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Courtney Watson
House of Delegates
District 9B
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Hello Friends,
Old Ellicott City is buzzing with excitement these days. I hope you can find time to head to Main Street this month to see and experience all of the festivities and holiday spirit!
Wishing you and your family a very Happy Holiday!
Take good care,
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IN THIS ISSUE:
- What's Up on Main Street
- Local Bill Hearing - December 14 at 7 pm
- County Executive Announces New Staff Appointments
- HoCo Holiday Lights Map
- Health News
- HoCo Police Safe Transaction Space
- Congratulations to Our CAPA Interns
- A Way to Support Children in Our Community Over the Holidays
- Volunteer Coordinator Needed for ACS
- ... and more!
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OEC Tree Lighting on December 2 |
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It was a beautiful night on Main Street for Midnight Madness. Hundreds of people showed up for the Christmas Tree lighting with caroling beforehand by the Mt. Hebron Chamber Choir. The Long Reach Madrigals were there, and stores and restaurants were packed.
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We kicked off Small Business Saturday Nov. 26 on Main Street. There are new stores in town - be sure and check them out and shop your small businesses where 70 cents of every dollar you spend goes back into our local economy. Main Street merchants are beautifully decorated for the holidays!
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Public Notice for In Person Hearing on Local Bills
Wednesday, December 14 at 7 pm
Banneker Room,
George Howard Building
3430 Court House Dr, Ellicott City, MD 21043
The Howard County Delegation to the Maryland General Assembly will hold a public hearing for citizen input on local legislation proposed for the 2023 General Assembly session (click on button below for listing). The hearing will be held in the Banneker Room in the George Howard building from 7pm until approximately 11pm. Signup will be available online from 6pm on 12/12 until 6:30pm on 12/14. In person signup will also be available until 6:50pm on 12/14 outside the Banneker Room. The link to the form will be posted here in the coming weeks. It is recommended that you bring 13 copies of written testimony if it accompanies oral testimony. Speaking is not a requirement, so written testimony may also be emailed to hoc1@mlis.state.md.us.
The hearing will be live streamed here.
If necessary, a second hearing on December 15th at 7pm will be held via Zoom to hear testimony that could not be heard on the first night. An announcement will be made if this is the case. The hearing will be live streamed on the Maryland General Assembly website (http://mgaleg.maryland.gov).
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FROM THE OFFICE OF THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE |
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Howard County Executive Calvin Ball Announces Senior Staff Appointments for Second Term
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced four senior staff appointments that will guide his leadership team during his second term. Ball appointed Angela Cabellon to be Chief of Staff, Brian Shepter as Deputy Chief of Staff, Felix Facchine as Assistant Chief of Staff, and Brandee Ganz as the County’s next Chief Administrative Officer.
Angela Cabellon will serve as Chief of Staff. She has served as the County’s first Chief Innovation Officer and the Deputy Chief Administrative Officer since 2018. Cabellon initiated and oversaw the development of the County’s first performance dashboard, the Howard County Data Analytics and Statistics Hub (HoCo DASH). She made more than $1.8 million available to support innovation and operations needs for non-profits. Cabellon served as incident commander and oversaw the County’s COVID-19 pandemic response on behalf of the County Executive, ensuring a data-informed, people-driven response to policy and practice. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland, College Park and Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Cabellon has a 20-year career in public service. Her appointment is effective December 19, 2022. She replaces Sameer Sidh, who has accepted a job as Deputy Chief Administrative Officer in Baltimore County.
Brian Shepter has been named Deputy Chief of Staff. Since March 2021, Shepter has served as Deputy Director in the County’s Department of Planning and Zoning. In this role, he supervised the Zoning and Research divisions and guided department-wide communications and administrative initiatives. Shepter’s experience in and around government spans 15 years. Prior to joining Howard County, he served as General Counsel and Director of External Relations for the Baltimore Metropolitan Council (BMC), the regional planning agency for greater Baltimore. Shepter previously was a special assistant in Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s office, where he coordinated the Administration’s interests before the City’s spending and procurement oversight board. He is a graduate of University of Baltimore School of Law and University of Maryland, College Park. His appointment is effective December 19, 2022. Shepter fills a position that has been vacant since the departure of Jennifer Jones in August 2022.
Felix Facchine has been appointed Assistant Chief of Staff. Facchine has worked in Howard County Government for the last four years as the District Aide to Howard County Councilmember Christiana Rigby. In this role, he advised on local legislative issues for Howard County, with a focus on transportation, housing, and environmental policy. He also oversaw communications efforts for the office, including community outreach, speechwriting, and public relations. Facchine is a two-time alumnus of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and his Master's in Public Policy. His appointment is effective December 19, 2022. He fills a redefined position created with the resignation of Shaina Hernandez, Ball’s Senior Adviser for Policy, who has accepted a job as Deputy Chief of Staff for Governor-Elect Wes Moore.
Brandee Ganz has been appointed to serve as the County’s next Chief Administrative Officer. For the past four years, she has served as the County’s Chief Information Officer and managed more than 100 employees with the Department of Technology and Communication Services. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ganz led efforts to move the County’s workforce to a remote environment, without service interruption to staff or the public. Ganz’s team partnered with County Administration to launch the Transform Howard Initiative which continues to bridge the digital divide within the County. Ganz has worked in IT/Project Management for 20 years and been with the County for seven years. Her appointment is effective March 1, 2023. She received her Bachelor’s degree from Penn State University and her Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. Ganz will replace Lonnie R. Robbins, who is retiring following a 34-year career with Howard County Government. Robbins has served as Chief Administrative Officer since January 2007.
Ball and members of the County Council were installed for second terms in a ceremony at Atholton High School. Photos from the event can be found here. In his installation address Ball called for the community to unite to create the very best place to live, work, play, grow and grow older for all.
Ball called for the continuation of core efforts begun during his first term, including:
- Innovating in the areas of physical and mental health and wellness, so that we can all live longer, healthier, happier and more active lives;
- Expanding apprenticeships, career opportunities, and elevating the entrepreneurs of tomorrow;
- Increasing parks, playgrounds, and places where we can connect, laugh, and create;
- Becoming more energy independent and making more progress on becoming a national model for flood mitigation and resilience;
- Opening more schools and providing the best teaching and learning environment so that our children of all ages and abilities can grow and thrive as adults;
- Creating a community where, as we age, we have accessible outdoor spaces and buildings and efficient transportation options.
Full text of his address can be found here.
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Howard County Executive Ball Launches
2022 Holiday Lights Map
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball launched the 2022 “HoCo Holiday Lights,” for residents and visitors to access an online map of residential and commercial holiday light displays. In 2021, more than 80 locations were registered across the county from Cooksville and Hanover to Woodstock and Laurel.
To register your home, business, or community holiday lights display, click here. To map out a holiday lights drive through Howard County, residents and visitors can search for holiday displays by city, zip code or key word. If you have any questions or issues registering your holiday display, please contact HoCoHolidayLights@howardcountymd.gov. Participants are encouraged to register as early as possible.
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FROM MAURA ROSSMAN, HEALTH OFFICER |
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#NationalInfluenzaVaccinationWeek kicks off on Tuesday 12/6! If you still haven't gotten your flu shot (or your "Flooster" - with your bivalent COVID booster), we're here to help.
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Initial research found that in high-risk individuals, Paxlovid reduced hospitalization and death by nearly 90 percent., yet it's under-utilized. Click here to read more about this from Washington Post columnist Dr. Leana Wen.
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Need a safe place to handle a transaction you arranged online? Two designated parking spaces, marked with yellow signs, are available at the Northern District Station at 3410 Court House Drive, Ellicott City; and also at Southern District Station at 11226 Scaggsville Road, Laurel.
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Thank you to Our Chinese American Parents Association (CAPA) of Howard County Interns
I was glad to attend the CAPA intern graduation tonight and celebrate James Hawkins and Ryan Zhou who spent the past six months as District 9B interns in my office. Our high school students are so impressive. Thank you CAPA and Jean Xu for such a meaningful program to introduce students to government.
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Give a Gift of the Heart - Donations Due by Dec. 12
This year, the Ulman Family will be collecting holiday donations for two organizations - GRASSROOTS and the LUMINUS of Howard County (formerly FIRN).
The Howard County Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center (www.grassrootscrisis.org) is an emergency and transitional shelter, and a 24 hr phone and walk-in crisis center. Luminus (www.beluminus.org) serves new American families from more than 90 countries right here in our community.
For Grassroots: Due too COVID concerns, Grassroots will be having a GIFT CARD ONLY Holiday Giving Drive. Gift cards in $25 or $50 amounts to Walmart, Target, and Amazon (physical cards only, please) will allow individuals to select toys, clothing and accessories for their families. In addition, $25 and $50 grocery gift cards to Giant Food, Safeway, Aldo and Weis will help with food insecurity. Gas gift cards are always good as well.
For Luminus: For children ranging from one year to 18 years old: Suggested unwrapped, new items include:
- Loungewear/pajama sets/Leggings for teens
- Board games, Legos
- Coats, hats, gloves, warm socks, sneakers
- Art supplies, educational toys
- Wallets, watches
- Squishmallows (if you know, you know :))
- Dolls, princess toys
- Earbuds
Drop off items to: 6421 Sundown Trail Columbia, MD 21044
If you prefer to write a check directly to Grassroots or to Luminus of Howard County, the family will be happy to deliver it to each organization and provide you with a tax donation form.
Please make sure item(s) arrive to our home anytime between now and Dec 12 (leave them at the front door if you are dropping off). All will be delivered to Grassroots and to Luminus. Anything you can donate, no matter how big or small would be appreciated.
Questions? Call Jaki at 443-622-5625
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Volunteer Opportunity: Volunteer Coordinator
Volunteers are essential to any thriving non-profit and at Association of Community Services of Howard County (ACS) and the 150-member organization network we represent, our volunteers are the lifeline that keeps our missions afloat!
ACS seeks an individual with great interpersonal, organizational and time management skills to lead the development of our new volunteer program. Each of our 150 nonprofits of varying sizes and diverse missions would benefit from the help of volunteers with both general and specialized skills to continue making Howard County a great place to live and work for all people.
This will be a new ACS program in which the coordinator will work with a team to include staff and a small committee of other volunteers. General program design, a needs assessment survey, recruitment process, intake forms, the matching process, and other vital steps are the development goals that will make this a vibrant and effective program.
If you are interested in this opportunity or have any questions, please email your contact information to Valerie.traore@acshoco.org.
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NEWS FROM THE HOWARD COUNTY CHAMBER |
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Maryland Named the 2nd Happiest State in the U.S.
Maryland is the second happiest state in the U.S., according to a new ranking from WalletHub. The website compared states across three dimensions; emotional and physical well-being, work environment and community and environment. Maryland is No. 2 on the list after Hawaii and just ahead of Minnesota. Maryland took a big step up this year after ranking No. 8 last year. The least happy state on the list? West Virginia.
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CONTACT MY OFFICE
Your thoughts are always welcome. Please contact me by email (see below). Please include "constituent" in the subject line when requesting help for constituent matters.
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Delegate Courtney Watson
Howard County District 9B
Member, Economic Matters Committee
Member, Property and Casualty Insurance Subcommittee
Chair, Workers' Compensation Subcommittee
Vice Chair, Democratic Caucus
Maryland House of Delegates
6 Bladen Street, Room 350
Annapolis, MD 21401
410-841-3077 / 301-858-3077
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