Howard County to Buy 18th Century Elkridge Estate

Howard Community College (HCC) announced Friday that the county government will be the next owner of the Belmont estate, a historic home and property the college could no longer afford to maintain.

"The county has let us know that it will be submitting a purchase agreement for Belmont within the next week,” Kate Hetherington, president of HCC, wrote in an e-mail to faculty, staff and students.

The county sent a notification to Hetherington making its intentions official, said Kevin Enright, county public information officer.

The college purchased the 18th century estate in 2004 and put it on the market in January 2010, said Nancy Gainer, director of public relations for HCC.

“It would not be economically viable or fiscally responsible to continue to operate the center,” Katherine Rensin, chair of HCC’s board of trustees, said in a 2010 press release.

Maintaining the estate costs approximately $300,000 a year, according to John Byrd, director of recreation and parks for Howard County.

Since the county provided a $2.2 million loan for HCC to make the purchase in 2004, it had the right of first refusal. Considering the loan and earlier renovations paid by the county, the county's current outlay for the estate will be $89,188, which will come from the land acquisition fund, Enright said.

In May, Byrd informed Elkridge residents during the Greater Elkridge Community Association (GECA) meeting that in the next month because another prospective buyer made an offer.

Public access to the sprawling estate was important to Elkridge residents who said they wanted to share in their area's history—a sentiment they shared at the GECA meeting. 

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Belmont was built by Caleb Dorsey, a leader in the local iron industry, in the first half of the 18th century. It passed through the family and then on to private ownership.

In the 1960s, the Smithsonian Institution purchased the estate for use as a conference center. In the 1980s, the American Chemical Society acquired it and used the property for meetings and conferences as well.

In 2004, HCC bought Belmont as a venue for its culinary program, but was unprepared for the cost of maintaining the property, which includes several houses, a barn and acres of open land.

“The college is hopeful that the county will be acquiring the Belmont property and the property will continue to be available for all in Howard County to enjoy, as it was when the college owned the property,” said Rensin.

Enright said the county was exercising its right to purchase the land "because of the historical significance of the property, the beautiful land it occupies and the many uses of the property."

Following receipt of the purchase agreement for $2.7 million, the county will conduct feasibility and environmental studies, according to Enright.

The county would likely request proposals from third-party organizations to oversee programming on the site of the historic estate, said Byrd.