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County and library officials propose market study before choosing site for new central library
Summary
Administration and Howard County Library System officials told the council they will pursue a market study to assess revenue potential, parking assumptions and site tradeoffs before finalizing a site or design for a new central branch; library leaders emphasized current facility constraints and programming needs.
County policy director Carl DiLorenzo and Howard County Library executives updated the council on the central branch planning process and possible sites, stressing next steps rather than final commitments.
DiLorenzo summarized work to date: the county hired Arcadis as an owner’s representative, conducted public engagement and a survey, and prepared rough order‑of‑magnitude cost scenarios for two building sizes (about 100,000 and 140,000 gross square feet). He told the council the administration’s next recommended task is a market study — modeled on the parking revenue study the administration also produced for the cultural center — to test private‑use revenue assumptions and parking strategies before choosing a site or advancing detailed design. "We think the administration thinks the next prudent step, is to conduct a market study, similar to the parking study that was done for the NCC," DiLorenzo said.
Tonia Akins, president and CEO of the Howard County Library System, and Angela Braid, the library’s chief operating officer for support systems, described constraints at the existing central branch — limited meeting and classroom space, intermittent elevator outages and high demand for library programs — and reiterated that the library’s facilities master plan has recommended roughly 100,000 net square feet for downtown to keep pace with population growth and programming demand.
Council members discussed the three main tradeoffs identified by staff for the lakefront site: parking replacement and cost, development/site control and who would choose the final building designer. Several council members said they favor combining the cultural center and library in a single project at one site to save costs; staff said those decisions require the market and land‑term analysis first.
What’s next: Staff told the council a market study would take roughly two months once a consultant is procured and that FY26 would likely serve as a further planning year, with construction funding targeted for FY27 or later. The library and administration said they would include the library system early in design discussions rather than treating it as a downstream stakeholder.
