A Columbia Association Bonanza

We spent part of our rainy weekend going over the recent downtown Columbia presentations before the County Council and learned a couple things.

One is that more development downtown means more revenue for the Columbia Association.

A lot more.

According to the Economic Development Authority's economic impact study, the Columbia Association would net $10,733,786 annually under the General Growth plan, compared to $1,030,044 if current development plans remained in place.

That assuming the current lien rate stays the same and CA doesn't use all that new dough to cut the so-called "Columbia tax."

So what would CA do with an extra $9 million? A sum like that could keep open a passel of underutilized swimming pools.

Hospital to Kids: No Vaccination, No Visit

HoCo General has changed its visitation rules to guard against the H1N1 swine flu.

# Children under age 16, unless they are a patient, are temporarily restricted from all patient care areas including patient rooms, therapy areas, and outpatient service areas. Once H1N1 vaccinations begin, children with proof of H1N1 vaccination two weeks or more prior to the visit will be allowed to visit.
# Patient visitors are restricted to immediate family members only.
# In the Intensive Care Unit, only two visitors will be allowed with the patient at one time.
# If you have influenza-like symptoms, do not visit patients. Symptoms include fever and one or more of the following:

* Cough
* Sore throat
* Body Aches
* Headache
* Chills and fatigue
* Sometimes vomiting and diarrhea

Downtown Development = Huge Boom

At least that is what we were left to conclude from the Economic Development Authority's newly released economic impact study.

If we continue the same-old, same-old suburban, car-oriented development patterns that currently exist in downtown Columbia, we can expect 2,860 fewer jobs and $4.4 billion less economic activity related to construction compared to General Growth's super-charged plans, the authority's consultant concluded.

Under the status quo, we would be left with 27,360 fewer jobs and $5.2 billion less economic activity, on an annual basis, related to ongoing operations, the study estimated.

Put another way: We would have 1,000 percent-plus more jobs and 1,000 percent-plus more economic activity if we approve redevelopment plans.

Once open and fully leased, development under the Plan will supply commercial space for approximately 15,460 employees and residences for 5,500 new households. In addition, renovation of the Merriweather Post Pavilion would lead to an estimated 46,000 additional visitors per year and support approximately $1.35 million annually in increased revenues and County visitor expenditures.

Thems some big numbers. That's some big change for this town, and this county.

Your actual mileage may vary, however. That's because the report assumes there's enough demand to support any new construction, that the developer can get the financing it needs to build, and any development would actually be successful. In other words, people would want to live, shop and work in this reimagined boomtown.

The consultant cautioned that its study "does not constitute a full fiscal impact analysis, as it does not calculate revenues net of the costs of additional government service costs likely to result from new development."

Hmmm. (UPDATE: We understand the department of planning and zoning is working up those estimates)

The study also did not attempt to assess the broader consequences of approving a plan or not. "The successful redevelopment of Downtown may meet much of the County’s demand for new commercial buildings and residential units, minimizing development pressure on other areas of the County – or its success may make Howard County an even more desirable location, positioning the County to capture more of the region’s projected demand for housing and commercial space."

The EDA's report can be found here.

Halloween Falling Out of Favor?

Looking over various school newsletters we see that some still hold Halloween parades and others do not, opting for fall festivals and the like.

Here's one sample; a Cradlerock School e-mail to parents:

This school year we are moving toward a more inclusive fall celebration for our students. In the past, we’ve had a Halloween Parade and party. Students who did not celebrate Halloween participated in an alternative party. Each year, the number of students that do not participate has increased. This school year, we are having a “Costume Parade” for students that want to participate and a “Harvest Party” for all students. We ask that costumes not be of a Halloween nature (ghosts, blood & guts,masks,skeletons, make-up,etc.)

Below are suggested costume options:

* Appropriate book characters
* Household items
* Animals
* School supplies
* Careers
* Sports figures
* Nature/Food
* Appropriate cartoon characters/action figures
* Positive role models

Some HoCo Lawmakers Give Back Pay...

...Some don't.

From WaPo:

Six weeks after leaders of Maryland's Senate and House of Delegates asked lawmakers to return a fraction of their pay and join in solidarity with 70,000 state workers who have been furloughed for up to 10 days to help close the state's budget gap, just over half have done so.

See the list of lawmakers here.

Ulman: "There's Nothing Easy Left"

HoCoMoJo has posted a video on the effect of state budget reductions on county organizations and services. In it, HoCo exec Ken Ulman is quoted as saying there are no easy cuts left to make, but, hey, we're Howard County we'll deal with it.

CA's 'Hand-crafted' Computing

We received an e-mail from the Columbia Association this week updating us on the progress of the organization's new Computer Service System, set to launch in mid-2010.

As a brief overview, CSS is a top-of-the-line, hand-crafted computer system set to replace CA’s current software, which team members have used for over 20 years to manage day-to-day customer service...

...The following list details the benefits you can look forward to with the implementation of CSS in the coming year.

* The new CSS web portal is easy to use, convenient and allows for efficient communications between CA team members and customers
* Photos can be taken at CA fitness facilities and the Membership Service Center
* Increased customer satisfaction through the practicality and functionality of the e commerce web portal:
o You can load money onto your membership cards online or at MSC to buy concessions, tickets and make other purchases at CA facilities
o You can book tennis and racquetball reservations online
o You can signup online for Package Plan Plus and Group Fitness classes
o You can schedule tee times online
o You will have a more efficient and faster check-in when arriving for classes, tee times, etc.
* Members’ photographs will be stored in the new system, so if you forget your membership card, a front desk associate can access it via the check-in screen at CA facilities. This will also lessen the possibility of someone using your membership card fraudulently.

This all sounds very cool. There was just one problem with the e-mail. It thanked us for having "actively taken steps to upgrade" our membership cards so they work with the new system. Apparently, this has something to do with getting our photo taken -- which, umm, we haven't done for many, many years (when one particular member of the Talk team still had all his hair!).

Unless there's someone out there impersonating Team Talk, we're guessing this is what CA means when it says the CSS is still in its testing phase.