Howard County Sharpens Focus on Environment, Community Planning
Howard County’s Department of Planning and Zoning has announced that the Division of Environmental and Community Planning has been restructured into two new separate divisions: the Resource Conservation Division and the Division of Comprehensive and Community Planning.

The new Resource Conservation Division (RCD) will focus on environmental protection, agricultural land preservation and historic preservation. Led by Elmina Hilsenrath, ASLA, the division will work closely with the Office of Environmental Sustainability and assume staffing of the County’s Historic District Commission.

The division also will oversee a water resources plan, guidance for green neighborhoods, inter-jurisdictional watershed planning, a revised Forest Conservation Manual, a Cool Cities initiative, and environmental outreach and education, including collaboration with other county agencies on the annual GreenFest. The Historic District Commission’s historic sites survey and related oversight activities will be reassigned from the Public Service and Zoning Administration Division to the new RCD, while the Agricultural Land Preservation program will continue to oversee and strategically expand easement holdings.

The new Division of Comprehensive and Community Planning (DCCP) will focus on increasing revitalization efforts in the Route 1 Corridor, Downtown Columbia, the Route 40 Corridor and Columbia’s village centers.

Led by William Mackey, AICP, the division will staff the newly created Design Advisory Panel (DAP) that will provide guidance for projects along the Route 1 Corridor. DCCP also elevates comprehensive planning to division-level status, and the new division anticipates preparing a General Plan Monitoring Report within the next year. Current pilot projects such as the planning for Robert Oliver Place Enhancement (ROPE) in Oakland Mills will continue and could act as a model for future small-scale, community-based initiatives.

Howard County Releases Green Neighborhood Guidance Document for Sites
Howard County’s Department of Planning and Zoning has released its Green Neighborhood Guidance Document for Sites, in support of Howard County’s Green Neighborhood Program.

 The Green Neighborhood Program is a pilot program under County Executive Ken Ulman’s “Live Green Howard County” initiative that strives to make Howard County a model green community. “We are excited to offer this incentive-based program and look forward to seeing Green Neighborhoods as exemplary models of sustainable building and development,” said Ulman.

The program is divided into two components, both of which must be fulfilled for a community to be recognized as a Green Neighborhood. The “Sites” portion of the program is overseen by the Department of Planning and Zoning, and the “Homes” portion of the Green Neighborhood Program is managed by the Department of Inspections, Licenses and Permits.

A draft guidance document for homes is expected to be available for public comment this fall. The documents contain detailed descriptions of each available credit, including the intent, the criteria to be met, any required submittals and frequently asked questions. For more information, visit www.howardcountymd.gov and look under “What’s New.”

Ulman, Cardin, Sarbanes Join Forces to Urge Action on Nation’s Energy Crisis
Howard County Executive Ken Ulman, U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin and U.S. Congressman John Sarbanes are calling on Congress to vote in favor of vitally important renewable energy legislation that would extend investment tax credits for installing solar energy beyond the current Dec. 31 deadline.

Howard County hopes to install solar panels at its former landfill site off New Cut Road to offset electrical use at nearby Worthington Elementary School.

Kingspan Group Announces the Acquisition of MeTecno USA
Jessup-based Kingspan, a manufacturer of a range of sustainable products for the construction industry, has acquired MeTecno, a holding company for the MeTecno businesses in the USA. They include MeTecno BV, a subsidiary of the MeTecno Group, which is a global manufacturer of composite sandwich panels.

MeTecno, operating under the ASI, API and Benchmark brands, is the second largest manufacturer of composite sandwich panels in the U.S. and operates from Florida, Ohio and California. MeTecno also includes a leading architectural metal wall and roof panel profile business, operating under the Morin brand, from sites in Connecticut and California.

The acquisition gives Kingspan critical mass in the United States, and when combined with existing Canadian market leadership, gives unrivaled geographical market reach in North America at a time when demand for insulation products is expected to increase due to economic and regulatory pressures.

The $111 million agreement is unconditional and is being cash paid on completion for shares of $86 million, plus bank debt acquired of circa $25 million. The consideration may vary depending on actual debt acquired.

Dingman Center, Mtech Recognized for Entrepreneurship Excellence
 The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship and Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech) spurred the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business to a No. 9 ranking in the business specialty category for entrepreneurship. The rankings appear in U.S. News & World Report’s annual America’s Best Colleges 2009 issue.

The Dingman Center and Mtech, an institute of the A. James Clark School of Engineering, are flagship entrepreneurship centers at the University of Maryland that offer a comprehensive set of programs for students, faculty and alumni focused on innovation and creating new ventures.

“We are excited to see the university’s entrepreneurship efforts recognized on a national scale,” said Dr. James Green, director of Mtech’s Hinman CEOs Program and associate director of entrepreneurship education. “Technology creators who comprehend entrepreneurial concepts will help weave innovation into the fabric of industry. That means new companies that create new jobs, stimulate the economy, and bring life-saving, life-changing and life-enhancing technologies to consumers.”

“Innovation is by nature a collaborative process,” said Asher Epstein, managing director of the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “There’s a lot of distance between creating a great idea and bringing it to the marketplace. The Dingman Center — with its network of resources and experience growing firms from the back of a napkin to the first million dollars — serves as a great catalyst to many Mtech ventures and vise versa.”

Tecore Receives USDA Rural Development Acceptance
Columbia-based Tecore Networks, a provider of GSM, CDMA, 3G and multi-protocol mobile networks, has announced that its portfolio of core and radio access network products has received Rural Development Acceptance and “Buy American” status from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Rural cellular carriers can now select Tecore products when requesting federal funds from Rural Development (formerly known as the Rural Utility Service).

Tecore Networks is advancing mobile communications by enabling operators and government organizations to deliver connectivity across all major protocols and generations through software-defined, IP-centric solutions. The company’s patented network architecture has been deployed worldwide to support GSM, GPRS/EDGE, CDMA and 3G communications.

Value-added features such as Over-the-Air Prepaid Roaming can be integrated via software plug-ins to enable carriers to increase average revenue per user (ARPU) and retention. Tecore’s Rural Village System is designed to address the challenges of delivering a consistent level of coverage and services to rural and remote communities as in the operator’s main network, given the lower population density and revenue potential.

Van Hollen, Delegates Call for Fiscal Relief for Maryland Families
U.S. Representative Chris Van Hollen joined Maryland State Delegates Gerron Levi, Bill Bronrott, James Proctor, Jr. and Heather Mizeur, and former Talbot County Councilmember Hilary Spence, in urging Congress to help protect Maryland’s families with a fiscal relief package.
 
The support came as a new report on Maryland’s budget crisis was released by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). The report highlights the immediate need for aid to Maryland with a series of recommendations for Congressional action to protect Maryland families.

After addressing a substantial budget gap for fiscal 2009, recent tax collections indicate that there will be a $200 million shortfall before the end of the fiscal year. That could result in another round of cuts in vital public services, which could exacerbate the economic downturn, worsen unemployment and poverty, and underfund and undermine infrastructure and public service delivery systems.

Alzheimer’s Association to Hold Memory Walk at HCC on Oct. 25
The Alzheimer’s Association has selected a new location for its annual Howard Memory Walk. This year’s event will occur Saturday, Oct. 25, rain or shine, at Howard Community College.

“We relocated to Howard Community College to increase visibility and awareness for the Alzheimer’s Association and the research, programs and services funded by Memory Walk,” said Amanda Sciukas, special events manager for the Alzheimer’s Association, Greater Maryland Chapter. “The new location also provides convenient parking and easy access to the registration and entertainment area.”

Registration starts at 8 a.m. and the 2.5-mile walk will commence at 9 a.m. Memory Walk participants are encouraged to register early, as teams (four-plus members) or individually. Registration is free and available online at www.alz.org/maryland. To register by phone, call 410-561-9099 or 800-272-3900.

Board of Ed Meeting, Presentation to Feature Superintendent’s Budgets
The Howard County Board of Education will hold a meeting at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 4, in the Board Room at the Department of Education, 10910 Route 108 in Ellicott City.

During the evening session, which convenes at 7:30 p.m., Superintendent Sydney Cousin will present his Proposed FY 2010 Capital Budget and FY 2011–15 Capital Improvement Program. Each session will begin with a public forum. Advanced sign-up is preferred. To sign up to speak at public forum, contact the board’s office at 410-313-7194.