🍦What’s Slick City?

Good morning, Columbia. Did anyone make it down to Annapolis this week to see the Blue Angels? If so, we (and our colleagues at the Naptown Scoop) sincerely hope you enjoyed it.

In today’s Columbia Scoop:

Let’s get to it.

— Michelle Sinclair

Memorial Day messes with everybody's week — closed offices, a scrambled trash schedule, and a Bay Bridge that turns feral if going to the beach is your thing. So we wrote the whole thing down for you.

Our full Memorial Day guide covers Columbia and Howard County end to end (and a little beyond): what's closed Monday, May 25, how the trash "slide" schedule works, RTA's holiday service, and Bay Bridge survival tips. The quick hits:

The fun part: Columbia Association's 23 outdoor pools open Saturday, summer is officially here, and there's a new spot to pause and remember — the Howard County Veterans and Military Families Monument on the Downtown Columbia Lakefront.

Read the full Memorial Day guide for everything else, including what to do all weekend.

One last thing: there's no Columbia Scoop on Monday. We'll be back Thursday, May 28.

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Howard County's next Student Member of the Board goes to . . . River Hill. Again.

River Hill High School’s Mark Li has been elected the 2026-2027 Student Member of the Board of Education — the one school board seat chosen by students, for students. He's the second River Hill Hawk in a row to land the job.

Li won out over fellow finalist Gavin Falcon of Long Reach High School. Neither got there by accident: peers nominated them, then student delegates named them finalists at the Howard County Association of Student Councils Convention on March 25. The real election ran April 29, with every 6th- through 11th-grader in the county eligible to vote.

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🎈 = family-friendly events

🌱 Girls Night Out at Savage Mill - Shop, sip wine, and play bingo through participating businesses at Savage Mill with plant-themed specials and pop-ups.

📚 Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie in Conversation - The authors discuss their new novel A Founding Mother: A Novel of Abigail Adams in a virtual event hosted by Warwick's.

🐮 Clarksville Commons Farmers Market - Fresh produce, baked goods, meats, flowers, and artisan finds with live music.

🎈🚜 Touch-A-Truck Day - Free family event at Troy Park featuring the mighty trucks and heavy equipment that power our community.

🌱 Plant Swap - Bring garden extras to share or come find free plants if you're new to gardening — donuts served.

🌿 Chesapeake Cactus and Succulent Society Meeting - Journey into South Africa's Succulent Karoo, home to some of the world's most beloved succulents, plus plant swap and Dr. Spike's Plant Clinic.

🍺 Memorial Day at Manor Hill - Manor Hill's farm and taproom opens special hours from noon to 5 PM with farm-brewed beer, the pizza trolley, and live music from Rainy Day Matinee from 1–4 PM.

🎨 2026 Student & Faculty Exhibition - Columbia Art Center showcases pottery, sculptures, glass, paintings, drawings, and mixed media through June 14.

🎨 Maryland Show - Original art celebrating Maryland themes at Artists' Gallery in Ellicott City through May 31.

🎈🎭 Toby's Dinner Theatre Presents: The Wizard of Oz - Follow the yellow brick road with buffet dinner included — multiple showtimes all weekend.

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💰 Want a say in the school budget? – Howard County's Board of Education is recruiting residents for its Operating Budget Review Committee — the group that reviews the school system's operating budget and weighs in on funding priorities. Meetings run every other Wednesday from September through May, virtual and after dinner (7–8:30 p.m.), with the first one in person. Apply by Monday, June 19. Here's how.

🛝Slide into this – Slick City Action Park — 41,000-plus square feet of giant indoor slides, air courts, laser tag, and kid-sized go-karts — is sliding into Columbia, the brand's first Maryland location. It's all dry slides, so no swimsuit required, just a pair of CitySocks. Find it at 9021 Snowden River Parkway when it opens.

🛟 Columbia, summer-job capital – WalletHub crunched 21 metrics across more than 180 markets and ranked Columbia the 4th-best city in America for summer jobs — the only Maryland city to crack the top 10. It scored even higher, 6th, for its youth job market. Translation: if your teen needs a summer gig, the odds are in their favor.

🐶 Dog of the Week: Ozzie. Want a dog who will absolutely adore you? Ozzie is a mixed-breed sweetheart — roughly 5 years old and 15 pounds — who arrived at Almost Home Dog Rescue badly neglected and groomed up into an absolute stunner. He's timid at first, then turns into a world-class cuddler. He's good with other dogs but would be just as happy as your one and only, he's housebroken, and he'd do best in a calm adult home (or one with older, dog-savvy teens). Learn more about Ozzie.

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65 🌡️ 52 | ⛈️ | 94% ☔ | 💨 NE 13 mph

63 🌡️ 48 | 🌧️ | 88% ☔ | 💨 E 13 mph

63 🌡️ 51 | 🌧️ | 88% ☔ | 💨 E 10 mph

74 🌡️ 59 | 🌧️ | 72% ☔ | 💨 E 6 mph

76 🌡️ 60 | 🌧️ | 48% ☔ | 💨 S 5 mph

Bare Bones | Ladies Room | 7 PM
Cured 1821 | Sara Jones| 6 PM

Bare Bones | Impulse | 8 PM
The Barn & Lodge | Patrick Donovan | 8 PM
Cured 1821 | Benji Poreki | 6 PM
Kelsey’s Restaurant & Irish Pub | Joe Wickless | 6 PM
Looney’s Maple Lawn | Doc Marten & The Flannels | 9 PM
The Morgan Inn | Joint Venture | 8 PM
Reckless Shepherd | Vertigo Red | 9 PM
Smashing Grapes | Andrew Bell | 8 PM
Sonomas | School of Rock | 7:30 PM
White Oak Tavern | Callum Toner | 8 PM

Bare Bones | VooDoo | 8 PM
The Barn & Lodge | Brandt Dunn | 8 PM
Collective Encore | Weird Science | 8 PM | Tickets
Cured 1821 | Tim Young| 6 PM
Kelsey’s Restaurant & Irish Pub | Brendan Pelan | 6 PM
Looney’s Maple Lawn | Run For Cover | 9 PM
Reckless Shepherd | The Amish Outlaws | 9 PM
Smashing Grapes | Jennier Schimpf | 8 PM
White Oak Tavern | Tears for Deveres | 8 PM

The Barn & Lodge | Stephen Henson | 8 PM
Cured 1821 | Bob & Aiden | 5 PM
White Oak Tavern | Jazzy Brunch | 11 AM

Thanks for reading Columbia Scoop today. If you found something useful, please share it with someone who went to the United States Naval Academy. As in graduated from, not just went there once lol. . .