Monthly CA NOV 2013
A P U B L I C AT I O N O F C O L U M B I A A S S O C I AT I O N
2 CA Opening Mind-Body Wellness Retreat in 2014 3 Thank You for Keeping Columbia’s Waterways Clean 8 Be a Part of Your Community Events
A Look at Columbia’s Future: Learn more about the Columbia Association at ColumbiaAssociation.org.
An Interview with CA President Phil Nelson get the latest
By Aria White Connor
on what’s
happening at
W
Columbia Association with
try something different. I had been in city management for more than 30 years, and
thisweek@CA
a weekly webcast. you can watch the
videos online anytime at bit.ly/thisweekatca
Get Social
with CA! It’s easier than ever to find us. ColumbiaAssociation.org/CAToday
Facebook.com/ColumbiaAssociation Twitter.com/ColumbiaAssn YouTube.com/CATVchannel
hen Columbia Association (CA) President Phil Nelson came to Columbia in
2007, he was looking for a challenge. And he found one. “I think I wanted to
Columbia Association at that time offered a really good challenge,” Nelson said. “It gave me a way to use my background in dealing with all kinds of different situations.” These days, it’s the coming change in Columbia that poses a challenge and opportunity for Nelson at CA. “Columbia is going through some real change. There’s going to be so many demographic changes, so many economic changes,” Nelson said. Given the data being reported by the U.S. Census Bureau that one in five Marylanders will be age 65 and older within the next 30 years, and more than 80 percent of households will be childless, Nelson recognizes the need for CA to adapt. “We have to offer services and programs that are going to fit five different generations of Columbians,” he said. Nelson said that Columbia Association will begin focusing more on interaction with the community to prepare for these upcoming changes, and noted that CA
is more interested than ever in hearing directly from residents about what they want to see in the future of Columbia. “We’re asking you through Inspire Columbia, through Excite Columbia, and soon through the new website,” Nelson said. “We can no longer go through a period of saying, ‘Here’s a program; you’ll love it!’ we’re going to have to start asking people what they want and what’s going to make them feel like we’re adding value to their lives and their property.” In addition to becoming more interactive, Nelson said he also wants CA to start focusing more on communicating with residents to make sure they know about all of the services that CA offers them. “It’s important for us to continue letting people know what they get for their assessment fee.” C A M O N T H LY 1
CAOpening Mind-Body Wellness Retreat in2014 By David Greisman
COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION’S (CA) PLANNED mind-body wellness retreat in Downtown Columbia was formally approved this September by the CA Board of Directors. The retreat will be located on the lower level of the former Rouse Company headquarters building (soon to be a Whole Foods grocery store). Its focus will be on classes, activities and services that strengthen the body and contribute to overall wellness, according to Rob Goldman, major projects manager for CA. Classes will include yoga, hot yoga, tai chi,
qigong and pilates. Wellness services will include holistic skin care, massage, acupuncture, life coaching and nutrition counseling. There will be a “wet wellness area” that will include areas for aquatic exercise classes and relaxation, a steam room, sauna, salt room and tropical shower. A 10,000-square-foot outdoor patio area overlooking Lake Kittamaqundi will provide relaxation areas as well as spaces for group exercise. “We’re providing the community with what community members told us they wanted,” Goldman said. He cited a survey that asked people
about different concepts for the facility, with the mind-body wellness retreat concept emerging as the overwhelming favorite. There will be a KidSpace facility for the convenience of adults using the wellness retreat. In addition, there will be a café with indoor and outdoor seating areas and offering fresh, prepackaged food and drinks from Whole Foods. The fee structure for the retreat is being finalized. There will be a small additional cost for CA members. Non-members also will be welcome to join. CA plans to open the facility on Sept. 1, 2014.
Thank You for Keeping Columbia’s Waterways Clean! By Mary Weeks
YOUR COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION (CA) assessment dollars help protect and restore Columbia’s waterways. Columbia’s open space, which includes three manmade lakes (Lake Elkhorn, Lake Kittamaqundi and Wilde Lake), along with 41 ponds and stream valleys, makes Columbia a beautiful place to live, work and play. It takes a lot of work to keep Columbia’s waterways aesthetically pleasing while also protecting the environment. Dredging projects to remove the 2 C A M O N T H LY
sediment from all three lakes were completed recently. A management plan also has been developed to ensure that all of Columbia’s
waterways are maintained and protected. Open Space Management crews do a lot of work behind the scenes to keep Columbia’s waterways clean. CA cleans up trash and debris from all ponds, stream valleys and lakes. This clean-up prevents trash from blocking the normal flow of water to reduce flooding
during rainstorms. Reforestation, bio-retention projects, shoreline plantings and CA’s Rain Garden Cost Share Program help reduce the amount of sediment that runs off surface areas into Columbia’s waterways. The lakes and ponds are here for you and your family to enjoy, and thanks to your assessment dollars paying for such efforts, they look great!
For more information on the Columbia Association’s Watershed Management plan, visit ColumbiaWatershed.org.
What Are You Thankful For? To celebrate Thanksgiving this month, we reached out to our community on Facebook and to Columbia Association (CA) team members to learn what they are thankful for. Here are some of their responses:
COMMUNITY MEMBERS (VIA FACEBOOK)
Danielle Sweeney: I am thankful for surviving breast cancer, being cancer free for nine years and being blessed with a supportive family.
Julia Jackson McCready: I'm thankful for my wonderful husband and children, for my Oakland Mills village community and for the friendship of local Howard County Bloggers.
Troybookofkings Redd: MY Relationship with GOD and LIFE - :)
Kathryn A. Marshall: Good friends and neighbors.
Bobbi James: I am thankful to be raising my son in Columbia in a climate of diversity and culture.
Pamela Winter: That I grew up in Columbia — the greatest place on earth.
CA TEAM MEMBERS
I am thankful for having had the most wonderful parents — Bill and Dorothy — who taught me to live with integrity and demonstrate kindness. Liz Henzey, Columbia Art Center
I am thankful for life, my health, family and friends! Erin McPhail, Communications Department
I’m thankful that my grandchildren, especially my granddaughters, can go to school without fear of reprisal. I'm thankful for all my friends at CA! Janet Loughran, Office of the President
I am thankful for God’s many blessings. I’m thankful [for] my family’s health, wonderful friends, and being part of a growing community. Shanice Wise, Membership Service Center
New Pathway Signs Make Navigating Columbia Easier
IT IS NOW EASIER THAN EVER FOR Columbia residents to enjoy the community’s signature 93.5-mile pathway system. Columbia Association (CA) has installed 15 new signs between the north side of Wilde Lake and the Downtown Lakefront Plaza at Lake Kittamaqundi. This pilot project was part of the recommendations put forth by the Connecting Columbia Active Transportation Action Agenda. These 15 signs indicate direction and distance between key points and destinations. The pilot project cost $7,400 for the signs and other materials, and $4,600 for design
This was also an idea suggested on Inspire Columbia, CA’s community engagement website. Keep those ideas coming at InspireColumbia.com! work and design guidelines that can be used in future phases. “These signs will encourage people to walk a little farther and to walk more often, all while having comfort in knowing exactly where they are and how to get where they want to go,” said Jan Clark, landscape architect and project manager with CA’s Bureau of Community Building and Sustainability. More signs will be installed over time in other sections of CA’s pathway system. The community is invited to provide comments and feedback as CA plans for additional pathway signs by sending an email to Jan.Clark@ColumbiaAssociation.org. C A M O N T H LY 3
Healthy Thanksgiving Tips
So, how do you enjoy your Thanksgiving meal without worrying about overeating? Here, Columbia Association (CA) Personal Trainer Jennifer Medillin offers four great tips to keep in mind during Thanksgiving.
By Keithan Samuels
* *
*
3.
Consider healthier food choices and exercise
1.
Drink water. When you drink water before,
during and after meals, you have that
portion control. These are the main
feeling of being full and you don't mistake thirst
components to anyone’s physical fitness and health.
for hunger.
The better choices of food we make, the easier it is to maintain/lose weight. For example, during your
4.
Thanksgiving feast, it’s better to eat a small baked
Do a pre-meal exercise. Let’s be realistic.
Once the food is set out and the family
sweet potato than candied yams or a casserole. Also,
arrives, most of us won’t even think about
you should recognize the difference between
exercise. It is best to do exercise before the meal,
portions and servings. A “portion” is what you
unless you are really disciplined or hardcore.
choose to serve yourself. A “serving” is what is
The key to surviving the holidays is to keep
recommended for consumption. The key is to think
moving. Shoot for a minimum of 30 minutes of
small. You want to enjoy the meal and company
activity daily, and remember what your mother
without the food coma that usually follows.
always told you: “Eat your veggies and drink
*
water.”
Eat multiple smaller meals rather than one
2.
large meal. You can still make your big plate
four hours. Doing this keeps you fed without
of food, as usual. However, consider breaking it
overstuffing yourself. It also keeps your metabolism
Jennifer Medillin was a personal trainer for the
into several smaller plates that you can eat
going by your body breaking down those smaller
United States Marine Corps for six years. She
throughout the day — let’s say about every two to
meals, and you still get to eat the foods you like.
currently teaches Zumba® for CA.
CA’s Social Media Strategy
4 C A M O N T H LY
What happens when an organization like Columbia Association (CA) has nearly two dozen social media accounts? “When you look through 13 Facebook pages and nine Twitter pages, it just becomes overwhelming for people to find what they need and dilutes our social media presence,” said CA President Philip Nelson. Over the past few months, the Communications and Community Engagement team worked to centralize and strengthen CA’s online presence.
Keeping in mind that “less is more,” Communications decided to merge CA’s multiple social networking accounts. Don’t worry, though; residents still will get the same amount of information. “We are interested in making it easier for residents to engage with CA and find the information they have come to rely upon,” said Celeste Olinger, director of Communications and Community Engagement. CA now has one Facebook account and one Twitter account where the community
can get the news they need about CA, and most important of all, engage with the organization. CA already has seen positive results since the merge. “The level of engagement from the community has increased on all of our Facebook and Twitter pages,” Olinger said. Get social with CA: Facebook.com/ColumbiaAssociation Twitter.com/ColumbiaAssn YouTube.com/CATVChannel
Keep Warm and Save Energy This Winter With Home Upgrades This Fall By Jeremy Scharfenberg
Calling All Columbia & Howard County Youth: The Middle and Teen Advisory Committees Need You!
THE PURPOSE OF COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION’S (CA) MIDDLE SCHOOL AND TEEN Advisory Committees is to enhance the quality of life for youth ages 11 to 19 by developing, coordinating and implementing various activities, events and programs. Meetings are held monthly every third Thursday at The Barn, located in the Oakland Mills Village Center, from 6:30 to 7:30pm. Here’s your chance to be a part of planning fun and exciting events for youth in the Columbia area. “I encourage youth to take the opportunity to be heard and put their words, thoughts and ideas into action,” said Rene Buckmon, youth and teen program manager at CA. Members will gain leadership skills and learn how to collaborate with others and work as a team. It will be rewarding to see an event that you help plan come to life in your community! To learn more information on how you can join, call 410-992-3726.
Ghana Fest
Sunday, November 17 3-5:30pm
WINTER IS COMING, AND COLUMBIA RESIDENTS can take steps now to stay warmer and save on utility bills when cold temperatures hit. Because outdoor winter temperatures can be much lower than our indoor thermostat setpoints, our region typically experiences about three times more heating degree days than cooling degree days in a given year.* Lots of energy is needed to keep our homes comfortable when it is cold outside. One of the most cost-effective steps homeowners can take is to make sure their home is air sealed and insulated properly. Many of the older homes in Columbia have very poor attic insulation, resulting in significant heat loss and high utility bills. In fact, my townhouse that was built in the late 1960s had no insulation at all in parts of the attic, so one of the first improvements I made was to add insulation — and the benefits have been significant in terms of improved comfort and reduced energy consumption. To help offset the costs of these improvements, Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) offers incentives for sealing and insulating your home through the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® Program. Once a Home Performance Energy Audit has been completed, BGE will provide a rebate of up to 50 percent of improvement cost ($2,000 maximum) for air sealing and insulation measures. These cost-effective and simple upgrades to your home will provide benefits this winter and all year round. For more information on BGE’s rebate programs, visit BGESmartEnergy.com/Residential. For more information about Seal and Insulate with ENERGY STAR, visit EnergyStar.gov. * A degree day is a measure of heating or cooling load based on the differential between outdoor temperatures and a typical indoor thermostat setpoint.
Slayton House Join us to celebrate Columbia’s newest sister city, Tema, Ghana! This free event will feature Ghanaian music, dance performances, drumming, art displays, speakers and a sampling of Ghanaian finger foods.
For more information, call 410-715-3162 or email: International@ColumbiaAssociation.org C A M O N T H LY 5
Columbia Association
Board of Directors 2013-2014
Michael Cornell, River Hill 410-531-9340 MichaelCornell@comcast.net
Cynthia A.S.H. Coyle, Harper’s Choice 410-997-7637 CashCoyle2@aol.com
Brian Dunn, Kings Contrivance 301-473-0077 BrianJDunn@gmail.com
Alex Hekimian, Oakland Mills 410-730-2583 AlexHekimian@hotmail.com
Nancy McCord, Wilde Lake 410-730-2309 Nancy.McCord@LNF.com
Tom O’Connor, Dorsey’s Search 410-336-9269 TomFOC3@Verizon.net
Gregg Schwind, Hickory Ridge 410-992-5043 Gregg.Schwind@usdoj.gov
Andrew Stack, Owen Brown 410-381-8897 Andy.OBCA@gmail.com
Russell Swatek, Long Reach 410-799-1497 Swatek1@yahoo.com
Suzanne Waller, Town Center 410-730-9132 SUZYQ1104@aol.com
IMPORTANT CA PHONE NUMBERS
* *
CA Headquarters..............................................410-715-3000
Columbia Swim Center ....................................410-730-7000
CA Membership Service Center .......................410-730-1801
Columbia Teen Center .....................................410-992-3726
Aquatics Office.................................................410-312-6332
Fairway Hills Golf Club ....................................410-730-1112
Columbia Art Center ........................................410-730-0075
Hobbit's Glen Golf Club....................................410-730-5980
Columbia Athletic Club ....................................410-730-6744
Inclement Weather Hotline .............................410-715-3154
Columbia Association Camps..........................410-715-3165
Indoor Tennis, Columbia Athletic Club ...........410-720-0149
Columbia Gym ..................................................410-531-0800
Owen Brown Tennis Bubble.............................410-381-7255
Columbia Horse Center....................................301-776-5850
Supreme Sports Club .......................................410-381-5355
Columbia Ice Rink ............................................420-730-0322
The Racquet Club at Hobbit's Glen.................410-715-3080
Columbia SportsPark/SkatePark .....................410-715-3054
Wilde Lake Tennis Club....................................410-730-3767
6 C A M O N T H LY
PHOTOS
FROM THE 11TH ANNUAL HEAR MY VOICE TEEN IDOL COMPETITION
CA BOARD
RECAP At the Columbia Association (CA) Board of Directors meeting on Thursday, Sept. 26, these Recommendations for Action items were approved:
* An ERC recommendation to
support CA management efforts to
expand communications and
information-sharing programs to
stakeholders and support efforts to
Rya Holzman wins last month's CA's 11th Annual Hear My Voice Teen Idol singing competition.
expand current programs based
on changes anticipated for future
Columbia.
At the Thursday, Oct. 10 CA Board of Directors meeting, these Recommendations for Action items were approved:
* $100,000 in funding for the
community-wide grants for village
initiatives.
A letter to the Howard County *Executive and County Council
Above, Safire Windley, program coordinator at Youth and Teen Center at the Barn, at the Hear my Voice Teen Idol Competition. Right, audience members cheer on their favorite contestants. Below right, judges tally the votes for the competition.
expressing support for the Bridge
Columbia feasibility study.
A change to the Risk *Management Committee rules.
For current CA Board meeting minutes and the agenda, please visit bit.ly/CABoardMeetings. A podcast of the meetings also is available at bit.ly/CABoardPodcast.
C A M O N T H LY 7
November Holiday Food Donation Now-Fri, Nov 15 • Owen Brown Village Center • 410-381-0202
Oakland Mills Farmers Market Sundays through Nov 24 9am-1pm • Oakland Mills Village Center • 410-730-4610
Salvation Army Angels Now-Sun, Dec 1 Owen Brown Village Center 410-381-0202
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Visit ColumbiaAssociation.org/Events to learn about more great events happening in Columbia!
Ghana Fest Celebrating Columbia’s New Sister City: Tema
Salon Series: The Best of Modern Documentaries
Sun, Nov 17 • 3-5:30pm Slayton House • 410-715-3162
Thu, Nov 21 • 7pm Columbia Art Center • 410-730-0075
Deck the Halls (for elementary-age gardeners)
Family Bingo
Holiday Craft Fair Sat, Nov 23 • 10am-3pm Historic Oakland Manor 410-730-4744
Holiday Craft Shop
Wed, Nov 20 • 6:30pm The Other Barn • 410-730-4610
Fri, Nov 22 • 7:30-9pm King’s Contrivance Amherst House • 410-381-9600
Sun, Nov 24 • 2-5pm The Hawthorn Center Info@HickoryRidgeVillage.org
Snack-n-Slide Wed, Nov 27 & Fri, Nov 29 12-4pm Columbia Swim Center ColumbiaPools.org
SplashDown Teen Night Bonita Glasper and Jing-Jy Chen 2 Artists 2 Views Now-Thu, Dec 19 hours vary Bernice Kish Gallery 410-730-3987
Celebration of Women & The Sum & Its Parts Exhibit Reception Sat, Nov 9 • 4-6pm • Columbia Art Center • 410-730-0075
CA Board of Directors Meeting Thu, Nov 14 • 7:30-11pm CA Headquarters 410-715-3000
Mr. Gabe Sing-Along Fri, Nov 15 • 10am The Other Barn • 410-730-4610
Mom & Son Sports Night Fri, Nov 15 • 7-8:30pm Columbia Athletic Club 410-730-6755
8 C A M O N T H LY
Wed, Nov 27 & Fri, Nov 29 7-9pm Columbia Swim Center ColumbiaPools.org
Thanksgiving Day Thu, Nov 28
School’s Out Skate Fri, Nov 29 • 1-4pm Supreme Sports Club 410-381-5355
SAVE THE DATE: Breakfast with Santa Sat, Dec 7 • 9-11am Claret Hall • 410-531-1749
SAVE THE DATE: Holiday Breakfast Sat, Dec 14 • 9:30-11am Columbia Gym • 410-531-8984