🍦Why HoCo won't get a second hospital

Good morning, Columbia. About 116,000 Howard County ballots have been counted, and mail-ins can keep arriving through next week, so the final tally is still a ways off. Here’s a number that’s final: we’ve typed “Calvin Ball” more than 120 times since we started this newsletter in April of 2025. He steps down November 16 to lead Baltimore City Community College. Somewhere, a pair of ceremonial scissors is breathing a sigh of relief.

In today’s Columbia Scoop:

Election results
Free VIN etching
Yemeni coffee opening date

Let’s get to it.

— Michelle Sinclair

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS

Atterbeary elected county executive, Carter leads in District 5 🗳️

Vanessa Atterbeary at a Maryland House committee hearing

Photo: Joe Andrucyk / Maryland GovPics

Looks like we have our next county executive. The AP projects Vanessa Atterbeary (D) as the winner, with 81% of the vote over Green Party candidate Nater Kane. She’ll be the first Black woman to lead the county and takes office December 7. MD Gov. Wes Moore also won a second term, with 69% of Howard’s vote.

District 5 was the only contested county council race. Cat Carter (D) leads Ryan O’Connor (R) 53% to 47%, or about 1,600 votes, and she declared victory Tuesday night. O’Connor had stronger Election Day voting, but Carter dominated early voting and the mail-ins. She’ll be the first Democrat to hold the western county seat since 1986.

📜 Charter questions: Question A (gender-neutral language in the charter) is failing 54% to 46%. Question B (capital budget money for Housing Commission for-sale homes) is passing 58% to 42%.

These are unofficial results, last updated by the state late Wednesday night. They include early voting, all 67 Election Day precincts, and the mail-ins counted so far. More mail-ins and the provisional ballots still need counting, so the numbers can move. Click here for the most up to date results.

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📅 Events calendar

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SECOND OPINION

Why a second Howard County hospital is unlikely 🏥

Howard County General Hospital sign and entrance

Photo: G. Edward Johnson / Wikimedia Commons

If you’ve ever sat in the ER at HoCo’s only hospital, you’ve probably wondered why we still haven’t built another one. A county task force spent the last year pondering that question. The short answer. . . It’s not up to us.

The Maryland Health Care Commission has to approve any new hospital, and the state’s current numbers say Central Maryland doesn’t need more acute care beds. That makes a second hospital “highly unlikely under present conditions,” according to the Howard County Provider Forum’s final report. Staffing shortages and the price tag also don’t help the cause.

Instead, the forum’s 25 recommendations focus on keeping you out of a long ER line. Two you’ll spot first:

🛏️ More beds next month – The 29-bed observation unit we wrote about last November had its ribbon cutting October 22. It’s expected to open to patients in early December. It’s the hospital’s first big bed expansion since 2009, and it’s built to move ER patients upstairs faster.

📱 Check before you go – The forum wants to expand SmartER, the county tool that shows how busy the ER is and points you to nearby urgent cares if they better suit your need.

With Veterans Day next week, here’s one more: every adult urgent care center in HoCo now takes the VA’s Community Care Network. We currently have about 20,000 veteran residents.

Next, the forum wants a permanent commission to keep the work going. More on that soon.

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EVENTS

Weekend preview

Photo: Courtesy of Howard County Government

🎈 = family-friendly events

All weekend

🎈🎭 White Christmas at Toby’s – Irving Berlin’s holiday classic opens Friday and runs through January 10. Shows are 8 PM Friday and Saturday, with a 12:30 PM brunch show and a 7 PM show Sunday.

🎈🛍️ Howard County Crafts Spectacular – More than 375 crafters fill every building at the Howard County Fairgrounds, with magic shows Saturday and Sunday. It runs 9 AM to 5 PM Friday and Saturday, 9 AM to 4 PM Sunday.

🎈🎃 Pumpkin Chucking Weekend at Clark’s Elioak Farm – The farm’s catapult launches your pumpkin across the field to close out the season. Saturday and Sunday, 10 AM to 5:30 PM, and Sunday is the last day of the pumpkin patch.

🐕 I Got Your Six weekend at Manor Hill Brewing – Manor Hill releases a beer brewed by a Marine veteran and his fellow vets ahead of Veterans Day. The release party runs 4 to 9 PM Friday, and Warrior Canine Connection brings its service dogs from noon to 7 PM Saturday.

🎭 Lost Girl at Hammond High – Wendy grows up and goes looking for Peter Pan in Hammond Theatre’s fall play. Shows are 7 PM Thursday and Friday, plus 2 and 7 PM Saturday.

🎭 Failure: A Love Story at Centennial High – Centennial’s dark comedic musical fable wraps its two-weekend run. Shows are 7 PM Thursday (understudy cast) and Friday, plus 2 and 7 PM Saturday.

Thursday

🎨 Paint, Sip & Create – Paint an owl, a nature scene, or your own pet at the Howard County Conservancy. No experience needed, 6:30 to 8:30 PM.

🀄 Mahjong at Sapwood – Learn the game or join a table at Sapwood Cellars from 6:30 to 8:30 PM.

Friday

🎷 The Songs of the Big Band Singers – The Columbia Jazz Band opens its season with songs made famous by Frank Sinatra, Natalie Cole, and more. It’s at 7:30 PM at the Wilde Lake Interfaith Center.

😂 SolPlay Improv Comedy Showcase – SolPlay’s improv teams and guest team Watch Party take the Black Box Theater at the Capitoline Center in Ellicott City. The show starts at 8 PM.

🔭 Friday Late Night Planetarium – Robinson Nature Center’s adult planetarium night covers rings and belts, then screens “Planet 9.” It starts at 8 PM, and you reserve by phone at 410-313-0400.

Saturday

🎈🚁 Howard County’s first drone show – 800 drones light up the sky over the Columbia Lakefront for America’s 250th. Food trucks open at 4:30 PM, the band Liquid A plays at 5:30, and the show starts around 7 PM. It’s free.

🎈🛍️ Oakland Mills High School Craft Fair – The 37th annual fair brings more than 40 vendors with handmade gifts, home decor, books, and sweets. It’s free, 10 AM to 3 PM.

🎈🚲 Cranksgiving – Bike to the Mall in Columbia with groceries for Grassroots Crisis Intervention and help your village win the food drive. Drop-off is 10 AM to 1 PM, and registration is free.

🎈🪶 Native American Heritage Month Celebration – The county celebrates Native art, history, and culture at the Harriet Tubman Cultural Center from noon to 3 PM.

Sunday

🎈🇺🇸 Howard County Veterans Day Parade – The 12th annual parade steps off at 9:30 AM in Downtown Columbia, with a ceremony right after. Bring a new, unwrapped toy for the Toys for Tots bin at the Lakefront.

🎈🛍️ Long Reach Craft & Vendor Fair – More than 100 vendors with crafts, art, jewelry, and food fill Long Reach High School from 10 AM to 3 PM.

🎈🎶 Maryland State Boychoir – Catonsville Concerts at 3 opens its 28th season with the boychoir at Catonsville Presbyterian Church. It’s free at 3 PM.

Columbia Scoop’s full events calendar 📅
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In other news. . .

🚗 Glass Act – Turns out thieves don’t like cars with their ID number on every piece of glass. Howard County police will etch your car’s VIN onto its windows for free Saturday at the Southern District station in Fulton, making it easier to get a stolen one back to you. Hyundai and Kia owners can also grab a free steering wheel lock while they last. Details here. It runs 8 AM to 1 PM, weather permitting.

🎰 Poker Face – Somebody’s $181,891 richer after buying a World Championship Poker FAST PLAY ticket early Monday at the 7-Eleven on Washington Boulevard in Elkridge. It hit the game’s progressive jackpot, which starts at $40,000 and grows with every ticket sold. The winner has 182 days to claim the prize. So, it might be worth checking your cupholder.

☕ Grounds For Celebration – Qamaria Yemeni Coffee Co. is set to open November 20 in the old Po’ Boy Jim’s space at The Metropolitan, across from the Mall in Columbia. Qamaria’s thing is Yemeni coffee spiced with cardamom and cinnamon, plus Yemeni teas and qishr, a traditional drink brewed from coffee husks. Yum. I didn’t know coffee had husks.

🔌 Current Events – HoCo is one of four finalists for Government Leadership in Plug In America’s national Drive Electric Awards. We’re up against Arizona State University, the New York Power Authority, and Santa Barbara Clean Energy. Turns out all those free public charging ports are getting some national attention. But will it be enough for us to charge ahead? We’ll find out Nov. 10 during Plug In America’s livestream.

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WEATHER

Crisp fall weather calls for a day outside. Maryland’s Best Helmets & Harvest pairs local trails with farms, wineries and more through November 15. The free pass features stops like the BWI Trail, LEO Annapolis and other locations across the state. Check in at each stop to earn free prizes!

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