Columbia Association

Members of the Columbia Association's three gyms can wave their free towels goodbye starting Nov. 1, the result of an austere budget proposed for the next two years that would also reduce employee pay raises but leave residents' property lien fees unchanged. The towel move would save up to $5 million over a decade and also help the environment, officials said. But some of the few residents who've heard about the idea aren't buying it. "I no way agree it's environmental," said Cynthia Coyle of Harper's Choice, the elected CA board member who heads the committee examining the budget.

I harbor high hopes that Columbia can blossom to the next level in creating a "go to" environment that supports and nurtures art and artists. Recently the Columbia Association has stepped up offering public forums on this and Jane Dembner of the Association has been doing a wonderful job. But Columbia needs just a little bit more than just the enthusiasm. We need more residents to spread the support around. Redevelopment is helping this with new residences downtown. I have sat in Barbara Kellner's "Columbia Archives" and watched old grainy films of James Rouse lecturing a group of urban architects at a conference in the '70s - saying he full well expected Columbia's population to be around 300,000 residents by the late 1990s.

A bill to change the way the Columbia Association is defined in state law is portrayed by the organization's lawyer as a necessary housekeeping measure, but the legislation seems to have an image problem.  The Columbia Association board had it on the agenda for discussion recently, but the occasion served mainly as a reminder of last fall, when the CA proposed, then withdrew, a request that the county's legislative delegation sponsor the law...

Two of the most experienced Columbia Association board members were reelected Saturday to the Columbia Council, while residents of Columbia's oldest village selected a new representative. Incumbents Alex Hekimian and Michael Cornell will continue representing Oakland Mills and River Hill, respectively. In Wilde Lake, current village board member Nancy McCord defeated incumbent Regina Clay. The 10th and final member of the CA board will not be decided until the upcoming weekend.

Maggie J. Brown, president of the Columbia Association for eight years before her retirement May 1, died Thursday of a brain tumor. She was 70. Ms. Brown had worked for the large homeowners association for more than two decades before taking over as president in 2001. Ms. Brown was an early Columbia resident who became active in governance after selling crafts in the community. - Larry Carson div.talkforum #creditfooter { display: none; } div.talkforum .feedItemAuthor { display: none; }

For an intense workout that requires strength, flexibility, technique and discipline, consider the Columbia Association's new mixed martial arts (MMA) classes. Classes in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai kickboxing began in February. Trainer Alvin Chan, who has a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and is a former member of the World Kickboxing Association's U.S. Thai Boxing team, describes CA's foray into MMA as a “fun workout in a safe environment.” “It's the fastest growing sport in the world,” says Chan, a certified personal trainer who's worked for CA for 13 years and studied martial arts for 26 years.

The Columbia Association has agreed to pay a local consultant $150,000 to determine whether the troubled accounting and customer service software system, under development for much of the past decade, should be saved or scrapped. KPMG, with offices in Baltimore and Washington, has eight weeks to make recommendations on what to do with the Customer Services System computer software, said Rob Goldman, CA's chief operating officer. "They're going to provide CA options," he said.

For nearly half a century, Columbia residents have looked to the "People Tree" sculpture as a symbol of founder James Rouse's vision of an inclusive, connected community. Now, the organization that runs the planned town says it will drop images of the tree — a cluster of 66 interconnected human figures — from its signs, uniforms, stationery and business cards at a cost of as much as $200,000. The Columbia Association's People Tree logo is partly a victim of changing times — officials say it doesn't work well for social media or mobile devices.

The recent Baltimore Sun wrote about a new plan (aka McCall Plan) for Symphony Woods. The park plan is gone, replaced by an "Arts District" with a transplanted Toby's Dinner Theatre, multiple restaurants, a community center, new Columbia Association headquarters and more. CA had closed sessions purportedly to discuss partnerships with other entities, and instead produced a totally new plan. A few years ago our state delegation procured a $250K grant for the planned park to assist what they thought was a shovel-ready project; no shovel has touched dirt yet.  It has long been thought that the Ulman administration, preferring the original General Growth plan for multi-story buildings in Symphony Woods, intentionally delayed this project. CA President Phil Nelson in his memo to the CA Board about the new plan for their upcoming Jan. 24 meeting, with no other mention of delays, states "The County has made explicitly clear that such delays would not be enforced on the future developments under the McCall Plan.

The Columbia Association is a bit like TV's "Energizer Bunny." No matter how many obstacles are thrown in its path, it just seems to keep going and going and going.This is a pattern that will be tested again as the Columbia Council, which directs the non-profit association, considers the organization's proposed $33.4 million budget for fiscal 1996. The association oversees recreation facilities and open space in Columbia. A panel of independent financial experts has warned the council about a host of potential problems should it proceed with the budget as proposed by the association's staff.

Listed below are the winners in this year's Columbia Association village elections except for the village of Long Reach, which has extended elections to Saturday, April 27, and the village of Hickory Ridge, where the results have not been announced. Dorsey's Search: Village board: Ellen Mackey and Dan Woodruff. Columbia Council: Tom Coale. Harper's Choice: Village board: Cook, Ann De Lacy and Clarence Lam. Kings Contrivance: Village board: Art Perraud, Shari Zaret and Barbara Seely.

As a member of the Wilde Lake Village Board, Nancy McCord has truly "been there" for Wilde Lake residents. She has fully earned my household's vote to represent Wilde Lake on the Columbia Council. Nancy has "been there" at a whopping 100 percent of the board's meetings, listening to her constituents, asking discerning questions, and working collegially with her fellow board members. Nancy's sterling record stands in sharp contrast to the hit-and-miss record of her opponent, who attended only 10 of the Village Board's 17 meetings this fiscal year.

I have resided in Wilde Lake since 1977. I have attended most all of the candidate's forums since that time. I have stayed current with the operations of the Columbia Association through attendance and the technical media which is available to all of the residents of Columbia. This is part of the communication process that is necessary for a home owners association. The relationship with the village boards of directors and the village representative to the Columbia Board of Directors (CBD)

For an intense workout that requires strength, flexibility, technique and discipline, consider the Columbia Association's new mixed martial arts (MMA) classes. Classes in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai kickboxing began in February. Trainer Alvin Chan, who has a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and is a former member of the World Kickboxing Association's U.S. Thai Boxing team, describes CA's foray into MMA as a “fun workout in a safe environment.” “It's the fastest growing sport in the world,” says Chan, a certified personal trainer who's worked for CA for 13 years and studied martial arts for 26 years.

Move over, Zumba. There's a new fitness craze in town. Piloxing, which is a fusion of Pilates and boxing, debuted in Columbia last fall and continues to grow in popularity. Piloxing's blend of the cardiovascular benefits of boxing and the muscle toning of Pilates makes for a well-rounded and challenging workout, says Megan Cooperman, a group fitness supervisor for the Columbia Association, which hosts classes at local gyms. “You work your upper body and develop strength from boxing,” she says.

I am thrilled the Columbia Association and the Columbia Council Representatives responded to the present and future needs of our community in moving forward with the McCall/Inner Arbor Plan for Symphony Woods. The previous plan was generally found to have missed the mark, and was additionally rejected by the Planning Board. The McCall Plan was created out of the very real need for something better. It was presented to the community. Response was heard in person, by email and by petition.

Just as the Greeks distracted the residents of Troy with the Trojan Horse, the Columbia Association elected representatives and paid staff have created their own Trojan Horse - the new plan for Symphony Woods. Our elected representatives and our paid staff would like the taxpayers to be focused on the details of the redevelopment plan and not on the proposed mechanism for its implementation. And exactly what is hidden in the Symphony Woods plan? The Symphony Woods Trust, a new organization, to which Columbia taxpayer dollars would be transferred but Columbia taxpayers would have no right to know how those taxpayer dollars are spent.

Decades ago, developer James W. Rouse looked at a rundown industrial waterfront in downtown Baltimore and saw the makings of an attraction called Harborplace at the Inner Harbor. Now a former Rouse employee looks at an expanse of woods in downtown Columbia and sees the possibility of an "Inner Arbor. " That's the name Michael McCall has given his proposal to turn 34 acres of woods surrounding Merriweather Post Pavilion into a place meant to celebrate both the arts and nature, a combination performing arts center, sculpture garden and elevated arboreal walkway.