Survey Says Howard County Falls Short When it Comes to Safety, Transportation

People in Howard County feel safest in Clarksville, Ellicott City, Fulton and Laurel, according to a recent survey, and they reported feeling the least safe in Columbia, Elkridge and Jessup.

Many said they wanted better public transportation and cheaper child care in Howard County.

Those were some conclusions from the Columbia Foundation’s listening project, a survey conducted from February to April of approximately 700 Howard County residents and people who work in the county.

“We felt we needed to do some outreach to other parts of the county ... outside of Columbia—we wanted to know what [the] local issues were,” said Beverley Francis-Gibson, president and CEO of Columbia Foundation, in an interview with Patch. 

The survey, conducted in person and online, was the first such effort from the organization, which was started by Columbia founder Jim Rouse and offers grants and technical support for other area nonprofits.

“Most of us are not surprised by some of the findings,” Francis-Gibson said.

Thirty-five percent of those who responded said they were dissatisfied with transportation, according to the results released last week. That issue was also mentioned by about 50 percent of those who were asked how they would spend $25,000 to improve the community.

“I heard a lot of the seniors talk about the expense of the local transportation, how long it takes them to get to the doctor’s office or a grocery store, the fact that because they are on a limited budget they sometimes have to make hard decisions about buying their medicine or [paying for] transportation,” said Francis-Gibson.

Twenty-five percent of those who responded to the survey were classified as seniors, ages 66 and up.

Another significant finding came from the 43 percent who said they have children at home. Those whose household income is between $65,001 and $125,000 a year said, more than any other income group, that they are dissatisfied with child care and adolescent programs.

“We talked to some families who made decisions to have one parent stay at home because it was actually cheaper than child care,” Francis-Gibson said.

Meanwhile, there was much survey respondents said they appreciated. More than 80 percent were satisfied with available health care, more than 90 percent were satisfied with their access to food, and more than 90 percent were satisfied with available education.

They also like the county’s trails, parks and open spaces and the area’s recreational activities, and they feel safe in their neighborhoods.

“Those are the things that people choose to move to the area for,” said Francis-Gibson.

Still, respondents said safety and education could be improved and a “significant proportion” of responses to one question said schools needed renovation and new schools needed to be built, according to a news release.

“People talked about the education system being good but wanting to be sure that we continue to have high standards,” Francis-Gibson said.

Columbia Foundation will take the results to a committee, which will recommend issues it feels the organization should tackle, possibly in early fall, Francis-Gibson said.

The full report is available here.