Future Of Ellicott City Will Require 'Immediate Steps': Ball

ELLICOTT CITY, MD — As the one-year anniversary of the deadly 2018 flood approaches in Ellicott City, Howard County Executive Calvin Ball reported on progress to make the historic downtown more secure. He revealed the second phase of the Ellicott City Safe and Sound plan, which he introduced in December.

He invited the public to consider five proposals for the future of the downtown district and share their input, noting there would be a meeting in May on the subject.

All five options call for demolishing at least four buildings, while one option calls for the demolition of six buildings, he said, to allow for the creation of culverts. Remaining buildings may need to be modified to ensure they do not restrict the flow of the stream.

Main Street in Ellicott City has been recovering from the flood that swept through the area and killed one person on May 27, 2018. It was the second fatal flood in as many years for Ellicott City.

"While urgency is important," Ball said Ellicott City should be "safe and thriving" for the next 255 years, rather than the next five years, which he said was the range of his predecessor's plan.

Since he took office, Ball said Howard County has acquired 10 buildings in Ellicott City to explore ways of taking water from lower Main Street. Those structures include seven on Main Street, one in the West End and two in Valley Meade, he said. One additional property on lower Main Street should be settled in the coming weeks. He said more acquisitions in the Valley Meade and West End areas would be slated for 2020.

"Immediate steps will be taken to remove the blight," Ball said, such as facade repairs "to make Ellicott City even more welcoming" and interior cleaning and work to ensure structural stability.

"One building that requires immediate action is the Caplan’s building," he said. The portion of the building over the stream needs to be demolished, according to Ball.

“Ellicott City remains one of Howard County’s most important cultural and economic resources and its safety and security are critical to our county’s future," Ball said in a statement.

The first phase of the Safe and Sound called for measures including more frequent inspections and debris clearing, specifically nine waterways that have been identified as receiving heavy debris during storm events. After every major storm event, the waterways will be inspected, rather than quarterly, as was the previous practice.

"This new program has already been triggered twice in the past two months alone, resulting in the clearing of several tons of debris from our waterways," Ball said at a press conference at Su Casa on Main Street on Wednesday, April 17. He said clearing debris was a "critical step" toward flood reduction.

RELATED: Ellicott City Flood: 'Devastated, Heartbroken' By Roaring Waters

Emergency alert systems have also been introduced to alert citizens and emergency personnel of the potential for flooding. There are two mobile speaker arrays, one that was delivered last week and another that was delivered Wednesday, he said. A testing schedule will be released to the public to ensure all are aware of the emergency alert system.

The 2020 state capital budget includes $3.4 million in funds for Ellicott City’s Safe and Sound plan and a minimum of $8 million over the next three years. Ball said the state had provided additional funding by offering land for the Waterloo fire station for $1 to Howard County.

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development announced Wednesday that it was providing $700,000 in additional funding to Ellicott City to support public safety, property owners and the business community.

There will be a public meeting on May 2 at Howard High School about the proposals, and people can stay apprised of developments on the Ellicott City Safe and Sound website.

Watch the April 17 press conference on Phase 2 of the Ellicott City Safe and Sound Plan: