Route 97

A Carroll County woman and a Florida man died yesterday when their cars collided about noon on Route 97 just north of Route 32 in the Westminster area, state police said. The 77-year-old Westminster woman, Maizie Delancey of Rainbow Drive, was southbound in a 1999 Honda Accord when she crossed the center line, striking a northbound 2006 Ford Mustang driven by Ernest Scheuer, 64, of Kissimmee, Fla., according to state police from the Westminster barracks. Both drivers, who were alone in their vehicles, died at the scene, police said.

The Glenwood Community Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, will offer a Kidz Night Out, with crafts, music, dancing, movies and games, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Aug. 17. Parents will have an opportunity to have dinner and a movie. The event for children ages 5-12 costs $25 a child. Pizza and a beverage will be provided. Registration is required. Information: 410-313-4840. Democratic club to meet Tuesday The Western Howard County Democratic Club will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Howard County Conservancy, 10520 Old Frederick Road (Route 99)

The Columbia Volksmarch Club will hold a Spring Saturday Walk on April 14 that is to begin at Waverly Elementary School, 10220 Wetherburn Road. The self-paced walk will be on sidewalks in the village of Waverly and will include the Historic Waverly Mansion in Marriottsville. Walkers can choose a 5K (3.1-mile) or 10K (6.2-mile) trail. Start times are between 8 a.m. and noon. Information: 410-290-3777, or www.geocities.com/WalkColumbia. Sports camps to start June 18 The River Hill Boosters will sponsor summer sports camps to help young athletes improve basic skills.

Proposal affects business centers County staffers recently presented to the commissioners proposed amendments to Chapter 103, Development and Subdivision of Land. The proposal would allow residences above retail establishments in the business centers served by public water and sewer, provided there is a minimum of 600 square feet and a maximum of 1,000 square feet. Parking would be determined by the Planning and Zoning commission. Residential use would be prohibited on the first floor, but permitted on the second and third stories (maximum of three floors)

FirePleasant Valley: Firefighters from Pleasant Valley and Littlestown, Pa., responded at 3: 39 p.m. Thursday to a hay wagon on fire on Humbert Schoolhouse Road off Route 97. Units were out one hour.Pub Date: 7/19/99

Proponents of a gas station in Glenwood defended their plan yesterday during a Board of Appeals meeting, saying the Route 97 corridor does not have enough stations.Officials of Glenwood LLC are requesting a special exception to build a nine-pump Freestate gas station in a proposed 30,000-square-foot shopping center.Glenwood LLC attorney David A. Carney called Harry Wainwright, vice president of Freestate Petroleum, to testify during the hearing at the George Howard Building in Ellicott City.

An attorney for the developer of a proposed gas station in rural Glenwood maintained again last night that the project at Route 97 and Carrs Mill Road is necessary for the fast-growing population of western Howard County."

For years, Carroll County has considered improvements to Obrecht Road as a way to ease traffic congestion in Eldersburg. Funding for the project has often been delayed, and construction has been a source of contention for county officials.Obrecht Road, which runs from Route 97 east to Route 32, could be an alternative for commuters who are clogging Liberty Road, the main thoroughfare through Eldersburg, while en route to Route 32 and Interstate 70. But Obrecht Road is a winding road, with poor sight distance and a difficult entrance at Route 32.Now improvements are again budgeted, and construction could begin next year.

After more than 20 years of planning, Carroll County is proposing to build seven roads in South Carroll that would divert traffic from congested Routes 26 and 32."There are a lot of unfinished connectors that could benefit the overall traffic circulation," Steven Horn, director of planning, said in a meeting with the county commissioners yesterday.Horn presented a list of priorities that asked for immediate funding for extensions of MacBeth Way, Dickenson Lane, Obrecht Road and Piney Ridge Parkway.

FireMount Airy: Firefighters from Mount Airy and Sykesville responded at 11: 51 a.m. Saturday to an auto fire at Interstate 70 and Route 97. Units were out 21 minutes.

A gardening clinic will be held from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Glenwood Library, 2350 Route 97 in Cooksville, on May 26.For more information, call 410-313-5577. Around town 'Arm Yourself with Knowledge' series: Program designed for and limited to seniors, features Lila Boor of the Howard County Office of Consumer Affairs and Pfc. Holly Burnham of the Howard County Police Department speaking on "Home Repair Fraud" at 10 a.m. Sunday at Slayton House, 10400 Cross Fox Lane. Call 410-730-3987 or 410-730-4744.

The Glenwood library, 2350 Route 97, Cooksville, will offer plant clinics at the library from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m Monday and May 26. Information: 410-313-5577. hclibrary.org. around town Sports camps : The River Hill Boosters will sponsor summer sports camps at River Hill High School in Clarksville. The camps are designed to help young athletes improve basic skills. Weekly camps begin June 15 and run 9 a.m. to noon or 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. More than 20 camps will be offered this summer, including football, soccer, baseball, softball, tennis, lacrosse, field hockey, volleyball, basketball, cross county, track and field, cheerleading, weight training, wrestling and dance.

The Catholic Daughters of the Americas will present a fashion show of bridal dresses from the late 1800s to the present, with narration and music of the period, in "Bridal Gown Treasures" on Saturday at St. Louis Parish Hall, 12500 Clarksville Pike, Clarksville. Doors open at 12:30 p.m., with a buffet luncheon at 1 p.m. The show begins promptly at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15; children ages 6 to 11 pay $10. For information or to reserve tickets, call Kathy Pasis, 410-750-6370, by Monday. Relay for Life Western Howard County's 2009 Relay For Life, an overnight event honoring cancer survivors that raises funds for the American Cancer Society, will hold a team meeting to share information about the event at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Glenwood Community Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville.

Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks is accepting registration for the Western Howard County Spring Youth Baseball/Softball League for children and youth ages 5 to 18. Games are played at various locations in the county. Opening day is April 18. The cost is $110 to $160 a child, depending on age. There is a $10 discount for siblings. Columbia and Clarksville area residents ages 7 to 8 and 9 to 10 can register in in the area where they live. The age determination date is April 30, 2009.

Play group: Glenwood Community Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, is offering a new Kiddie Korner Play Group for children ages 5 and younger accompanied by an adult from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. The group will meet to play games and make friends. Identification is required for adults. Information: 410-313-4840. Paint, draw: Glenwood Senior Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, is offering a painting and drawing open studio, 9 a.m. to noon Wednesdays. Take your own supplies and paint.

St. Louis Church Concert Series will present "Lessons and Carols and Songs of the Season," a Christmas concert, today at 4 p.m. at the church, 12500 Clarksville Pike, Clarksville. Soprano Jessica Marie Stecklein and bass Christopher Douglas Rhodovi will be featured, along with the Monumental Brass Quintet, the St. Louis Choir and the St. Louis School Middle School Chorus. Admission is free; a free-will donation will be collected. A dessert reception will follow the concert. Information, 443-535-8929.

The Clarksville Rotary Club will sponsor a fundraiser, "Baubles & Bling and Holiday Things" from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday at a new restaurant, scheduled to open soon, The Fat Duck of Highland. The event will benefit Howard County General Hospital's pediatric ward. The event will feature wine-tasting with 21 different wines, jewelry and hors d'oeuvres by chef Brian Boston of The Milton Inn, who will open The Fat Duck. Tickets are $50. Information or to purchase tickets: Ashley Kreh, of Wilhide's Flowers, 410-465-3434.

The State Highway Administration has opened three roundabouts and two new ramps and removed two traffic signals along Route 32. Traffic signals have been removed along Route 32 at Pfefferkorn and Ten Oaks roads. Motorists traveling along Route 32 can now use the ramps and roundabouts to access Burntwoods, Pfefferkorn and Ten Oaks roads. A new Burntwoods Road bridge over Route 32 is also open to traffic. Motorists are urged to reduce speed and stay alert; variable message boards, barrels and arrow boards will guide them through the new traffic pattern.

Truck traffic will have to detour around Route 140 in Taneytown for more than two years, the State Highway Administration said yesterday. Starting today, vehicles weighing 5 tons or more will be diverted around central Taneytown until an $18 million streetscape project is completed in the spring of 2011. Passenger vehicles, local delivery trucks and school buses will continue to have the use of the two-mile stretch of Route 140 during the project. The truck detour was necessary for the safety of pedestrians and work crews, the agency said.

The Glenwood Community Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, will offer "Teen Scene Event - Monster Mash," a chance for those in sixth through eighth grades to socialize with friends and dance to Halloween favorites, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Oct. 24. Tickets are $5. Advance purchase is recommended; some tickets may be available at the door, if space permits. www.highlandmd.org/arts&letters.html. Senior programs : Glenwood Senior Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, will offer a program about hearing loss with Dr. Ron Kaplan, "This Isn't Your Mother's Hearing Aid," at 10 a.m. Oct. 7. He will discuss hearing loss, why it happens and the digital technology of hearing aids.