but is that enough? It needs to be more visual than that just a drastic reduction in crime, higher School Test Scores and higher property values.
There are still pockets saturated with blighted section 8 housing that may deter future homeowners and renters. With older Columbia Villages it's all about creating a sense of new. Why buy an older home in Columbia when you can buy a newer one in Ellicott City or Elkridge. Lets at least give them an option of new construction in Columbia. So with that, I give my redevelopment plan for Harpers Choice.

First, we'll start off with Harper's Forest Apartments and Ranleigh Court Town Homes. Harper's Forest Apartments is market level rentals with a few Section 8 units thrown in. The buildings are old and tired looking. Despite recent renovations to the interiors it still lacks the modern conveniences that dwellers of modern day complexes take for granted such as a washer & dryer in the unit and walk in closets to name a couple. Ranleigh Court is a Community Homes development consisting exclusively of section 8 units.
In place of both developments will be new condos and apartments that look like these. It will be a mixed income community known as "Swansfield Crossing." A possible street connection making turnabout lane even with Twin Rivers Road should be considered. The name appropriate because the new community would be visible to passers by on Little Patuxent Parkway and will make a good impression of Harpers Choice. The income mix will be 45% Market Rate Homeownership, 40% Market Rate Rental, 10% Subsidized Homeownership, and 5% Subsidized Rentals.Next we come to Fall River Terrace, perhaps the worst Community Homes development. It's struggled with drug dealing, loud parties, and messy common areas. The redevelopment of Fall River Terrace will be very symbolic in the continued renewal of Harper's Choice.What will now grace the grounds of Fall River Terrace will be "The Townes of Harper's Choice." which will consist of two car garage town homes with said garage located in the back of the home. These wider town homes have a few narrow units made to look the width one of the normal ones. The narrow ones will be the subsidized units. The income mix will be 100% Home ownership 75% Market Rate and 25% Subsidized.
Next we come to the Meadows Town Homes located both off of Eliots Oak Road and Hesperous Drive. This is the first Community in Harper's Choice I'd like to see redeveloped that is Owner Occupied. That would make redevelopment all the more difficult when acquiring land and property from dozens of owners rather than just one or two, but "if you don't dream big don't dream it all" that's been my motto when writing these blogs. The meadows has become dated and the small size of the homes are not compatible with the needs of a modern family. Homeowners have tried very hard to maintain their homes but there are somethings they can't change. The streets located in the meadows are as follows; Hildebrand Court located off of Eliots Oak Road closest to Harpers Farm Road, Fallriver Row Court between Hildebrand Court and Hesperous Drive, Mystic Court located off of Hesperous Drive closest to Eliots Oak Road and Endicott Lane located farthest from Eliots Oak Road. The location of these streets will play a pivotal part in their redevelopment. Notice the two different style of Town Homes I chose for this new Community. The first picture is of one car garage "stacked" two level town homes which will be on the outer edge of the new Community titled "Longfellow Pointe" The outer portions include the southern part of Hildebrand Court, the northern, eastern, and western ends of Mystic Court, and all of Endicott Lane. The inner portions of "Longfellow Pointe will include the northern portion of Hildebrand Court, all of Fallriver Row Court, and the southern portion of Mystic Court. These homes will be one or two garage "back to back" town homes where what you think is the back of a home is actually the front of a totally different home with a different street address. That's why I positioned these particular homes in the middle of the Community where they will only face each other. These will be 100% Market Rate with a 50-50 Homeowner/Rental split.
Capistrano Villas are town homes with an apartment underneath located between Fenland Fields Apartments and Harper's Choice Village Center. Their dated style and lack of exterior maintenance make them ripe for redevelopment. Also being near Fenland Fields Apartments has had a negative effect on this development (you have to drive Fenland Feilds to access it.)
In its place will be "Joesph Square Overlook" the original name for Harper's Choice Village Center was just that, Joesph Square. Capistrano Villas overlooked the Village Center and so will its replacement hence the name. I like to throw in a little history when I can. Joseph Square Overlook will be laid out the same as its predecessor; two story town homes with an apartment underneath. The town homes are accessible by going up the flight of stairs and the apartment entrance is at ground level. Upon entering the apartment, you'd go down a flight of stairs first. Joseph Square Overlook will be 100% Market Rate Home Ownership. This vacant parcel at the corner of Harpers Farm Road and Rivendel Lane overlooks the Golf Course and would be prime for over priced condos. I'm choosing a different method for this piece of land.What I have in mind is Senior Apartments ages 62 & Better. They will be 100% Subsidized Rentals and displaced Seniors from Ramleigh Court, Waverly Winds, Fall River Terrace, and Harper House will get first dibs. The new development will be called "The Fairways at Hobbits Glen."Harper House (nee Abbott House) was once Harper's Choice's most dangerous development. There was drug dealing in the stair wells, loud parties, and even a shooting or two. There have been numerous drug related arrests here that have calmed things down in the mean time. The building is dated and casts a blighted shadow at one of Harper's Coice's most heavily traveled intersections; Cedar Lane and Harpers Farm Road. Currently this is 100% subsidized rentals.In is place will be three mixed income buildings like this one with underground parking. They will be built on the grounds of the former Harper House, its parking lot, and green patch adjacent to it. The income mix will be 55% Market Rate Home Ownership 35% Market Rate Rentals 5% Subsidized Home Ownership and 5% Subsidized Rentals. The new development will be called "Swansfield Grove."Harper's Village (Grand Banks Road) has seen better days (and worse.) Being located between two Section 8 developments (Harper House and Waverly Winds) has taken its toll on these owner occupied town homes. Although similar developments will be spared (Harper's Glen and Merion Station) and its Section 8 neighbors will be redeveloped, Harper's Village needs to be redeveloped as well to streamline the new development in Harper's Choice.
In its place will be "Swansfield Overlook", two story town homes with basements. These town homes pictured have two car garages in the back but Swansfield Overlook will not have garages and will utilize existing on street parking. Swansfield Overlook will be 100% Subsidized Home Ownership and will help moderate income families become home owners in Howard County.Waverly Winds, the final "Community Homes" development has struggled with crime and drugs in the 1990s and still has a ways to go. In an effort to create a broader income mix throughout Harper's Choice, Waverly Winds will be redeveloped.
In its place will be the mixed income Community known as "The Crescent at Swansfield", which will feature three level two car garage town homes. The garages will be located in the back of the homes. The income mix will be 50% Market Rate Home Ownership 40% Market Rate Rental and 10% Subsidized Rentals.

Fenland Fields Apartments are sprawled in three different sections along Harpers Farm Road. Each section therefore, should be redeveloped differently. The first section (pic coming soon) is located at the intersection of Harpers Farm Road and Eliots Oak Road. It's between the Athletic Club and Fall river Terrace.

In its place will be "Longfellow Crossing", three story non garage "back to back" homes. It will utilize existing on street parking and paths leading to homes whose fronts aren't accessible through the parking lots. Longfellow Crossing will be 100% Market Rate Rentals. The second section is located between the Athletic Club, The Village Center, and Kahler Hall. Needless to say, this is a weird place for Apartments. So I pose this question to you; Why redevelop it with more of the same if something else the Village Center is lacking maybe a better suit for it? What do I propose for it? An Interfaith Center, Harper's Chocie doesn't have one and there's no other land in the Village available to build one on. The last and largest section of Fenland Fields is lcoated between the Village Center and Rivendell Lane. Part of the redevelopment will include a Traffic Signal at Harpers Farm Road and Rivendell Lane and Cedar Lane and Route 108 due to the higher density of the redeveloped Fenland Fields and both intersections warranting them anyway.

In its place will be will be a new mixed income community of condos. The new community will be called "Parkside at Cedar Lane" due to its breath takign views of Cedar Lane Park. Parkside at Cedar Lane will contain the income mix of 60% Market Rate Home Ownership, 35% Market Rate Rentals, 3% Subsidized Home Ownership, and 2% Subsidized Rentals.

Well, that's it for the redevelopment of Harper's Chocie. This will ensure the continued revitalization and renewal of Harper's Choice that the Village has been enjoying since the real estate market surged after the turn of the century. It's time for new construction to go along with it.

The Recession: The Time to Take Stock of Town Center

2009-10-26T00:47:00.001-04:00

My focus has always been that of the Villages, not Town Center, Why? because I actually agree with the Town Center Master Plan. Yes, a 25 year Howard County resident 19 of those in Columbia agrees with the Town Center Master Plan. If you read books published about the creation of Columbia, you will see that Town Center would be built in stages and when the Villages were complete, Town Center will be built out.
Our economic recession has for now, thrown a monkey wrench into the Town Center Master Plan. If there's one thing FDR's new deal has taught us, it's that we can be creative to keep things afloat during tough times. My "creative solution" for Town Center is to consolidate Office Space, Demolish dated and obsolete Buildings to assemble parcels for future redevelopment, dig underground parking garages, demolish above ground garages, reconfigure the south entrance to the Mall to allow for better pedestrian access, create promenades between Lord & Taylor and Wincopin Circle and Symphony Woods and the Mall, create "Wincopin Street", and extend Twin Rivers Road from Broken Land Parkway to "Ring Road." Sounds like a lot huh? This is just "prep work" for the 3000-5000 new homes, and additional retail and office space both of which numbers in the millions of square footage.
I'm sure the Merill Lynch Building can absorb Office Space from Buildings that need to be demolished. The current parking garage that serves the Merill Lynch Building will be demolished to make way for an underground parking garage. The land that the current parking garage sits on would be used for future development.The American City Building, believe it or not encompasses a good example of what the redeveloped Town Center should be. It's easily accessible, and has good ground floor retail. However, its facade is extremely dated and uses adjacent surface lots. Well it's time to start digging a new underground garage and update the exterior facade.GGP's headquarters (formerly that of the Rouse Company) is not one of my favorite buildings for a variety of reasons; one its location on the waterfront makes it difficult if not impossible for underground parking, two it's dated and ugly, three preservationists are obsessed with saving it despite Architect Frank Gehry's blessing to have it demolished. Despite all that, it can stay. I don't feel like blasting those who want to preserve it. I'm already dodging people who live in the Lauaraville area of Baltimore. I gave an honest critique of their neighborhood and they want my head. I don't need more people who want my blood, at least not now. Don't worry my next post will be very controversial I haven't lost it or sold out.

It's parking garages like these on the south side of the Columbia Mall Office Buildings that keep this area from being Pedestrian oriented. Shown here would be the north end of a pedestrian promenade that would extend from Symphony Woods across Little Patuxent Parkway in between the existing buildings. The Parking Garages can serve as footprints for new construction. The southern Mall Road can be reconfigured to reflect this and allow for a better Pedestrian connection between the Mall and the Buildings south of it.Here is yet another example of how parking garages can obstruct Pedestrian access.
The south portion of the Mall Ring Road has room to be extended to Broken Land Parkway connecting the Ryland Homes building both via car and on foot to the mall.

On the other side is a vacant parcel of land that will surely be developed when the time is right.The extended "south ring road" will let here, at the entrance to the Gramercy Apartment Complex and will most likely warrant a traffic signal.
Shown here is an example of how a parking garage can act act as a foot print for future development. This is also where the Mall Ring Road bends and the southern connector to Broken Land Parkway will begin shown at a different angle.The One Mall North Building is located in exactly the wrong place. Its parcel is huge yet its location smack dab in the middle doesn't allow for future development on the parcel. The One Mall North Building may have to hit the wrecking ball in favor of a higher density mixed use residential/retial/office complex. Despite the high density, where the current building sits is the perfect place for a courtyard. Another goal in the Town Center Master Plan would be to create "Wincopin Street." It would be comprised of what is now a part of Wincopin Circle (shown above), a Courtyard next to the American City Building, and surface parking lots for existing buildings. The finished product will be a two lane pedestrian oriented urban boulevard that runs parallel to Little Patuxent Parkway from the Southern Mall Entrance to Sterrett Place. Wincopin Street will begin at the far end of this photo and make a sharp left (not shown here) and begin its run parallel to Little Patuxent Parkway roughly at the GGP building. This surface lot in the foreground will be sealed off for future development.Shown here is another stretch of Wincopin Street. The parking lot here will be separated by curbs and the street, instead of making that mandatory left turn towards Little Patuxent Parkway will continue straight into the current courtyard. Here is that courtyard that Wincopin Street will run through. It currently features three of Columbia's most well known Statues. First off there's "The Hug" a young girl receiving, you guessed it a hug. Then there's a Mother Bear feeding her Cubs. Lastly there's a Statue of the man himself; Jim Rouse. The Statue is just his head but roughly 10 years ago it was subject to constant vandalism. This brought tears to my eyes when I read about it, in fact it still does. Jim Rouse was always a personal hero of mine.Finally Wincopin Street will end at Sterrett Place near the original Cross Keys Inn. Again the surface lots will have to be reconfigured and separated by curbs to create a true street. The surface lots, once again will be sealed off for future development. The intersection of Wincopin Street and Sterrett Place will be a roundabout.Now it's time to focus on development along Wincopin Street. This dated parking garage is a waste of space that is a pivotal part of the redevelopment of the Wincopin Street part of Town Center. The Columbia Sheraton and the Office Building that replaced the old Rusty Scupper will have to park elsewhere, perhaps under the building that will replace this garage, a shared underground garage if you will.
The old Welcome Center has seen better days i.e. having a first floor tenant. The restaurants below can find a new home in the new mid rise building on the old grounds of the Columbia Cinema.There is space for ground floor retail here that is unfilled and putting Sushi Sono and Jesse Wong's Asian Grille here will create the ground floor retail feel needed for Wincopin Street.This is where the controversial 22 story high rise will go. Our economy and "Concerned Citizens" trying to uphold "Jim Rouse's dream" have thwarted these plans in the mean time. Those of you who have read Mr. Rouse's biography will know that he planned for buildings 30-50 storys high where if you look out the south window you can see DC and look at the north window you will see Baltimore. This building will only be a mere 22 storys, all you "Concerned Citizens" should read a book and stop warping Jim Rouse's vision to fit your own agenda.These three buildings located on Sterrett Place or Little Patuxent Parkway are either vacant or outdated in design. The two office buildings should have Little Patuxent Parkway frontage when redeveloped into mixed use buildings and the vacant Gas Station site should be raised so new development won't slope down for better visibility from the road. Their current parking lots on Sterrett Place will be used for additional development on Wincopin Street.These two buildings, coupled with the site of the 22 story condo building will make a great redevelopment site when put together. If the 22 story building were built without redeveloping its neighbors would make all the buildings look out of place.Now we come to the Lord and Taylor promenade. As seen from Wincopin Circle it looks like a "no man's land." This intersection warrants a traffic signal with countdown pedestrian signals. The land itself should be leveled and a pathway from Wincopin Circle to Lord and Taylor should be created complete with a brick walkway, elegant lighting, landsacping, and furniture. The promenade should branch off to the Merril Lynch Building as well. The pedestrian bridge currently in this area should be demolished as it creates a barrier between the two rather than a connection.
Last but not least we have the Twin Rivers Road connection. Even as a three way intersection like it is now it warrants a traffic signal. Obviously of Twin Rivers Road is extended to meet the Mall's "Ring Road" it will become a four way intersection making the need for traffic signal that much clearer. Well that's it, we've completely prepped Town Center for its redevelopment. Lets get to work so when the market turns around the 3,000-5,000 new residences and the millions of square feet of Office and Retail space can be added right away.

It's Back!: Colunbia Exxon

2009-10-11T23:42:00.005-04:00

Well they sure had me fooled! Columbia Exxon has reopened under new management. It looked so dead and forlorn. I've seen so many Businesses change hands and they haven't closed a single day let alone months at a time! I don't remember it saying: Reopening soon or anything to that effect either. Well the good new is Columbia Exxon is back and instead of being one of the most expensive Gas Stations in Town it's one of the least!
Now I've wondered if this would signal a reopening of the Sterrett Place Exxon but it hasn't. But then again Columbia Exxon reopened so suddenly that the Sterrett Place Exxon may follow suit. In fact, I remember when I was younger that same Station closing and reopening. I'd say about 15 or 20 years ago? So it's not unheard of having that close and reopen again.
I guess since Exxon's mascot is a tiger which is in the Cat Family and Cats have nine lives Exxon Stations in that capacity do as well! I can honestly say that Columbia Exxon fooled me and fooled me good!

How to best Redevelop Wilde Lake Village Center

2009-07-08T19:42:00.000-04:00

Ever since the Giant closed in the fall of 2006 all I've heard were complaints. The complaints are justified, Wilde Lake Village Center is crumbling before our very eyes. One thing I haven't heard much of has been solutions. Kimco, the Center's owners have given up due to the economy and the County thinks Village Centers don't need a Grocer Anchor to stay vital. Before Kimco gave up however, they came up with ground floor retail and 500 apartments or condos.
This was not popular, neither was idea of David's Natural Market moving into the Giant Space. I fund that to be short sighted. Legislation that made easier for Property Owners in Columbia to redevelop i.e. not going through GGP was not passed. That same session, a Zoning Ordinance was passed allowing Walgreens to build a store in Oakland Mills further draining its Village Center. That's democracy inaction for you.
I still believe that Wilde Lake, after the recession can attract a Full Service Grocer. I also believe that a Village Center needs one in order to stay a vital neighborhood draw. I'm neutral on the apartments above as long as there's a Full Service Grocer within the plan. It's been close to three years and a viable for Wilde Lake hasn't surfaced...Until Now! You didn't think I'd bash the system without showing them the solution they can't come up with.
Kevin Allen, who's been with Kimco since Rouse sold the Village Centers to them has said that Wilde Lake is "landlocked" which doesn't allow for a huge Grocery Store that's present in almost all the other Village Centers. He said this in a Community Meeting back in 2006 long before Produce Galore closed its doors. Wilde Lake is still landlocked but Produce Galore's closing will prove to be a huge part of my redevelopment plan.
Well lets get started with Produce Galore. It will be knocked down and in its place will be a strip of existing stores. The stores will be The Melting Pot, Wilde Lake Karate, Bagel & Deli, Pizza Bolis (this will be much smaller without the tables), Tokyo Cafe, Wilde Lake Cleaners, and Today's Catch. Below is a picture of a Shopping Center Strip with a modern facade that I think Wilde Lake should adapt.In the place of the aforementioned strip will be additional parking as will the Courtyard and Fountain.
Don't fret, the Fountain will be relocated along Lynx Lane in its Courtyard pictured below.Now the million dollar question is where will the new Grocery Store go?Well, it will face Twin River Road and it will be expanded upon the existing vacant Giant.That's why I had that strip and Courtyard demolished, most of the existing parking lot will be taken up by the new Grocer. All this will be built over making the new Grocery Store 55,000 to 62,000 Square Feet. I know Kevin Allen has said that 46,000 Square Feet is the largest Wilde Lake can accommodate (still twice the size of the current vacant Giant)but that was before Produce Galore closed. Produce Galore closing allowed the size of the new Grocery Store to be bumped up considerably. The expansion will be behind Twin Rivers Road toward Cross Fox Lane and to the right towards Lynx Lane. Mars is my personal preference for Wilde Lake. Pictured above is a Mars that opened in Ellicott City in late '03 early '04. It's a beautiful store, that's clean, well stocked, and would be an invaluable asset to Wilde Lake. Their prices aren't unreasonable so all around it would be great. The opening of this Ellicott City signaled Mars expansion into the Howard County Market. I would bet that once the economic climate is right Mars would like to expand into Columbia. Wilde Lake is ready and willing for a Mars. The above picture should give you an idea of what you should see when approaching Wilde Lake on Twin Rivers Road.
Still more demolition for parking. The Columbia Bank Drive Thru, whose facade is terribly dated will hit the wrecking. In the background, you can see the front of the new Grocery Store and how it's blocked by the Drive Thru.
The new location for the Columbia Bank's Drive Thru will be here. Just to the left of David's near Cross Fox Lane. The new Drive Thru's design will be in keeping with the new facade I'm proposing for the whole Village Center.
Also effected by the new facade will be the Crown Gas Station and the KFC which Kimco should acquire from its current property owners.
A great addition to the KFC would be a second Drive Up Window that up to date Fast Food Restaurants.
Some good news! Despite the troubles of Wilde Lake, it has attracted a new tenant. A Full Service Hair Salon will be replacing Great Clips which moved to Dorsey's Search. On the Village Green Star Nails has expanded into the space vacated by Ridel's Florist. This shows a strong commitment to Wilde Lake and they don't have plans to vacate any time soon. Not only that, they have a strong Customer Base.The doors leading to the Second Floor Offices would move to the left of Star Nails making space for a Police Satellite Office when paired with the old doors to the Giant.
They will not be part of the new Grocery Store.
Parts of the Village Center that won't undergo massive renovations will receive exterior facade updates and additional more adequate lighting.Slayton House, whose front doors would be masked by the New Grocery Store will have a lighted brick Promenade from the Village Green leading up to its front doors.
Not all of the Courtyard will be destroyed. The steps leading to the Interfaith Center and the red Fountain Sculpture will remain in tact.There are still two vacancies at Wilde Lake that need to be filled. The first was vacated by the Medicine Shoppe Pharmacy. I think an Ice Cream Parlor like a Cold Stone Creamery or a Haggen Das would fit the bill perfectly.
The second is Feet First who moved to Hickory Ridge. I think a Day Spa, whose popularity has surged over the past several years would be a great addition.The final improvements to Wilde Lake Village Center concern the intersection of Twin Rivers Road and Lynx Lane. New and additional "Countdown" Pedestrian Signals will be installed as well as brick crosswalks. The traffic signal itself is old and pealing. The shafts will have to be repainted. The same will be done at Twin Rivers Road and Cross Fox Lane.
Ever since Giant closed in 2006 all I've heard were complaints. Well, I'm doing something about it! I'm not going to complain, I'm going to take action. Now there's a plan that people can look to and know what they want their Village Center to look like.

Comments

2009-06-30T14:49:00.000-04:00

I appreciate the out poor of comments on various posts but I must ask that any and all racial slurs be omitted. This is a family friendly blog and any comment that promotes racism and bigotry will be deleted on the spot.

Farewell Columbia Exxon Farewell

2009-06-29T17:00:00.001-04:00

Columbia lost another business that had been there from day one; Columbia Exxon. There are several Exxon Stations in and around Columbia but this particular one had the distinct privilege of holding the title of Columbia Exxon for 42 years at the southwest corner of Little Patuxent Parkway and Banneker Road.
This was one of the only stations that still offered "Full Serve" Pumps. Full Serve is where a Gas Station Attendant pumps the gas for you without you leaving the comfort of your car. My Mother utilized this service when I was a little kid eventually getting with the times around '91 or '92. Needless to say, she used Columbia Exxon a lot.
Columbia Exxon was far more than just a filling station. It had a Car Wash, Convenience Store, Waterloo Pizza and Subs, Western Union Telegram, Rental Cars, Courtesy Shuttle, and a whopping 12 service bays.
Growing up, our cars were, for lack of a better word old. Living in Vantage Point we obviously gave Columbia Exxon a LOT of business to keep our old cars on the road. Our cars died each with well over 100,000 miles and each well over a decade old. With us having new cars, the need to use Columbia Exxon dwindled. With the exception of me constantly blowing tires and oil changes we didn't need the services of Columbia Exxon. Also, more and more Gas Stations opened up and their gas prices were cheaper.
I shared my story of Columbia Exxon because I think it reflects that of many Columbia Residents and their habits. Columbia became a wealthier area where people don't hold onto their cars like they used to making the need to get their cars serviced became less of a necessity. Car Dealers eventually became the neighborhood Mechanic offering free scheduled maintenance to lure customers.
With higher gas prices and the loss of people holding onto their cars left Columbia Exxon vulnerable. With such a large complex operation it became harder and harder to turn a profit. Oil companies raising gas prices sky high has not helped gas station owners. Maybe the owner of Columbia Exxon decided to retire and in this economy was unable to find a buyer and just threw in the towel.I can only speculate why the Station closed but what I can say is; Farewell Columbia Exxon, Farewell

Walgreens to the Rescue!

2009-06-15T17:39:00.005-04:00

Walgreens has been trying to open its first Columbia Store for quite some time now.
First it was in Dorsey's Search across from the Dorsey Medical Building but the County wouldn't give them the necessary zoning.Now it's Oakland Mills on the grounds of a closed BB&T Bank branch. Commuinty outcry has thrown a monkey wrench in their plans but haven't been scrapped to my knowledge. It seems like wherever Walgreens wants to open up shop in Columbia they're not wanted. But suppose there was a location that would benefit from a Walgreens at least for the time being. How about an offer is put on the table they can't refuse?As I'm sure you're all painfully aware, Kimco has scrapped any redevelopment plans for Wilde Lake Village Center due to the economy. No apartments no nothing. They're also not pursuing any Grocers top replace Giant. Now, Grocers site proximity to competing properties as the reason for not opening a store in Wilde Lake but I'm sure if the economy were in better shape there would be plenty of store chains both local and national looking into expanding into the West Columbia Market. When that time comes Kimco should pursue them aggressively with the help of CA and the County.Now where does that leave Walgreens? Why not have them open at Wilde Lake in the Giant space until a Full Service Grocer can be nailed down. At 22,000 square feet and change that would be the perfect size for a Walgreens and it would increase foot traffic in the Village Center and increase sales in existing businesses that are currently hurting.
Very few modifications would have to be made to the space that Giant occupied for 39 and a half years. All that would need to be done would to install a drive through lane seeing as most Walgreens have them. That would go in the back of the building which ironically faces Twin Rivers Road. That's early Columbia Planning for you.Now why am I so sure Walgreens would agree to open up in Wilde Lake? After all I'm sure Kimco has pursued them because their stores fit the existing foot print of the old Giant Space making redevelopment unnecessary. Well, Kimco most likely hasn't offered them the space RENT FREE!
Now would I suggest that Kimco essentially give away an anchor space in one of its Village Centers? Actually, it's logical on both ends of the spectrum. Kimco, for now has all but given up on searching for a viable Wilde Lake solution so they're eating the loss of revenue from the Giant Space.
With Giant being empty Wilde Lake has lost a lot of other merchants including Produce Galore which was an anchor in and of itself. Other merchants to leave the center include
Feet First (they moved to Hickory Ridge), Great Clips (they moved to Dorsey's Search),The Medicine Shoppe, and Reidel's Florist.
Other merchants in danger of leaving the Center include the Bagel Bin their business has plummeted since the closing of Giant,
Anthony Richard Barbershop, they've been at Wilde Lake since its opening in 1967 and if business doesn't pick up the long time Barbers might decide to retire,
and Today's Catch Seafood Market. Although they maintain a loyal customer base and have decided to "weather the storm" of Wilde Lake let me remind you that they were originally in Harpers Choice and they moved to Wilde Lake when Harpers Choice lost its Valu Food Anchor. There's a vacant storefront in Hickory Ridge left when the Fractured Prune went belly up that would be the perfect size for Today's Catch. I wouldn't be surprised to Today's Catch moving there and once again sharing a Village Center with Feet First.Now keep in mind that these are only the businesses that I see closing and or moving. Giving away the Giant Space to Walgreens temporarily would stem the tide of store closings. Walgreens, wanting to open up shop in Columbia despite the shaky economy would probably jump at the chance to not only open in Columbia but not have to build their store like they would have in their other instances, they can just move in. Walgreens has less competition now that the Medicine Shoppe has closed further making this little arrangement feasible.
Kimco, in the mean time can still pursue a Full Service Grocer like Superfresh, Mars, or Food Lion to expand their portfolio into Wilde Lake and redevelop the Village Center to keep it viable for decades to come. For now, it's Walgreens to the Rescue!

Meridan Square DEAD Part II:The Reserection

2009-05-27T14:47:00.000-04:00

Ok, now that I have blasted any chance of a career working in CA, GGP, and the County Government hows about I take a stab at cleaning up the mess left behind by the now dead Meridian Square?Now lets look at this as a blessing in disguise? Lets get another developer on board who has a broader spectrum than just the site that the old Exxon Station sits on. There's a large parcel of land just waiting to be redeveloped that the old Meridian Square site is a mere fraction of.Other land uses of the site include the Meeting House and the Stevens Forest Professional Center. Thunderhill Road also dead ends just before this site. This site has room for everything. What do I mean by everything? I mean extending Thunderhill Road to meet Stevens Forest, Redeveloping the Meeting House with a Serenity Garden, and redeveloping Stevens Forest Professional Center to look like the new Meridian Square.
The new Meridian Square should be almost the mirror image of its predecessor. The only way it would be modified would be to accommodate the Thunderhill Road extension. In the midst of Meridian Square's death Oakland Mills Village Center did achieve three victories.
First the opening of the Second Chance Saloon which is using a similar concept than that of the Last Chance Saloon, a popular pub that closed after Metro left.
Another is the quick lease of the Old Village Barber Stylist Space after the owners retired. Warrens will provide a more comprehensive experience in family hair and nail care.
Finally, the County will provide the necessary funds for the Robert Oliver Place Streetscape project.
During our economic woes Oakland Mills has fared phenomenally. Remember, Meridian Square was killed because too many entities had their hands dipped into it. Lets reserect it!

Meridian Square:DEAD Part I

2009-02-19T18:38:00.001-05:00

As I'm sure everyone is aware Meridian Square, the Mixed Use Retail/Office Building in Oakland Mills has been scrapped. Now who did the developers blame it on? The economy? No! The County, CA, and GGP for all the restrictions that were bestowed upon them. Columbia is so regulated that it would rather leave an empty barren parcel blighted than to just let the developers who have already presented their plans go ahead with it. Now you're back to square one and let me remind you how many years it took to get the Meridian Square Developers interested. Shame on all three parties!!! GGP should be trying to pay its bills and CA should be replacing its aging infrastructure and the County should lift the New Town Zoning restrictions.
It's time the got rid of the NT (New Town) Zoning all together and replace it according to the zone they're in. Examples R20 Single Family Detached with larger yards this would be perfect for a neighborhood like Hawthorn or Clemens Crossing. Then there's R12 Single Family Detached with smaller yards examples of this can be found in what I call "East Columbia Uglys" River Hill would warrant this zoning as well due to the smaller yard sizes Duplexes would receive the R12 classification. RSC or Residential Single Cluster would be used for smaller lots for Single Family Homes examples of these can be found in Thunderhill and Phelps Luck near Route 108 and in River Hill near the Village Center. R-SA8 would be for town homes and R-A15 would be for apartments and condos. PSC or Planned Senior Community would be used for the new Snowden Overlook. POR or Planned Office Research would be used for Columbia Gateway. B-1 would be used for a Village Center. B-2 would be used for something like Columbia Crossing. M-1 or light industrial would be used for Red Branch Road. M-2 or heavy industrial would be used for assorted properties along Dobbin Road or Snowden River Parkway and Gerwig Lane. PEC or Planned Employment Center would be the perfect designation for the defunct Meridian Square.
Now that the NT zoning regulations are lifted Columbia's blighted properties can redevelop with ease and make Columbia viable for decades to come. Stay tuned for Part II of this post which will clean up the mess of Meridian Square that was made by the County, GGP, and CA.

Wilde Lake Redevelopment

2008-12-04T18:52:00.012-05:00

As Columbia's first Village one would assume that Wilde Lake would need the most redevelopment and its housing stock would be the most outdated. This isn't the case, Oakland Mills and Long Reach adapted styles of housing that were popular at the time but have since gone to the dogs. Wilde Lake, although there is plenty of room for redevelopment used a more classic timeless style for its housing stock, one that can look new, modern and well kept even at 41 years of age. Then there are properties in Wilde Lake that fall under the "reinvestment" category which will get its own post. Those are properties that don't need redevelopment but could use exterior facade improvements to keep competitive in the 21st century.Photo From Google Earth
Now for the properties in Wilde Lake I'm slating for redevelopment:
Partridge Courts- I used to live here from 1984-1988 (birth to age 4)actually, this was once a rental complex that was converted into owner occupied. The lay out of the development is out dated and the buildings are hideous. Any Partridge Courts resident will tell you that it's a hike to get from your car to your house.
The new development that will go in its place will feature a wide variety of housing options from condos to two level town homes without a garage (they will have basements) and three level town homes with car garages. All housing types will face inward so residents can park their car and walk right into their home. The tunnel between Partridge Courts and Wilde Lake Village Center will be removed as it's become unsafe. The new Partridge Courts will be 60% Market Rate Home Ownership, 35% Market Rate Rentals, and 5% Below Market Rate Rentals.
Concord House, this straddles the line between reinvestment and redevelopment because the building won't be redeveloped but there will be development on its property. Its parking lot has room to have two more high rises built over top of them.

Photo From Google Earth

The three "concord houses" will have underground parking. Wilde Lake was originally meant to have more high rises but Rouse was cautious due to the market. The swath of land next to the Interfaith Center was originally intended for two high rises.
Bryant Square, I tried sending out an SOS for this community but it's just not working out, especially since it has the new developments of Warfield Triangle across the street further adding to the blighted apperance of Bryant Square.
These are regarded as some of Columbia's largest town homes so naturally in its place will be large town homes. The tunnel going under Twin Rivers Road will be removed due to safety issues. Students will be bussed to Bryant Woods Elementary. This will be 100% Market Rate Home Ownership.

Rosslyn Rise,This "Community Homes" development will be redeveloped with a mix of market rate apartments and subsidized apartments. This will be 85% Market Rate Rentals and 15% Below Market Rate Rentals.Students here will also be bussed to Bryant Woods Elementary.
Rideout Heath,The other "Community Homes" development in Wilde Lake will be redeveloped as a mix of market rate condos and subsidized home ownership condos. This will be 60% Market Rate Home Ownership and 40% Below Market Rate Home Ownership.

Faulkner Station, This town home development located on Jason Lane, Faulkner Ridge Circle, and Tolling Clock Way has become too outdated. The homes are simply too small and narrow to serve today's family.
In its place will be two two level town homes stacked on top of each other. The new homes will be wider and will feature a one car garage per unit. This will be 100% below Market Rate Home Ownership.
Brook Way, Interior renovations and changing the name to "The Berkshires of Columbia" was like putting lipstick on a pig. What's needed is an income mix for a development of that size.

The new development will resemble the new Partridge Courts both in layout and housing options. What's different is that in the new Brook Way will have an income mix. 55% market rate home ownership, 30% market rate rental, 10% subsidized home ownership and 5% subsidized rentals. The mix will spread across all housing types and nobody will know what their neighbor "financial situation" is.
Running Brook Condominiums, Just across Columbia Road sits a circle of condos that were once rental apartments. They have become unattractive and add to the sense of feeling unsafe.
In its place will be a mix of condos and town homes built around the site's existing unique infrastructure.
The "inner circle" will be condos facing inward to make a courtyard.
The "outer circle" will be town homes that make a half circle around the development. This will be a gated community.Running Brook Elementary/711/Pool/Phone Building. Running Brook Elementary is dealing with over crowding it hasn't seen since the early 1970s before more schools were built. By 2020 Running Brook may be home to upwards of 500 students with a current capacity of 405 It was barely 300 when I went there in the early to mid 1990s. This figure isn't factoring in the new Town Center development which may push the number of students up to 600.

Photo From BCPS.org

A 150 seat addition will be the order of the day. I will go in the back of the building and towards the pool where the expanded parking lot currently is. The front entrance will actually face West Running Brook Road now.The Verizon Phone Building has no place in a residential neighborhood and will be demolished and moved to Route 108 and Ten Mills Road next to the church. A brand new 711 will be built in its place with room for a second neighborhood business such as a Dry Cleaner. The current 711 building will be used a new locker rooms and storage for the pool. Adequate storage and up to date locker rooms is something the pool currently lacks. The Pool will be updated to look like Columbia's new pools like those found in River Hill, Hawthorn, and Dickinson.

Wilde Lake Tennis Courts,It's time for them to be replaced that's all I have to say.

Wilde Lake Middle,With the new Town Center development and its current projections Wilde Lake Middle and its capacity of 506 won't cut it. An addition putting it to 662 won't makeexisting class rooms larger or the halls wider, nor will it make the Cafeteria or Gym larger (all problems I dealt with as a student here in the mid to late 1990s when the there were 500 students) It's time for a new WLMS and maybe with a new building more Clemens Crossing Parents will send their kids here and not a private Middle School in between Elementary and High School.

Well that's it for the redevelopment of Wilde Lake!

Harpers Choice Village Center

2008-10-20T20:07:00.003-04:00

Talk about the text book case of a Village Center coming back from the brink of death not only to survive but to thrive. I can only hope that Wilde Lake Village Center can come back the same way Harpers Choice has. I hope that other Village Centers that are showing signs of slipping (Oakland Mills and Long Reach) can reach this same bench mark. They are however, on the east side of Columbia where there are many more retail oppurtunities than just the Village Centers. That's why those two Village Centers need to offer a better mix of tenants so they're aren't left to the wayside.
Now back to Harpers Choice, it opened in 1971 under a different name; "Joesph Square" a part of the current Harpers Choice Village Center is still refered to as Joseph Square. Its original "anchor" tenant was a Pantry as was with Oakland Mills. This space made Wilde Lake Giant look like a modern day Wegmans. It was tiny, it was the same size as the space currently occupied by Tuesday Morning which was originally meant for a drugstore. A People's Drug and eventually a CVS were tenants of that space.
Harpers Choice was different from the get go in that it had residences above its shops as well as offices. Today, as other Village Centers redevelop housing above the shops has become a common concept. The Pantry Pride chain went bankrupt in the 1970s and pulled out of both Harpers Choice and Oakland Mills and were replaced by a Valu Food and a Giant respectively.
Over its 38 year history Harpers Choice has played host to a variety of different tenants which include but aren't limited to: Parcel Plus, Today's Catch Seafood Market, Subway, Jerry's Subs & Pizza, Nations Bank, Chick 'N Friends, Trolley Stop, Hair Cuttery, Amoco Gas, Uniphoto Labs, Little Ceasers Pizza, Tropical Juice Bar, Gringada Mexican Restaurant, Atlantis Seafood & Grille, Lily's Southwestern Bar & Grill, and Modern Haircut.
Not surprisinly the 1990s brought change to Harpers Choice. Both neighboring Villages opened brande new centers each with a Giant that made Harpers Choice's Valu Food a joke. With the Village of Harpers Choice shouldering 25% of Columbia's low income housing crime began to increase (it had been a problem before hand but it became more frequent and serious)
The center also suffered from poor lighting and visibility from the road and an increasingly blighted appearance. Valu Food and many of the cneter's smaller tenants began leaving at an alarming rate. Other outside influences included white flight caused by the building of River Hill and a higher concentration of poverty. By 1996 Harpers Choice had only a hand full of tenants holding on. They inluded Nations Bank, Harper's Choice Liquors, Cleaners Plus, Strand's Hair Studio, CVS, Hunan Diamond, Gringada Mexican Restaurant, the Amoco Gas Station, and McDonalds. I remember going to the McDonalds and it feeling like it was the entire Village Center. I thought Harpers Choice was gone for good. Harper's Choice had other attributes such as The Athletic Club and the Florence Bain Senior Center and Kahler Hall. Also on site is Harpers Choice Middle School and the Cedar Lane School.Little did I know that the Rouse Company (Owners of the Village Center at the time) weren't about to let Harper's Choice go down without a fight. The Rouse company was prepared to open up the Village Center by demolishing and rebuilding a substantial part of it. First off the old Valu Food could not be back filled it was too old, too small, and too hidden. It had to go, McDonalds was attached to the building that housed Valu Food so it went with Valu Food. But wasn't McDonalds the only saving grace for the Village Center? Yes and it got a brand new building with better visibilty and access. Now came the hard part, selling the center to a national grocer and where to build it. Any national grocer or local one for that matter would be taking a huge gamble by coming to Harpers Choice especially because the new store would be the same size as newer stores in Dorsey's Search and Hickory Ridge. Safeway took a leap of faith and decided to be Harpers Choice's new anchor.
With the addition of Safeway back filling vacant store fronts became much easier. They included Nail Center, Parcel Plus, Papa Johns, Dunkin' Donuts, The Columbia Bank, The Hair Cuttery, and Uniphoto Labs.Renovations occurred in 1997 and by 1998 a new Harpers Choice Village Center was born. The question that everybody was banking on was "if we build it will they come back?" The answer was and is yes. Harpers Choice is one of Columbia's most profitable Village Centers new or old.Eleven years later Harpers Choice has continued to thrive. New additions include Columbia Sports Park which has a Mini Golf Course and a Skate Boarding Arena and an Adult Day Care Center. Renovations of the Florence Bain Senior Center, Kahler Hall, and the Athletic Club have also occurred.The current retail tenants are as follows; Safeway, Tuesday Morning, Nail Center, Harpers Choice Liquors, Ritas Ice Cream, Strands Hair Studio, Howard County Police Sataleitte Office, Papa Johns, Zapata's Mexican Grille, Acheiver's Hair Salon, The Columbia Bank, Hunan Diamond, Dunkin Donuts, McDonalds, Misko's Ballet Studio, Bank of America, Harpers Choice Cleaners, Maiwond Kabob, and a BP Gas Station. Both the Safeway and Dunkin Donuts have undergone renovations which suggest a long term commitment to Harpers Choice.
Harpers Choice still has residences above and may not be the only Village Center to have them in the near distant future. Harpers Choice has made a come back that is beyond remarkable and with new development above Route 108 its clientele will only grow. Wilde Lake, now it's your turn!

Owen Brown Village Center

2008-09-15T14:13:00.008-04:00

Owen Brown Village Center is the only Village Center that has never been owned by either Rouse or Kimco. I'm unsure of how it happened but Owen Brown Village Center fell under the ownership of GFS Realty, a subsidiary a Giant Food which by no mistake is the center's one and only anchor tenant.
Opened in 1978 Owen Brown Village Center, believe or not was regarded as the first Village Center with a Big Grocery Store. Those of you who remember the old Owen Brown Giant can easily recall who narrow and cramped the isles were but understand that the only other Grocery Stores in Columbia were the Giants at Oakland Mills and Wilde Lake, the Valu Food at Harpers Choice, and the Safeway at Long Reach. Kings Contrivance, Dorsey's Search, Hickory Ridge, and River Hill wouldn't open for many years let alone the big boxes and Grocery Stores just outside of Columbia. If anyone remembers who laughable the sizes the Grocery Stores were before Owen Brown opened will know that for the time Owen Brown Giant was huge, after all it had a Pharmacy inside the store!
Over the years Owen Brown Village Center has seen many tenants come and go. They include Cover to Cover Books (which had a cafe inside), Simply Soccer, Baskin Robbins, Everett Jewlers, A Sporting Goods Store, News Center of Columbia, Parcel Plus, Viedo Library (later named Owen Brown Video), a Nursing Supply Store, Chevy Chase Bank, Choes Hap Kido (a Karate DoJo), Roy Rogers, Hardees, and a Satellite Office for the Howard County Republican Party. If I left out any please add them in the comments field.

From the mid 1990s until about 2000 Owen Brown struggled with vacant store fronts and a blighted outdated appearance. Plans to redevelop and expand the center were on the drawing board for years but no action had taken place. Meanwhile older Columbia Villages like Owen Brown had experienced a surge in crime further deterring would be shoppers. GFS Realty wanted a full redevelopment of the center but infrastructure issues kept them building what they and most of the community wanted. The finished result is so so there's a lot more that could have been done and I will no doubt tell you what it is because I don't keepy my big mouth shut.

The finished product includes a an expanded Giant which at first housed the center's Chevy Chase Bank but that was taken out in favor of a Starbucks. In order to expand the Giant a row of stores had to be demolishe and located else where. The stores were Owen Brown Wine & Spitirts, Jerrys Subs and Pizza, two vacants, Hair Cuttery, Owen Brown Cleaners, and Dollar Tree. That strip was rebuilt facing Cradlerock way without the two vacants. The old dingy Giant is now a brand new sparkling flagship store. The back of the center didn't fare so well, there was no demolition and the Giant expansion further enfrorced this sense of isolation.

Now what needs to be done. We're going to have to live with the Giant at its current location but that's fine. The Giant, in order to keep up with the increasing size of stores like Wegmans and Harris Teeter can undergo another expansion. The expanded part is shallower than the original part which goes deeper. The expansion would be in the back making the whole building deeper.

The remaining old buildings will be demolished; the islolated back buildings, the professional building near the McDonalds, the Bank of America building, and a half vacant professional building that was all but blocked off by what I'm calling Phase I of Owen Brown Village Center's redevelopment (what I'm proposing will be Phase II.) With the Bank of America building gone there will be room to expand the new strip towards the Interfaith center from the Liquor Store. All of the back building's businesses will go in this expanded strip including the Bank of America. This new part of the strip will be two stories high. The second floor will include the offices that were displaced when their buildings were demolished.

The current lineup of stores located in the back are Vocelli Pizza, Future Nails, Warren's Barbershop, Elegant Twist Hair Salon, A Beauty Supply Shop, A Computer Sales & Service Shop, Chinese Gourmet Carry Out, and Sanomas Bar & Grille. There's an Art Studio that's opening soon. I would change around the line up of retail tenants to create more "draws" and get rid of dead weight. There are too many hair and beauty places that don't bring much to the Village Center and I would replace them stores that residents would patronize. I would get rid of the Beauty Supply Place, The Barber Shop, and the Art Studio. Replacing them would be a Smoothie King, a Fractured Prune, and a Curves. Also added to the roster of tenants would be a UPS store. The McDonalds would undergo a major renovation and expansion to include a "Play Place"

With the new Village Center lay out an excess of parking would be created. An idea that's been tossed around is adding housing to Village Centers. Harpers Choice has always had it, Wilde Lake may get it and I think Owen Brown should as well. These are the only three Village Centers at the moment where housingis a viable option. The new housing would consist of 2 and 3 bedroom condos three to four stories in height and have underground parking.

Think Villas at River Hill. They would be located where the office building, the islolated retail buildings are, and the vast under utilized parking lot is.

That concludes Phase II of Owen Brown Village Center's redevelopment, if it's as successful as Phase I has been Owen Brown Village Center will be as big a hit as the Harris Teeter at Kings Contrivance.