Reach Village

Howard County police will meet with residents concerned about violence at Columbia's Long Reach Village Center tomorrow after a fight outside the center's Exxon station was believed to have led to a shooting at a nearby apartment complex that wounded a 4-year-old. The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Long Reach High School. Fahad Islam was "doing well and resting comfortably" yesterday at Johns Hopkins Hospital after undergoing surgery Friday night to remove the bullet from his head, spokesman Michael Levin-Epstein said.

The Long Reach Community Association, in partnership with the village center owner, Perrine Wheeler Inc. of Norfolk, Va., will have a document-shredding truck in the village center parking lot from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday for Long Reach village residents to safely dispose of unwanted documents. The service is offered free to Long Reach residents. Identification showing residency is required. Participants will receive certificates of destruction to indicate that their documents have been disposed of safely.

A calmer, more civil Columbia Council may result from the lopsided Long Reach village election victory of Henry "Hank" Dagenais over the outspoken David Hlass, some council members believe. The vote was 448 to 140. "My interactions with Hank have been great. I knew him when we were both on village boards together," said council Chairman Joshua Feldmark, who is seeking another year as chairman of the 10-member council, which doubles as the Columbia Association board of directors. As a group, "I think we spend a lot of time functioning with difficulty ... because of the actions of Mr. Hlass," Feldmark said.

Tomorrow, an embattled Columbia Council representative will attempt to retain his seat and another incumbent faces his first challenge, as voters elect council members in the only two contested races in this year's elections for the planned community's advisory body. David Hlass, in Long Reach village, and Tom O'Connor of Dorsey's Search, both are running for re-election to the council. They face Henry F. "Hank" Dagenais and Robert Ballinger, respectively. Five other races for the unpaid, 10-mem- ber council, are uncontested.

The Long Reach Community Association will sponsor a Kids' Clothes Swap from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday on the parking lot of Long Reach Village Center. Gently used children's clothes, toys, books and furniture will be available. Admission is free to buyers. The rain date is May 7. Spanish classes for children ages 3 to 6 will be offered from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Thursdays, May 5 to June 23 at Stonehouse, 8775 Cloudleap Court in Long Reach Village Center. The cost is $84 for the eight-week class.

The Long Reach Community Association will sponsor a Kids' Clothes Swap from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 30 on the parking lot of Long Reach Village Center. Gently used children's clothes, toys, books and furniture will be available. Admission is free to buyers. The rain date is May 7. Spanish classes for children ages 3 to 6 will be offered from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Thursdays, May 5 to June 23 at Stonehouse, 8775 Cloudleap Court in Long Reach Village Center. The cost is $84 for the eight-week class.

Competition is scarce in next month's Columbia Council elections, as only two villages have contested elections. Two candidates each are running in Long Reach and Dorsey's Search, while five other races are uncontested in the April 30 elections for seats on the advisory body for the planned community. In Dorsey's Search, Robert Ballinger is challenging incumbent Tom O'Connor. Henry F. "Hank" Dagenais is taking on incumbent David Hlass in Long Reach. Incumbents Miles Coffman of Hickory Ridge, Joshua Feldmark of Wilde Lake, Phil Marcus of Kings Contrivance and Barbara Russell of Oakland Mills are running unopposed.

Mystery writer and horsewoman Kit Ehrman will discuss her new book, Cold Burn, in a program at the east Columbia library. "Meet the Maryland Author: Kit Ehrman," will be held at 7 p.m. tomorrow. In partnership with Borders Books & Music, books will be available for purchase and signing. Registration is required. "Morning Books With coffee," a book club, will discuss The Monk Downstairs, by Tim Farrington, at its next meeting at 10:30 a.m. March 28 at the east Columbia branch. Books will be available at the branch.

David Hlass says he is running for another two-year term on the Columbia Council, which also serves as the Columbia Association board, portraying himself as a crusader for residents' rights and open government. Hlass, 50, a controversial figure in his first two-year term, is being opposed by former Long Reach Village Board Chairman Henry F. "Hank" Dagenais, 73, who served from May 1997 through February 2002, when he resigned. Village elections are scheduled for April 30. Dagenais said he is running to restore amicable relations with other council members and to stop the disputes swirling around Hlass, who does not see it that way. "We do pay fees to the Columbia Association to live in Columbia, and I want to strive to get the best for each and every dollar we pay," Hlass said.

Disturbed by the disputes embroiling David Hlass, the Long Reach village Columbia Council representative, a former village board chairman has decided to run for the seat in next month's election. Henry F. "Hank" Dagenais, 73, who headed the village board for nearly five years ending in 2001, said he will file for the seat in hopes of restoring the community's working relationship with the group, which serves as the Columbia Council and the Columbia Association board of directors. If Hlass runs for re-election, the battle could be the liveliest race this year in the typically low-turnout, uncontested village elections scheduled for April 30. Yesterday, no one had filed for seats in most of the seven villages holding council elections.