One of Columbia's original planners wants to make sure the 1960s-era buildings surrounding Lake Kittimaqundi are preserved as the area prepares for a decades-long redevelopment.

The Lakefront Promenade has been added to Preservation Maryland's 2010 Endangered Sites list, which, while it does not add any tangible protection for historic properties, is designed to raise awareness of them and find solutions for their preservation.

Also added to the Preservation Maryland 2010 Endangered list was Ellicott City's historic district, home to almost 200 buildings built before 1900.

Robert Tennenbaum, one of the first employees of the Rouse Co., which developed Columbia, spearheaded the effort to bring four lakefront buildings in Columbia -- the Rouse, Exhibit and American City buildings, and the Columbia Association Headquarters -- into the preservation program.

"It's a permanent reminder ... of where Columbia all started," he said.

Tennenbaum said he applied to place the sites on the list in part because of future plans for downtown development under General Growth Properties Inc., which owns much of the land in Columbia.

The Howard County Council recently passed legislation enabling General Growth to redevelop downtown Columbia, including the lakefront area, in the next three decades.

"There's no guarantee of any kind that (the buildings) would be retained, and if you look very carefully at the master plan drawings, at the site plans ... the Exhibit Building, CA Headquarters buildings are gone," Tennenbaum said.

Tennenbaum said he would eventually like the County Council to declare the area a historic district, which would offer more protection.

Gregory Hamm, vice president of master planned communities for General Growth, said he does not know how buildings on the endangered list would affect the planned development.

"I haven't seen the final list," Hamm said. "We made it clear in our zoning application that the Rouse building was very significant to the community and would be an important part (of the Lakefront redevelopment)."

State Del. Elizabeth Bobo, a Columbia Democrat, who wrote a letter supporting the endangered status, said the lakefront buildings are important to Columbia's history.

"It does have historic significance and serves as an excellent example of the modern design that was in vogue at the time," Bobo said.

Other properties on list

The complete Endangered Maryland list includes 42 properties, including three in Howard County.

The historic district in Ellicott City was added this year because it recently has come under pressure from developers, according to preservation society officials.

Howard County Council Chairwoman Courtney Watson, who represents Ellicott City, said historic district status protects the town's main street, but encroaching development still could alter the town's character.

"We want to preserve the ambiance and the historic integrity of Historic Ellicott City, and we need to do a better job of making sure our existing regulations don't work against that goal," she said.

County officials should consider the area's historic status when modifying zoning laws around the town, she said.

The third Howard site on the list is Doughoregan Manor, an almost 900-acre property in Ellicott City once belonging to Charles Carroll, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Doughoregan Manor was added to the list in 2007.

Carroll's descendants, who still use the manor as their home, hope to develop the eastern 200 acres of the property as part of a plan to preserve its historic core.

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user comments (1)

user mdresident says...

Ellicott City's historic district? Yes. Columbia's downtown CA office buildings? No. Seems like people are starting to greatly exaggerate the definition of "historic". I've been in and around those buildings. They don't seem like anything special to me. If there is a redesign which is acceptable to the general public, I don't see why they cannot be replaced. This once again smacks of being against any change at all.

Posted 1:34 PM, 03.18.10 | Permalink