Five Things You Need To Know From The County Council Meeting

The catch phrase at Howard’s County Council meeting on Feb. 14 was “best practices county.” Everyone from the Economic Development Authority to the Committee to End Homelessness mentioned that their proposals were all geared toward making Howard a “best practices county.”

Here are the five things you need to know from those reports:

There are 230 homeless people in Howard County, according to the Committee to End Homelessness, which presented its roadmap to end homelessness. 

“The first goal is ending family homelessness,” said committee member Joe Willmott, listing causes like job loss and domestic violence. “The second goal is to end chronic homelessness,” which is primarily the result of substance abuse and mental health issues. 

Willmott said that preventive services such as money management, landlord intervention and substance abuse treatment were the recommended course of action.

“Prevention costs less than caring for people after they become homeless, both in terms of dollars and suffering,” he said.

Two years and 50 people from various sectors have been involved in writing the plan to end homelessness, said Jane O’Leary, with contributors ranging from social service personnel, community advocates and people who have experienced homelessness themselves.

She said some initiatives from the plan are already underway, like linking homeless people to services and exploring various housing options.

“Much is still to be done, but one of the implementation steps essentially says, ‘Don’t wait.’…Ken Ulman in acknowledging the plan said homelessness should have no place in a county such as ours. Why not make Howard County a best practice community? We’d like you to insist that these concepts are in the next general plan.”

The county’s budget will be level this year but faces dents from property tax declines and snow removal efforts. 

“Decreasing property tax payments, which account for 50 percent of the Howard County revenue stream, have put a dent in the budget,” said Howard County Budget Administrator Ray Wacks, who added that assessments in Ellicott City and Elkridge are estimated to go down by 10 percent this year. The other half of the general fund comes from income tax and “everything else,” he said.

While he reported that income tax was growing for the first time in two years and there was no expected budget deficit this year, he would not comment on whether there will be furloughs and said that “at best,” funding would remain level.

“We’ve spent a lot of money on snow the past month or so. Just as a way of letting you know how expensive this is, we still spent $50,000 in overtime having trucks standing by just in case the ice did materialize [the night we expected a big ice storm]. We’ve been meeting with [Director of Public Works] Jim Irvin and will submit a supplemental budget on snow removal. It doesn’t take a lot of snow—1 inch is the same as 6 inches when you’re pushing it with a plow. [And we’re] putting people on the street usually during overtime.”

The Economic Development Authority (EDA) released its 2011 Strategic Plan, in which it outlined priorities it wants the county to consider while creating the next General Plan.

The Department of Planning and Zoning, along with the county executive and a special task force he appoints, have traditionally spearheaded the General Plan efforts. CEO Dick Story said that he would like the EDA to be a partner in the development of the county going forward and specifically highlighted these priorities over the next five years: 

1. Capitalize on the growth from Fort Meade, as government contractors and new residents move in.
2. Redevelop existing business parks from “low-rise, outdated properties into new, taller structures...”
3. Create an “urban anchor” in Columbia by developing a “walkable, livable, revitalized downtown.”
4. Make regional transportation a priority. “If not effectively managed, [congestion] is likely to limit the county’s ability to remain competitive in attracting new residents, businesses and the workforce firms needed to grow," stated the Strategic Plan.
5. Brand Howard County. “One of the first tasks for our new CEO,” said Story, who will retire in the next month, “is to develop a brand for Howard County as memorable as ‘I love NY’ and ‘Virginia is for lovers.'" Story also said the county needed to guard against complacency. Councilwoman Courtney Watson agreed and mentioned that the education system was something the county should be mindful of protecting as well.

When the Transportation Commission proposed creating a transportation office under the county executive, council members leaned toward a regional office rather than one specific to Howard County.

“In a regional system, you can move people through multiple jurisdictions to get to work,” said Councilwoman Mary Kay Sigaty. “In the age of $5 a gallon gasoline…the recommendation is to seriously work on regionalism so that value put in is value that comes out.”

Stricter environmental regulation of the Patuxent River is on the horizon. 

“What you’re going to see and one of the things we’re going to have to deal with are requirements coming through the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency]” to protect the bay, said Sigaty in a report about watershed efforts. There will be a plan that needs to be implemented by the end of 2012, she said.“The Patuxent River community is thinking [about] ways to support the 7 counties that impact the Patuxent.”

She said that over the next three months, she would be reaching out for ideas from various stakeholders, including private landowners.