James Rouse

Maryland Historical Society

Columbia (population 2000 88,254), located midway between Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington D.C., is a master planned community in Maryland. Columbia was hailed as “The Next America” when it was founded in 1967 because of its innovative planning and comprehensive development. It is still cited by professional planners as one of the best examples of a new town and was recognized in 2006 as one of the best places to live and raise a family by publications such as Frommer’s and Money Magazine.1

Columbia boasts a racially, economically, and ethnically diverse community and the employment base, educational, recreational, commercial and cultural entities to allow residents to live, work, and play.

History and Vision
Columbia began with the vision of James Rouse, president of The Rouse Company, known for its pioneering development of enclosed shopping centers and festival marketplaces such as Fanueil Hall in Boston and Harborplace in Baltimore.

The Rouse Company (TRC) began acquisition of land in rural Howard County in November 1962. Connecticut General Life Insurance Company committed as a primary investor and, with TRC, formed the jointly-owned Howard Research and Development Corporation (HRD) to develop Columbia. Bill Finley, who had been director of the National Capital Planning Commission in Washington, D.C., was hired to direct the planning and development of the new town. Other key members of the team were Morton Hoppenfeld and Bob Tennenbaum.

HRD acquired more than 14,000 acres between November 1962 and October 1963, and then publicly announced its purpose to build a city. Detailed planning for the new city proceeded from October 1963 to November 1964 with a team that became known as “the work group.” Rouse recruited nationally known experts in a wide array of disciplines to determine the most vital social and institutional components of the new city and how they might best be reflected in a physical environment.

On November 11, 1964, James Rouse made a formal presentation to officials of Howard County, outlining the master plan. In August 1965, Howard County granted “new town zoning,” leading the way to full-scale go-ahead for the project. Construction began in June 1966, and a year later, June 21, 1967, Wilde Lake was dedicated, marking the beginning of Columbia.

Columbia Today
The development of Columbia was guided by four basic goals that have been realized.
Goal 1: To build a complete city. “Like any real city of [a projected] 100,000, Columbia will be economically diverse, polycultural, multi-faith, and interracial,” said Rouse. Columbia is 66.4 percent white; 21.3 percent black; 7.6 percent Asian and Pacific Islander; 2.8 percent two or more races; and 1.7 percent other race. The Hispanic population, which can be of any race, make up 4.2 percent of the population in Columbia. 2

There are more than 34,000 residential units ranging from subsidized apartments to single-family homes ranging in price from $160,000 to more than $1 million. There is a strong economic base with almost 83,000 jobs.3

Major private sector employers include Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Howard County General Hospital, SAIC, MICROS Systems, and Arbitron. A broad array of recreational facilities is operated by the Columbia Association as well as private enterprises. Howard County has a top ranked public school system serving Columbia, and Howard County Community College is located in Columbia Town Center. Over 60 religious congregations meet in Interfaith Centers and other meeting spaces in Columbia where there is a tradition of not building individual religious buildings. Howard Transit provides public transportation within Columbia.

Merriweather Post Pavilion, opened in 1967, continues to be a major music venue and a landmark. Columbia Festival of the Arts brings major entertainment to the area each summer. Columbia is not known for innovative architecture but it does boast early examples of Frank Gehry’s work including the General Growth Properties building, originally the headquarters of The Rouse Company and Merriweather Post Pavilion.

Goal 2: To respect the land. Rouse believed strongly that “people should be able to feel the spaces of nature as part of their everyday life.” Over 3,400 acres are parks, playgrounds, and natural areas including three man-made lakes, such as Kittamaqundi, Wilde, and Elkhorn. More than 90 miles of pathways weave through the residential and business areas.

Goal 3: To provide for the growth of people. Rouse believed that “the most successful community would be that which contributed to the growth of people.” The Columbia Association, the neighborhood and village design, the Columbia Foundation, and all the nonprofit organizations, all contribute to a philosophy of caring that permeates the community and fosters personal growth and a sense of community. The symbol of Columbia is The People Tree. This sculpture is located in Columbia Town Center and artistically represents this goal.

Goal 4: To make a profit. For The Rouse Company, this was a major goal not only as a business principle but to provide a usable model for other development. It took a long time, but Columbia has been profitable since the mid-1980s. In 2004, General Growth Properties acquired The Rouse Company.

Today, Columbia is reaching residential build-out, but the city will never be finished. Continuing dedication to keeping the community vital is a responsibility held by Columbia Association, General Growth Properties, village community associations, and other organizations. This drives the private sector to follow suit. A second generation has begun to make Columbia home as the children of the early residents begin to raise families of their own. Columbia will be 40 years old in 2007. The history of Columbia is still being written.

Endnotes

1. Money* Best Places to Live 2006, (Money Magazine) ranked Columbia/Ellicott City number 4 and
Frommer’s Best Places to Raise a Family 2006 ranked Columbia number 9.

2. Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning, Research Report, Issue 12, March 2004.

3. Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning , Research Report, Issue 2, Sept. 2001

Bloom, Nicholas Dagan. Suburban Alchemy. Columbia: Ohio State University Press, 2001.

Forsyth, Ann. Reforming Suburbia. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2005.

Kellner, Barbara. Images of America: Columbia. Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2005.

Olsen, Joshua. Better Places Better Lives. Washington, D.C.: ULI—The Urban Land Institute, 2003.