Some of the great news about our 50th Birthday Celebration!
Here’s a suburban experiment cities can learn from (via WaPo)
By Amanda Kolson Hurley In an era when city living is virtually synonymous with cool, Columbia, Md., emanates suburban uncool. Located off U.S. Route 29 between Washington and Baltimore, Columbia is not a tight grid on the map, but a plate of spaghetti — a tangle of crooked parkways and cul-de-sacs. Cities reach for the…
Howard County is the picture for this artist (via Columbia Flier)
Mike Giuliano Howard County’s rural landscapes and the Columbia cityscape have long served as subject matter for local artist Mary Jo Tydlacka, whose exhibit at the Bernice Kish Gallery at Slayton House is tied into the ongoing celebration of Columbia’s 50th birthday. Tydlacka, who has lived in Columbia since 1970, has frequently exhibited at Slayton…
Pro Cantare concert highlights anniversaries (via Columbia Flier)
By Mike Giuliano Columbia Pro Cantare’s concert on Sunday, May 14, at 8 p.m., falls on Mother’s Day, but that special occasion is actually coincidental for a concert program called “Anniversary Celebrations!” “It’s the 50th birthday for Columbia, our 40th anniversary and the 20th anniversary of the Jim Rouse Theatre,” said Columbia Pro Cantare’s founding…
Howard Community College’s focus on students will carry on [Commentary] (via Columbia Flier)
By Kathleen Hetherington Part of our series of essays from leaders imagining the future of Columbia. Jim Rouse would be very proud to see the changes that have occurred at Howard Community College since we opened our doors to students in 1970. While our 50th anniversary is still a few years away, we are proud…
Rouse’s vision is focus of Founder’s Day festivities on May 9 (via Baltimore Sun)
By Janene Holzberg With six months’ worth of 50th birthday festivities already underway in Columbia, one coming event stands out for its goal of zeroing in on what the future may hold for the planned city. “Founder’s Day: A Celebration of the Vision, Leadership and Legacy of James Rouse” will be held May 9 with…
Gail Holliday’s iconic posters return for Columbia’s 50th birthday (via Columbia Flier)
More than 50 years ago, Gail Holliday left her home state of California for a job in Maryland. Fresh out of college, the young artist had been hired by Jim Rouse to capture his vision, in art, of his new city, Columbia. Fast forward to the present and Holliday has again traveled across the country,…
Howard high schools commemorate Columbia founder’s artistic appreciation (via Howard County Times)
When James Rouse founded Columbia in June 1967, arts and education were inclusive components for the healthy, growing community, according to Pam Land, Howard County public school’s lead theater arts teacher. To remember a man who supported the dreams of future artists, Land said more than 700 students representing Howard County’s 12 high schools will…
Columbia turns 50 (via Howard County Times)
Columbia celebrates its 50th year this year. The milestone milestone comes at a pivotal time for the planned community, which is old enough that some of its earliest neighborhoods are fraying and need uplift, and young enough that it is only now undertaking the task of creating a true downtown. Follow along as we take…
Part 5 Columbia at 50 POLITICS: The Shifting Weight of Columbia Power (via Maryland Reporter)
By Len Lazarick As the election returns came in the night of Nov. 5, 1974, Howard County’s old guard was riding high. It looked like their campaign to “Beat the BLOC VOTE” from Columbia had worked. Republicans would get their first county executive, and car dealer Charlie Miller, who had approved the plans to build…
Part 4 Columbia at 50: Media in the New Town: Communications part of building community; the Flier and the rest (via Maryland Reporter)
By Len Lazarick Tom Graham’s decision to move from The Howard County Times to the Columbia Flier was a bit puzzling to me as I visited him and the new planned community for the first time in early 1973. After 14 months, Tom was leaving the well-established Times that looked like a traditional newspaper for…
Columbia named #1 Best Place to Live in US by Money Magazine
You know the phrase “50 is the new 30?” Apparently, that applies to cities and towns, too. Columbia, Md., turns 50 next year, and it’s never looked better. One of the most successful planned communities in the country, Columbia is a magnet in the Baltimore–Washington corridor, attracting families in search of good schools and businesses…
Part 3: Shopping and Retailing at the Heart of the Columbia Plan (via Maryland Reporter)
By Len Lazarick Tony Tringali is a living fossil, a historical remnant of ancient Columbia. His barbershop in the Wilde Village Center is not just antique; it qualifies for a plaque as a historic landmark of the Founding Father’s plans. Tony is the last merchant standing from those that opened their doors 49 years ago…
PART 2: Working in Columbia: Its Downtown and Business Parks Went Up and Down With The Economy (via Maryland Reporter)
By Len Lazarick It was an odd celebration, even for the honorees. In hindsight, the way Ryland Homes commemorated its long, 35-year partnership with the Rouse Co. in 2001 was ironic for both companies. In the Ten Oaks ballroom in Clarksville — at the far western edge of the Rouse Co.’s “new town” — the…
PART 1: How the “garden for growing people” got planted and grew (via Maryland Reporter)
By Len Lazarick When I tell people I’ve lived in Columbia 43 years, some say, “Oh you must be a pioneer.” But a pioneer, in old-Columbia speak, is technically someone who moved here in its first year, 1967–68. A few of those 2,200 souls are left, and all can tell you of the first store,…
