Howard County Council discusses next steps for Columbia’s new central library branch

Nov. 14 – More than 20 months after County Executive Calvin Ball announced plans to build a new $144 million, 100,000-square-foot Central Public Library on the Columbia Lakefront, plans remain in flux. This week, the County Council discussed ways to move forward with a plan that has become complicated since it was announced in March 2023.

Carl DeLorenzo, director of policy and programs for the county government, said at Tuesday’s County Council meeting that Ball’s administration is recommending a market study as the next step in the process of identifying potential revenue sources to pay for the project.

According to DeLorenzo, the county is in talks with the Maryland Economic Development Corporation to conduct the market study, which would be paid for with a state grant for the library project.

Council President Deb Jung said she favors combining a new central library project with a proposed new cultural arts center that could “provide this exceptional experience” and save the county some money.

“I think it’s probably not the right thing to do to spend all this money on these two separate buildings,” Jung said.

DeLorenzo pointed out that neither the county nor the library system owns the lake land, and making a deal could lead to more complications. He recommended resolving the disagreements to find a path for the county to move forward with acquiring the site as quickly as possible so that resources are not wasted on design.

The county must decide how much it is willing to spend to achieve its vision, and what location it wants for the library, DeLorenzo said.

Original plans called for Howard Hughes Corp., Columbia’s lead developer and planner of the lake library proposal, to donate land for the Lake Kittamaqundi project. Councilwoman Liz Walsh, who represents District 1, said it would make no sense to move forward with a plan for the lake site if Howard Hughes Corp. would not be willing to give up his land for that use.

“I mean, for me, that’s the big one,” Walsh said. “I feel like everything else is probably doable, but I have no control over who owns it.”

But while there are issues around parking, development control and who will be the designer, there appears to be unity around the need for a new central library. Tonya Aikens, president and CEO of the library system, said the current central branch is “limited, underlined a billion times,” and that the branch cannot meet the demands of the growing community with only one common space, no co-working space and no quiet study space.

Councilwoman Christiana Rigby, who represents District 3, said a new library will be “transformative” for Downtown Columbia and the entire county, but many council members are “rowing in the same direction” despite some outstanding questions about the project.

“I think the longer they remain excellent, the harder it will be to get this project across the finish line,” Rigby said. “And it’s pretty great to have a council that is united around the vision and purpose of this project.”

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Originally published: November 14, 2024 at 7:00 AM EST