ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball today announced that the Maryland Smart Growth Subcabinet has approved the renewal of the County’s Sustainable Community designation for the North Laurel-Savage area. This renewal extends the North Laurel-Savage area’s Sustainable Community designation for another five years, through 2029.
Our North Laurel-Savage area is a vibrant community with a rich history and promising future. This Sustainable Community designation allows the County to tap into targeted state resources to revitalize and strengthen our established communities.
Administered by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), Maryland’s Sustainable Communities Program is a place-based designation offering a comprehensive package of state resources that support holistic strategies for community development, revitalization and sustainability. This renewed Sustainable Communities designation ensures the County remains eligible to apply for state programs, grants, tax credits and loans that may be used throughout the North Laurel-Savage Sustainable Community area. Such eligible initiatives include DHCD’s Community Legacy Program, home rehabilitation, streetscape improvement projects and the Strategic Demolition Fund.
This designation reaffirms our commitment to fostering vibrant, resilient, and lasting communities. Since becoming a designated Sustainable Community, we have made many strides in implementing projects in the Savage community and North Laurel area, collaborating with partners and enhancing the quality of life for our residents. We look forward to continuing this positive momentum and creating a more dynamic future for North Laurel-Savage.
First designated a Sustainable Community in 2013 and again in 2019, the North Laurel-Savage area has benefitted from this program through secured state funding used for signage at Savage Park, Patuxent Branch trail resurfacing, Carroll Baldwin Memorial Hall building renovations and Baldwin Commons Park enhancements. The area’s 2013 designation came following the approval of the Sustainable Community Action Plan for the North Laurel-Savage area, which was prepared by the County and a workgroup comprised of County representatives and community stakeholders. The Action Plan focused on six main areas, including environment, housing, transportation, economy, overall quality of life and local land use and planning.
The 2024 Action Plan supports historic tourism in the Savage area, trail and sidewalk network expansions, tree plantings along US 1 and offers strategies to address affordable housing and rehabilitating older housing stock throughout the North Laurel-Savage area. The Sustainable Community designation will enable the County and other eligible stakeholders access to state resources that support the development and revitalization strategies of this Action Plan for North Laurel-Savage throughout the next five years.
“The North Laurel-Savage Sustainable Communities program is an important mechanism for the County to prioritize community projects,” said Sara Vermillion, Carroll Baldwin Memorial Hall Board member. “The Sustainable Communities Grant enabled the Savage community to make critical renovations to historic Baldwin Hall, including improved ADA access and replacing the aging wood floors that were beyond repair.
In addition to the North Laurel-Savage area, Howard County is home to two additional Sustainable Communities, Ellicott City and Long Reach Village.
For more information on the Sustainable Communities in Howard County, visit www.howardcountymd.gov/planning-zoning/sustainable-communities or contact Victoria Olivier in the Department of Planning and Zoning at volivier@howardcountymd.gov.