Savage Community Association

08/25/2026

There is a pre-submission meeting tomorrow that we encourage you to attend if you are available; please see below for details.

Tuesday, August 25 at 6:00 p.m., at the East Columbia Library.

Topic: The proposed “Cottages at Patuxent Branch” on Vollmerhausen Road.

What happens at a Pre-Sub meeting? Can we speak out/give our
opinions? Can we make the developer change proposed plans?
The pre-submission community meeting is for the developer/petitioner to provide information to the community regarding the proposed initial plan submittal and to allow community residents to ask questions and make comments before the initial plan submittal for the subject property. While the developer/petitioner is encouraged to work with the community to achieve a mutually acceptable solution to any concerns, unless a change is required by the County Code or the Zoning Regulations, the developer/petitioner is not required to change the proposed development in response to comments made at the pre-submission community meeting.

The link at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o95iUqfD854 is an oldie, but goodie video tutorial for those who’d prefer to learn a lot in just 5 minutes.

Note that while typically no one from DPZ attends the pre-submission meetings, since this is the first application of the new law, the Director has agreed to attend passively to hear comments and ideas. It is not known whether the engineer will present the same plan shown at the DAP meeting or will have drafted a new proposal based on input from the Design Advisory Panel and DPZ staff last week.

Please attend to show your interest in seeing that solutions that are
appropriate for the site, the surrounding neighborhood, and future residents are generated and considered.

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

08/25/2026

Attendance is encouraged this Tuesday, August 25 at 6 PM at the East Columbia library 6600 Cradlerock Way, Columbia, MD 21045
Pre-submission hearing Vollmerhausen Road Cottage Cluster Development
WHAT HAPPENED AT THE DAP HEARING ON 8/12?
DID THEY APPROVE THE PLAN?
No, a vote was not taken after discussing the pros and cons. There was a consensus that with this being the first one of its kind, the engineering team will need to come back before the Design Advisory Panel again after they have gone through other reviews, such as by the fire department.
You can watch for yourself at :
https://howardcountymd.webex.com/.../bd915b8ca29.../playback and moving the timer to 1 hour 51minutes. Below is a partial summary of key items of interests to community members.
General discussion by panel members and DPZ staff focused on the following:
• Cottage cluster development is a hot topic across the nation with an ultimate goal of creating more affordable housing.
• A cluster development should highlight people and the public space , not cars and pavement. Suggestions included that a new plan create a perimeter drive, possibly with a cross street to create quadrants. The emphasis needs to be on people and community space, so “tiny homes are not overwhelmed by a sea of asphalt.”
• Since this is the first proposal, it is critical to determine if this property on Vollmerhausen Road is the right place. A panel member questioned Is this the real estate Howard County wants to put the flag up for 10 units per acre on land surrounded by parks, open space and low density housing? Given the location is not close to shopping or services, it will force people to jump in a car to go to anything. Is this the right move for the very first one we do?
• The interior facing units can create strong place making, a sense of Community, but more cottage feel could be achieved by stepping back some units a little to prevent creating a walled in feeling.
• The developer is still looking for the right “product “which could look different from what is illustrated. (Since product was not defined, we can only speculate as to whether pre-fabricated units that could be dropped on site is what is being explored.)
• Fire department input prior to returning to the DAP is needed on multiple fronts, including whether firefighting equipment could navigate to put out fires in the middle of a five unit grouping? Does the Cottage Cluster law’s requirement that the units not be attached create issues regarding distance between units or with requirements for firewalls and regulations regarding windows?

WHAT COMES NEXT? Pre-submission hearing on
August 25 at 6 PM at the East Columbia library 6600 Cradlerock Way, Columbia, MD 21045 See less

08/12/2026

A proposal for a "Cottage Cluster Development” has been made for a property on Vollmerhausen Road. While the legislation to establish the Zoning Regulation Amendment just became law Monday August 10, 2026 there is a Dept of Planning and Zoning Design Advisory Panel Review to consider the proposal tomorrow (Wednesday).

We encourage community members to plan to “attend” this virtual meeting to hear first-hand what is proposed. The public can listen in, but not speak at the virtual meeting scheduled for 7:00 pm on Weds., Aug. 12. BUT you can provide written feedback to the DAP members prior to the meeting.

https://www.howardcountymd.gov/boards-commissions/design-advisory-panel is your jumping off point to see the agenda, register, see the 6 pages of plans submitted, and submit your comments.

Registering online and logging in will demonstrate that citizens DO have an interest in the proposal for the Vollmerhausen Road property, even if the meeting is not taking public testimony. The proposal under consideration calls for 40 cottages and 64 parking spaces on the less than 5 acre lot which slopes to the Little Patuxent River.

https://www.howardcountymd.gov/sites/default/files/2026-07/Cottages%20at%20Patuxent%20Branch%20DAP%20Presentation%208.12.26_0.pdf Is the direct link to the package submitted to the Design Advisory Panel.

Feedback/comments/criticism needs to arrive by 4 PM on Wednesday the 12th. One can either use the feedback form online or simply email your input to [email protected]

Additionally, a pre-submission meeting regarding the property is scheduled for August 25 at 6 PM at the East Columbia library. A previous pre-submission meeting was held last fall, but that plan, for just a handful of single family homes was replaced once the cottage cluster bill passed.

You can read more about the Cottage Cluster Bill by going to the County Council’s website and pulling up CB025-2026 Final. This will help you evaluate whether the proposal meets the requirements and intent of the legislation.

08/04/2026

Join us now until 8:00pm for National Night Out at Carroll Baldwin Hall and Common!

We have first responders, free cake, free ice cream, and cake walks starting soon!

08/03/2026

What would you do for a Klondike bar?
We have a simple option! Join us for national night out tomorrow from 6-8 pm at Carroll Baldwin Hall.
Bring a school supply donation and stay for neighbors, first responders, cake, ice cream, and the chance to win a cake to take home in our cake walk!

07/31/2026

If you plan to join us on Tuesday for the National Night Out event, please consider bringing some school supplies to donate. We will be providing them to local schools to help those in need and provide a better educational experience for local students. And don't forget to get some cake and ice cream while you are dropping off your supplies!

07/29/2026

Savage celebrates National Night Out with our first responders, but also with cake, ice cream, a school supply drive, and cake walk and we rely on volunteers to make the night a success.

If you would like to volunteer, we would love to have you! To sign up, follow the link below!

Please review the available slots below and click on the button to sign up. Thank you!

07/28/2026

In just one week, we will be celebrating National Night Out at Carroll Baldwin Hall and Common.
Bring some school supplies to donate and stay for ice cream and a cake walk!
If you are feeling particularly inspired, consider baking a cake to donate for the cake walk!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050C44A9AD28A7FD0-64829223-cake #/

07/20/2026

Do you love baking?
We are looking for bakers to bake cakes for our annual National Night Out celebration. If you want to contribute to this wonderful community event, please follow the link for the sign up genius below.
Cakes can be dropped off at Carroll Baldwin Hall between 5:30pm and 6:00pm on Tuesday, 4 August 2026.

Please consider signing up to bake a cake for the cake walk this August 4 at Carroll Baldwin Hall. Thank you!