Farragut

Howard County's newly revised farmland preservation program won accolades from the County Council last night."I'm very pleased" with the size of the 10 properties seeking admission to the program, Councilman Paul R. Farragut, D-4th, said.Two years ago, Mr. Farragut had complained that the county was not getting the best value for its dollar when buying easements that would keep rural western county properties free from development.Many of the parcels coming into the program were too small, Mr. Farragut said at the time, and were disconnected from other properties already in the program.

Drown, Farragut and Pendergrass. These names will become immortalized on the tomb of Howard County's waste disposal policy, which has now been cast in the ground under a small community in the heart of Howard County.These three alleged representatives of Howard County acted despicably. All they really do represent is the total lack of integrity that Howard County's government seems destined to perpetuate.These three County Council members voted to force through hastily worded legislation to allow a project to expand the Alpha Ridge Landfill at the very time this county needs to look for new alternatives for waste disposal.

The county Zoning Board last Thursday rejected an appeal by the Rouse Co., which had asked it to reconsider a proposal for up to 300 apartments on 12 acres in Columbia's Town Center. But the board left openthe possibility of hearing the case again at a later date.The board refused to allow the change from the property's current designation as employment center, saying residents of apartments or town houses might be disturbed by noise from the Merriweather Post Pavilion. The decision has been criticized by community leaders and Rouse Co. planners, who have long maintained that downtown Columbia would be enlivened by more high-density residential development.

Lothian tree bandits claim 10-foot victimBertha Stewart woke up Tuesday morning to find that someone had cut down a 10-foot-tall hardwood tree in her front yard in Lothian.Police said that a hand-powered saw apparently was used to cut down the tree at the home in the 1000 block of Decesaris Drive.Ms. Stewart told police she had no idea who might have cut the tree down or why. The Stewart family has been living in the home for six years and has reported no other incidents of this kind.Angela Marhefka wins state Coed PageantAngela Marhefka of Annapolis has won the Miss Maryland American Coed Pageant.

Farragut Deserves SupportThe board of the Howard County Housing Alliance applauds and supports the courageous position taken by Councilman Paul Farragut on the creation of moderate-income housing units in proposed mixed-use areas. Mr. Farragut's proposal is reasonable and doable, as density bonuses are a proven method of allowing developers to create affordable housing and still make a profit.Even those who cannot accept the premise that housing is a basic human right should, at least, be able to recognize that the provision of affordable housing is essential to the economic health of the country.

After listening to an hour of virulent anti-smoking testimony Mondaynight, Rouse spokesman James D. Lano almost seemed ready to cry "uncle."Would the County Council be willing to accept a compromise ona proposal by C. Vernon Gray, D-6th, to ban smoking in enclosed shopping malls, he asked.Lano, assistant general counsel at the Rouse Co., suggested that smoking areas on the first floor of The Mall in Columbia near eating pavilions be eliminated and that smoking be allowed in special areas on the second floor only.

Representatives of the county Board of Realtors and the county homebuilders association disagreed Monday on the merits of a bill that would require sellers to tell home buyers about the county's plans for future development.But apart from Realtor spokesman Vivian Feen, most who testified at a County Council hearing on the bill agreed withformer homebuilders' president John Liparini that the bill is a goodidea.The bill is needed, said council member Paul R. Farragut, D-4th, because "many people were coming to us and telling us they were not apprised" of roads or development planned for their neighborhoods.

The County Council voted unanimously last night to amend the 1990 General Plan and let residents in Columbia's newest village use Trotter Road as an escape route.Until last night, the General Plan had called for Trotter Road to become a dead end on both sides of a rerouted Route 32 that is yet to be built.Residents in the Pheasant Ridge neighborhood of River Hill -- Columbia's newest village -- had told the council that unless the southern portion of Trotter Road was kept open, their children would be transferred to new schools and they would be endangered in an emergency.

A plan to give Columbia a more urban appearance by building 500 town house or apartment units in Town Center has been substantially pared back by county officials, who worried that noise from nearby Merriweather Post Pavilion would disrupt future tenants.The decision weakened a plan that some believed might revitalize Columbia's quiet downtown area.But the move also baffled some community leaders, who have long pushed for more affordable housing in the affluent community.Others were perplexed because noise had not surfaced as an issue during hearings on the plan.

AN IDEAL candidate when she first ran for a Howard County Council seat in 1994, Mary C. Lorsung has since improved her ability to represent the 4th Councilmanic District. She should be re-elected.The complex issues that face burgeoning Howard County require the careful study that Ms. Lorsung provides. The Democratic councilwoman consistently looks past partisanship to the interests of residents when researching issues.Republican Greg Fox is a worthy opponent who says he is ready to give back to the community.