Fireworks On The 4th

The festivities officially begin at 5p at Lake K. on Saturday, but we all know the blankets reserving choice viewing spots will be out way before that. Here's a link to the county's brochure for the event.

And don't miss the River Hill and Longfellow parades!

River Hill's Tenth Annual Independence Day parade will be held this Saturday, July 4 starting at 9:15 a.m. Great Star Drive will be closed to all traffic starting at 9:15 a.m. through the duration of the parade. Howard County police will be on the streets monitoring traffic. In addition to the police officers, the River Hill Community Association is looking for resident volunteers to help direct traffic. Please contact Mary Harris at 410-531-1749 if you are interested in being a part of this wonderful community tradition.

The Longfellow parade starts at 10 am and begins at Longfellow Elementary School on Hesperus Drive and ends at Eliots Oak Road. Community softball game will begin at 12:30 p.m. at Cedar Lane Park, in Columbia.

School Lunch Prices Hold Steady

According to the HoCo Sun, school officials decided to leave prices alone. (It would be interesting to see whether the school system is getting the kinds of breaks on food and transportation costs these days that is allowing groceries and others to cut prices).

Elementary lunch will cost $2.50, while lunches at middle and high schools will cost $3. The "signature" and "coaches corner" lunch options at high schools will cost $3.75. The price of breakfast at all schools will be $1.75.

The decision to maintain current prices was based, in part, on "a review of the current and projected financial condition of the food service program," and took into account the impact the poor economy has had on many families, according to a report reviewed by the Board of Education June 11.

According to the report, participation in Howard's school meals program decreased by 1,228 students during the 2008-2009 school year and close to 2,500 students over the past three fiscal years.

Police Say Baby Left In Car For 9 hours

WaPo once did a magazine story on this problem.

From HoCo police:

Howard County police are investigating what appears to be the heat-related death of a 23-month-old girl who was strapped into a child safety seat inside a car for approximately nine hours. The preliminary investigation indicates that the incident was likely accidental, although autopsy results are still pending. If the incident is determined to be accidental, charges likely would not be filed in the case.

Police were called to the 3100 block of Edgewood Road in Ellicott City by a neighbor June 25. Upon their arrival, officers found a child deceased in the back of a car parked in front of a residence. The child’s mother was present at the location, had discovered the child inside the car and was very distraught. The family’s name will not be released at this time due to the ongoing investigation.

Based on the preliminary investigation, police believe a change in the parents’ morning routine may have resulted in the child being inadvertently left in the back seat of the car.

Detectives are continuing to investigate the incident.

The National Safe Kids campaign suggests these tips for parents and caregivers:

• Place something that you’ll need at your next stop – such as a purse, a lunch, gym bag or briefcase – on the floor of the backseat where the child is sitting. This simple act could help prevent you from accidentally forgetting a child.

• Teach children not to play in, on or around vehicles.
• Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle, even with the window slightly open.
• Always lock a vehicle’s doors and trunk – especially at home. Keep keys and remote entry devices out of children’s reach.

According to the Howard County Health Department, cars parked in direct sunlight can reach internal temperatures up to 131° F - 172° F when outside temperatures are 80° F – 100° F. When the outside temperature is 83° F, even with the window rolled down two inches, the temperature inside the car can reach 109° F in only 15 minutes. In hotter weather, a vehicle can warm to dangerous, life-threatening levels in only 10 minutes.

Earn $$ By Catching Skinnydippers

We saw this on the Town Center e-mail list:

A Aquatics Department Offers $100.00 Reward for information leading to the arrest of individuals trespassing at your CA Outdoor Pools.

If you see individuals inside the pool facility when the facility is normally closed, call the police at 911. After you call the police, call the Aquatics Office at 410-312-6332 and leave the same information. If the police make any arrests for trespassing, the Aquatics Department will send you a check for $100.

Be a good neighbor and help protect your pools and people from getting hurt.

No Charges In WL Middle Incident

Dear Parents/Guardians and Friends of WLMS,
On May 20 a female student at Wilde Lake Middle School reported that a sexual assault had occurred inside the school.
  Following the incident, we held a meeting for members of our community, during which we committed to provide follow-up information about the alleged incident.  We have now been notified by the Howard County Police Department and State’s Attorney’s Office that charges will not be filed in the case.
  This concludes the Howard County Police Department's investigation.
  If more information becomes available, we will keep you updated.Thanks for your interest and continued support of WLMS.
 Sincerely,
Scott Conroy
Principal

Population Growth Slows

We're still growing faster than most other parts of the state, but the increase is smaller than in past years. The Sun quotes a county planner speculating that many people are now looking for more affordable housing outside the county. Howard's population totaled 274,995 as of July 1, 2008, according to the county's latest estimate.

In 1969, two years after Columbia's first houses were built, only 60,092 people lived in Howard County, just over one-fifth of the current population. On average, the county grew by 4 percent a year, though that rate declined this decade to an average of 1.38 percent. Over the past five years, the average dropped even more, to 1 percent.

Peak one-year growth occurred in 1990, when population rose by 9,719 people. The smallest population growth occurred in 2005, when just 2,218 new residents arrived. The year from 2004 to 2005 also represents the smallest percentage growth at only 0.84 percent. The rate fell below 2 percent for the first time in the year from 2001 to 2002, when it was 1.6 percent.

It'll be interesting to see what the numbers look like after 2008, given the turmoil in the mortgage markets and the economy in general.

Last Day Extracurriculars

Public schools wrapped up today, but not before some excitement at Cradlerock.

6.19.2009

Dear Parents,

This letter is being sent to inform you about a situation that occurred at the school earlier this morning.

A false alarm was pulled at the school. Shortly afterwards a small self-contained fire was discovered in the boys' bathroom. This set off a sprinkler along with a second fire alarm and the fire department was contacted. The fire presented no threat but water from the sprinkler flooded the hallway.

At that point, we went into a modified lock-down.

As a result, some students were not allowed to get to their lockers to clean them out for the summer. Students may collect items from their lockers at any time over the next several days. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused, but as always, the safety of our students was our primary concern.

Please have a safe and enjoyable summer.

Jason McCoy


Principal