Forbes Ranks Howard County 17th ‘Best Place to Raise a Family’ in U.S.
Forbes magazine recently released its list of America’s “Best Places to Raise a Family,” and Howard County came in at No. 17 in the nation and stood as the only county in Maryland to make the list.

According to the June 30 issue of Forbes: “Situated between Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., Howard County is one of the smartest counties in the country. Its average SAT score of 1,113 trails only Marin County, Calif., on our list. Howard’s public library system holds the top spot in Hennen’s American Public Library Ratings. “

County Executive Ken Ulman said that, while schools and libraries are critical to the local quality of life, “I am so pleased to see that many other county programs helped earn this honor.”

Those included “our outstanding parks, recreation programs and more personal factors like community personality, religious climate and proximity to friends and family — all factors that make Howard County a great place to call home,” Ulman said.

Money Ranks Ellicott City/Columbia Eighth Among ‘America’s Best Places to Live 2008’
Three days after Forbes magazine named Howard County as one of its top 20 “Best Places to Raise a Family,” Money magazine ranked Ellicott City/Columbia No. 8 on its “America’s Best Places to Live 2008” list.

According to Money: One of the nation’s oldest settlements (it was founded in 1772), Ellicott City snuggles up to one of its newest, Columbia (a planned community conjured up out of 14,000 acres of farmland in 1967). This duo remains a perennial contender on our Best Places list thanks to its mix of charm, comfort and careful zoning.

Historic Ellicott City’s steep Main Street is lined with antique shops and teahouses, while Columbia, a cluster of nine residential villages around a town center, is home to offices of such high-powered tech companies as Arbitron, Merkle and Northrop Grumman. No wonder residents’ median household income has risen more than 20% since 2000.

Though traffic can be a headache, it’s easy to escape it: More than a third of Columbia’s acreage has been set aside as open space, including a 950-acre nature preserve, a skateboard park and three lakes.

groSolar Acquires Chesapeake Solar
groSolar, a provider of solar energy solutions, has acquired Chesapeake Solar, an installer of solar energy systems in the mid-Atlantic region. The deal makes White River Junction, Vt.-based groSolar one of the nation’s largest solar energy providers.

Richard Deutschmann and Jeff Gilbert founded Jessup-based Chesapeake Solar in 1999 as Chesapeake Wind & Solar LLC. They started the company based on their years of engineering experience.

“Given the incredible growth of the solar industry around the world, we think it is the right time to bring the regional strength of Chesapeake Solar into a company with the North American reach of groSolar,” said Deutschmann. “Our joining together will benefit Chesapeake, our past and future customers and, of course, the environment.”

Mtech’s MIPS Program Announces 22 Research Projects Worth $3.6 Million
The Maryland Industrial Partnerships Program (MIPS) has approved 22 research projects that partner Maryland companies with university researchers to develop high tech products.

Worth $3.6 million, the projects combine $1.8 million from participating companies and $1.8 million from MIPS, an initiative of the Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech) at the University of Maryland. Funding supports work in the laboratories of participating university system faculty who work closely with companies to advance their product development. All funding goes to the various university researchers.

Eleven approved projects are in the field of biotechnology, three are in the area of homeland security and four are related to energy. Local companies and their projects are listed below by company, participating campus, project title and funding amount.

• A&G Pharmaceuticals Inc., Columbia, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore: Serum GP88 as Predictor of Breast Cancer Outcome, $184,000
• American Dynamics Flight Systems Inc., Jessup, and the University of Maryland, College Park: AD-150 VTOL UAS Flight Dynamics Modeling, $135,021
• Refractory Composites Inc., Glen Burnie, and the University of Maryland, College Park: Gel Fuel Development, $28,796
• Sensics Inc., Glen Burnie, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County: Video Processor for Panoramic Head-Mounted Display, $135,000

Howard County Accepting Applications for Moderate Income Housing Program
Howard County’s Department of Housing and Community Development is still accepting applications for the July enrollment period for the county’s Moderate Income Housing Unit (MIHU) program.

The MIHU program is an inclusionary zoning program that requires developers of new housing in certain zoning districts to sell or rent some of the new dwelling units to households with moderate incomes. The program offers quality new homes at reduced prices and rents to eligible families.

The county will also hold an “MIHU Buyers and Renters Workshop” today, July 22, in Room 6 of the Gateway Building, 6751 Columbia Gateway Drive in Columbia, from 7 to 9 p.m. The application deadline is July 31.

MIHU enrollment periods for purchase opportunities are held quarterly. The next MIHU lottery is expected to be held in mid-August. Interested persons should visit the county web site for information about the program at www.howardcountymd.gov, or call the Department of Housing & Community Development at 410-313-6318.

State Retains AAA Bond Ratings
The state of Maryland has retained its AAA ratings with all three bond rating agencies, Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s.

The rating are “an affirmation of Maryland’s sound financial operations, diverse economy and smart fiscal policy,” said Gov. Martin O’Malley. “I want to thank Treasurer Kopp for her leadership and sound management of our state’s finances, and the members of the General Assembly for working with us to close the $1.7 billion structural deficit that we inherited.

“This highest possible bond rating is granted only to those governments that demonstrate remarkable fiscal stewardship and the people of Maryland should be proud to be one of only seven states to receive this designation,” O’Malley said.

Howard County Releases Preliminary Transit Recommendations
Howard County Executive Ken Ulman has released a consultant report outlining preliminary recommendations for upgrading and expanding the county’s local bus service, Howard Transit.

The report will be presented by the consultant, KFH Group, at a meeting of the county’s Public Transportation Board (PTB) today, Tuesday, July 22, at 7 p.m. in the George Howard Building at 3430 Court House Drive in Ellicott City.

Following the PTB meeting, the public will have 60 days in which to comment on the draft recommendations prior to preparation of a final report. The report is available electronically on the county’s web site at www.howardcountymd.gov.

GetEducated.com Ranks Capitol College Among Nation’s Best
The national editorial review team at GetEducated.com, an independent, online degree clearinghouse, has designated Capitol College’s master of science degree in electrical engineering a “Best Buy” for 2008.

The award is based on a review of 216 regionally accredited, competing universities offering online degree and distance-learning options nationwide. Capitol’s electrical engineering master’s degree program is ranked 22nd on the site’s Top 28 Ranked Best Buy Online/Distance Engineering Degrees.

A GetEducated.com press release reflecting on the rankings mentioned that while MIT and Stanford are top names in distance learning for engineers, they also rank as the top two most expensive distance learning institutions, charging $86,000 and $57,000, respectively, for an M.S. in engineering.

Comparatively, the release identifies Capitol as the “only private college that made the Best Buy among online colleges ranking list,” coming in at $16,200 for an online master’s in electrical engineering.

Micros Announces Stock Buyback
Micros Systems, a Columbia-based supplier of information systems to the hospitality and retail industries, has announced that its board of directors has approved the repurchase of an additional 2 million shares of its Common Stock during the next three years.

This follows the 2 million shares of common stock (post-split) approved by the Micros board of directors in November 2007 for repurchase, which has been substantially completed. Shares will be purchased from time to time in the open market as business conditions warrant.

Howard County Tourism Debuts County’s First Restaurant Weeks
Howard County Tourism and more than 20 independent restaurants are set to participate during the county’s first Restaurant Weeks promotion, which began yesterday, Monday, July 21, and will continue through Aug. 3.

Participating restaurants will offer a three-course dinner menu for $30.08, and a two-course lunch menu for $20.08 (tax and gratuity not included, promotions and menus varies by restaurant). Cities across the U.S. have hosted Restaurant Weeks in response to the popularity of culinary tourism.

The first-ever national culinary tourism report from the Travel Industry Association (TIA) stated that culinary tourism is a growing travel trend, with 27 million travelers, or 17% of American leisure travelers, engaged in culinary or wine-related activities while traveling within the past three years. The report surveyed more than 2,300 U.S. leisure travelers.

To see a list of participating restaurants, visit www.visithowardcounty.com and go to the Restaurant Week link on the left. The site links directly to the restaurants. Reservations are recommended, and should be made by calling the restaurant directly. Participation/promotions vary by restaurant.

New Book Details Columbia Street Names
The Columbia Archives has published a new book detailing the historic, literary and artistic sources of Columbia’s street names. Titled Oh, You Must Live in Columbia: The Origins of Place Names in Columbia, Maryland, the book was released in conjunction with this year’s Columbia Festival of the Arts and is available at the Columbia Archives office for $24.99. Sales will benefit the Columbia Archive’s programs.

“The depth to which we went was painstaking and frustrating at times, but we’ve had a good response,” said archives director Barbara Kellner, who co-authored the guide with fellow archivist Robin Emrich and Missy Burke, a Columbia resident.

“We self-published the book, so it’s been a bit harder to [market] it,” Kellner said, “but we do have a few events throughout the year where we will be promoting it.”

Commission on Disability Issues Seeks Nominees for Annual Awards
The Howard County Commission on Disability Issues has announced that nomination forms are now available for its 2008 awards program. Awards are given annually to recognize outstanding efforts in advancing full participation in community life for all citizens, promoting both the spirit and intent of the Americans with Disabilities Act and achieving independence through pursuing personal goals while living with a disability.

The categories for nominations include: Employer; Service Provider; Access – Universal Design; Access – Community; Individual Achievement – Adult; Individual Achievement – Youth; and Educator. The deadline for nominations is Thursday, July 31.

Nominees may be a business, a corporation, a building or any place of public accommodation, an individual or agency providing exceptional services, or an individual who has positively influenced others with disabilities. They must live, work or provide services in Howard County.

For details about the award categories or to download a nomination form, call 410-313-6402 or visit Howard County government’s web site and the Disability Services page at www.howardcountymd.gov/DS. Winners will be recognized at the annual celebration on Thursday, Oct. 2, at 6:30 p.m. in the Banneker Room of the George Howard Building.