Thursday, April 26, 2012
The Columbia Association's towel expenses have made front page news.
The issue of towel theft in Columbia is back on the forefront of local conversation after the Wall Street Journal included the CA’s $500,000-a-year costs to replace and maintain towels in a national story about "terry-cloth bandits." It costs between $50,000 and $60,000 to replace the towels, which are provided at CA-operated gyms, CA officials said. The rest of the towel maintenance money is spent on washing, drying, folding and bleaching them, officials said.
Jennifer Toole, a professional bike and pedestrian planner, spoke to Columbia residents about the future of biking in Columbia.
Almost 80 people showed up at the Slayton House at the Wilde Lake Village Center on Wednesday to hear about a healthy, green and relatively inexpensive mode of transportation in Howard County. It wasn't hybrid or electric vehicles that they discussed, or even a new ergonomic bus. They learned about biking in Columbia. Jennifer Toole, an expert bicycle and pedestrian planner, spoke to the crowd, which included aficionados from veteran bikers to the occasional spin cyclist, on Columbia's needs as bike usage nationwide grows. "It's wonderful for us to have this kind of expertise in our community," said Jane Dembner, organizer of the Columbia Association's Community Building Speakers' Series. "[Toole] is helping us make our pathway standards…
'I wouldn’t accuse any of our members of stealing towels, but 42,000 towels a year is how many we buy.' – Bob Bellamy, Columbia Association director of the sports and fitness division.
A total of 42,000 towels need to be replaced each year from Columbia Association gyms, including those that are frayed or worn out and others that just "walk out the door," Columbia Association officials said Wednesday. The issue of towel theft in Columbia is back on the forefront of local conversation after the Wall Street Journal included the CA’s $500,000-a-year costs to replace and maintain towels in a national story about "terry-cloth bandits." The CA operates several community amenities, which include three fitness centers: The Columbia Athletic Club, Columbia Gym and the Supreme Sports Club. Get daily and breaking news email updates from Columbia Patch by signing up for newsletters here. It costs between $50,000 and $60,000 to …
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
An expert in bicycle and pedestrian planning will be featured in the Community Building Speakers' Series Wednesday evening.
A future Columbia could be more friendly for bikers, if the next community building speaker has anything to do with it. Jennifer Toole, an expert in bicycle and pedestrian planning, will be featured in the Columbia Association's Community Building Speakers' Series, at 7:30 p.m. in the Slayton House. Toole will explain the role of bicycle commuting and pedestrian transportation in Columbia's future. "Cycling is on the rise and more and more communities are making investments to make cycling easier and safer," according to a CA press release. "Come learn about communities in the US and their successes creating greenways, safe bike lanes, and other changes that make these communities more livable, enjoyable, and more economically competitive…
Enough to steal it? The CA’s towel problem made the front page of the Wall Street Journal.
Here’s a little-known fact: The Columbia Association spends about $500,000 a year on towel-related expenses at its three fitness centers, according to the Wall Street Journal. We're not saying you would steal your gym towel. At least not on purpose. But a front-page Journal story Tuesday reported that gyms across the country, including those in Columbia, are experiencing towel theft problems. The Columbia Association-run gyms are: The Columbia Athletic Club, Columbia Gym and Supreme Sports Club. The Columbia Association has tried to eliminate towels from its gyms twice, the Journal reported, but canceled the idea after member backlash.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
The Columbia Association Board is expected to pick one of the redesign options at their next meeting.
Comprehensive designs and cost estimates for updating the clubhouse at Hobbit’s Glen were presented to the Columbia Association Board last week. Both the renovation and new clubhouse options are estimated to cost around $6 million. The renovation option would cost $5,702,702 and the new clubhouse would be $5,854,085, according to Kelly Cooper, spokesperson for the CA. The CA Board is expected to pick one of the options at its next meeting on April 26, according to Cooper. H. Chambers Company, the firm charged with updating the clubhouse, presented the two options, along with a third that included the new clubhouse, a new turnhouse and course updates on April 12. CA Board Member Tom Coale wrote in his blog, HoCo Rising, that under both …
Monday, April 2, 2012
Board members voted to retain all 23 outdoor pools, according to one board member.
The Columbia Association board voted 7-2 in support of retaining all 23 of its outdoor pools, in a straw vote during a work session, according to board member Tom Coale. "The Board had a lot of big picture paradigm decisions to make before getting into the decision about whether or not to repurpose any pools," Coale wrote about the recap on his blog, HoCo Rising. Coale said the Board, which met Saturday, classified the pools into three separate groups: neighborhood, community and destination pools, with neighborhood pools seeing the smallest annual visitors. He wrote that the classification is not meant to demote the importance of the smaller pools, but rather to ensure the neighborhood pools stay small for those who want their pool …
Friday, March 30, 2012
The Board of Directors will take a straw poll on recommendations to the Columbia Association about whether all 23 outdoor pools should stay open.
After about a year of discussion, research and requests for public opinion, the Columbia Association's board of directors will take a straw poll Saturday on maintaining all 23 outdoor pools in Columbia. The poll will come after a task force, created to solve lackluster pool attendance, recommended that the association look into scrapping or "repurposing" less-used pool locations. "Most generally, we need to look into what our aquatic system is going to be," said board member Tom Coale. The worry is that residents would no longer have a neighborhood pool–many of which have been in the communities for more than 30 years. Coale said the number of residents who have shown up for testimony has increased at every pool meeting over the past year …
Monday, March 26, 2012
Removing the Columbia Association from the Maryland Homeowners Association Act may result in less transparency.
The need for more open and transparent governance is just as important an issue at the Columbia Association (CA) as it is at local, state, and federal government agencies. However, there is a recent proposal, drafted by CA staff, that would go in the opposite direction, making CA less accountable to the people of Columbia. The proposal is in the form of a potential State bill, which would redefine CA and Columbia’s village associations. They would no longer be considered “homeowners associations,” under State law. They would be called “nonprofit community service corporations,” a new category that would have weaker provisions. The proposal would remove some State protections of Columbia residents' rights under the Maryland Homeowners …
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Wednesday, March 21, 2012
The dredging project was moved up from its scheduled start in August of 2012.
The Columbia Association announced this week that dredging on Wilde Lake will begin this spring instead of the previously scheduled start date of August 2012. The CA received approval for a waiver that will allow the contractor, JND Thomas Company, to begin dredging in April. The start of construction on the staging area is scheduled to begin this month. The work is not expected to disrupt the use of the walking and biking paths, the dock or activities at the Wilde Lake Barn, according to the CA. The dredging is scheduled to be completed in time for the CA Nature Camp program to operate this summer. JND Thomas will be removing approximately 15,000 cubic yards of sediment from the lake as part of the dredging process. The company was …
adhdsupermom
9:51 am on Sunday, April 29, 2012
Why would anyone want to take a gym towel? They are not high quality designer towels that one would be overcome with the temptation to own. If people can afford the gym membership, I think they can afford to buy their own towels at home. This makes no sense. more ›