$38M New Funding Pushes Forward Ellicott City Safe And Sound Plan

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Leaders gathered Monday to update the community about progress being made with the Ellicott City Safe and Sound Plan, and to share that an additional $38.1 million in funding will be provided by the state to push along the landmark project.

Officials gathered near the edge of a manmade crater along Frederick Road where the tunnel is planned. Howard County Executive Calvin Ball highlighted each component of the plan and its status. Ellicott City, which is nestled within a steep-sloped valley, experienced two 1,000-year floods in 2016 and 2018, damaging dozens of businesses and killing three people.

“Through our ambitious Ellicott City Safe and Sound plan, we are innovatively addressing flood mitigation head on with strategies that will preserve historic character and enhance the safety of our beloved Ellicott City,” Ball said. “Through collaboration with incredible partners, we have made immense progress since 2019 in enhancing Ellicott City’s strength and resilience.”

Ball also announced two key funding commitments to help push projects through. The Maryland Department of Emergency Management informed Howard County in December of a $20 million award from the Resilient Maryland Revolving Loan Fund. The Extended North Tunnel, Maryland Avenue Culverts and the T-1 and NC-3 ponds will each receive another $5 million in low-interest financing from this program.

In late fall 2024, the Maryland Department of the Environment also awarded $18.1 million in low interest loans from its Water Quality State Revolving Loan Fund, which will further support the Extended North Tunnel Project.

“For more than 250 years, Ellicott City has stood as a center of economic opportunity and community character,” Ball added. “Together, we will demonstrate that building resilience for historic and flood prone areas is not only achievable but that it can be done in a way that preserves and uplifts communities. We will continue to push these monumental projects forward until Ellicott City is the exemplar for our country.”

Stormwater Retention Ponds
A total of five stormwater retention ponds are included in the safe and sound plan. These ponds are designed to gather and control the release of rainwater and runoff during intense storms.

H-7
Completed in 2022, the H-7 pond, located at the interchange of Routes 29 and 40, has the capacity to hold 4.24 million gallons of water in a heavy rain event.

Quaker Mill
Completed in 2023, the Quaker Mill Pond, located at the intersection of Rogers Avenue and Patapsco River Road, has the capacity to hold 3.3 million gallons of stormwater.

H-4
In June 2024, Howard County broke ground on the H-4 pond project. Located along Frederick Road, just west of Route 29, the H-4 pond will have the capacity to hold 5.5 million gallons of water once completed. Construction of the H-4 pond is progressing on schedule and the pond is expected to be fully operational in Fall 2025. The combined stormwater capacity of the H-7, Quaker Mill and H-4 ponds will be more than 13 million gallons – roughly the equivalent of a football field filled 30 feet deep with water.

T-1
Preliminary design of the T-1 pond began in September 2024. Located just west of historic Ellicott City, T-1 will be the first such facility in the Tiber Branch Watershed. The first phase of analysis is expected to be completed in fall 2025. Once complete, the T-1 pond will have the capability to hold 22 million gallons of water, more than doubling the total stormwater retention capacity in the Historic Ellicott City watershed.

NC-3
The NC-3 pond, located southwest of historic downtown, will capture and hold stormwater on the New Cut branch of the watershed. This 20.5-million-gallon capacity facility will feature a large dam. NC-3 remains in the final design phase as the H-4 and T-1 projects advance.

Stormwater Conveyance Projects
The Ellicott City Safe and Sound Plan features two key stormwater conveyance projects that reduce flood risks by facilitating the safe flow of stormwater around or through historic Ellicott City.

Maryland Avenue Culverts
The Maryland Avenue Culverts project at Lower Main Street will create a new and expanded outlet for water from the Tiber-Hudson Branch to flow into the Patapsco River. Two parallel pipes from the stream channel beneath the CSX rail line to the river will be installed. This project is in the final design phase.

Extended North Tunnel
The Extended North Tunnel Project is the single largest public works project in Howard County’s history and is the focal point of the Safe and Sound plan. The county broke ground on this project in June 2024. This mile-long, 18-foot diameter structure will stretch from the West End to the Patapsco River, protecting the town by funneling upland water flow away from Main Street directly to the river. The tunnel will have the capacity to channel water at a rate of 26,000 gallons per second.

In the fall of 2025, the tunnel boring machine, named “Rocky” by popular vote, will arrive in Ellicott City. The 300-foot-long “Rocky” will excavate through solid granite about 150 feet below the surface all the way to the Patapsco River. The county anticipates cutting the ribbon on this project in the fall of 2027.

Related:

• Safe And Sound Plan's Tiber One Flood Mitigation Pond Initial Design Phase Started
• Name The Boring Machine To Be Used For The Ellicott City North Tunnel Project
• Groundbreaking Delayed On Extended North Tunnel Project In Howard Co.
• $50M Cost Increase Disclosed For Extended North Tunnel Project
• 5K-Foot-Long Tunnel To Be Built In HoCo To Help With Flood Mitigation
• Extended North Tunnel Project Meeting Planned For July 6 In Howard Co.
• North Tunnel Extension Would Save 9 Ellicott City Buildings
• Ellicott City Flood Prevention Plan Calls For Tunnel, More
• County Exec Updates Community On Ellicott City Safe & Sound Plan
• Residents Updated On Safe And Sound Plan In Ellicott City