ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball today joined Community Action Council of Howard County (CAC) President Tracy Brocconlino and state and local leaders to break ground on CAC’s new Route One Corridor Campus. Strategically located within the Route One Corridor at 7525 Montevideo Road in Jessup, the campus will feature a new flagship Food Bank facility and Early Childhood Education Center. While the campus will serve residents across Howard County, the Campus will increase access to critical services for hardworking families living in Elkridge, Jessup, Savage, and North Laurel, which is one of Howard County’s highest-need areas. Photos from the event can be found on Howard County Government’s Flickr website and video on the County Executive’s Facebook page.
Today, we mark the beginning of a project that will strengthen families, uplift communities, and make Howard County a more supportive place for all who call it home. As this Route One Corridor Campus rises, it will become more than a building. It will become a place of dignity, where parents know their children are cared for, where neighbors can access healthy food, and where families receive the support that allows them not just to survive, but to thrive. Thank you to the Community Action Council of Howard County for your vision and relentless dedication to meeting the needs of our community. When we work together – government, nonprofits, state partners, and our community – we can build pathways to economic mobility and transform lives.
In the last five years, CAC’s Food Bank location in Columbia and associated pantries, have provided more than six million pounds of food and seen 94,000 shopping visits. In fact, in 2024 alone, this location served more than 5,000 people – that’s approximately 100 families per day – and distributed roughly 1.2 million pounds of food. With its limited interior space and just seven parking spaces, CAC’s Columbia Food Bank is over-capacity and unable to meet growing community demand. To help ease the load, CAC’s new Route One Corridor Campus Food Bank will be nearly double the size of its Columbia counterpart at approximately 12,000 square feet. The new facility will replicate the client choice shopping experience found at local grocery stores and will feature an excess food storage area.
The Campus will also be home to CAC’s new Early Childhood Education Center. This approximately 6,000 square foot facility will allow CAC to provide nearly 80 children from six weeks to five years old with a high-quality early childhood education. The Early Childhood Education Center will feature two infant care rooms hosting six children each, two toddler (age one to two) rooms serving 12 children each, and two three-to-five-year-old rooms benefiting 20 children each.
In Fiscal Year 2025, 37 percent of CAC’s Food Bank shoppers and 33 percent of its early childhood education families lived in the Route One Corridor. The addition of a Food Bank and Early Childhood Education Center in the Corridor, will address both the increased need and alleviate the burden on current facilities. In addition to the Campus being home to these two facilities, CAC will also host partner organizations on site, creating a one-stop-shop for those needing services beyond its offerings.
We are literally standing at the Cornerstone of Opportunity,” said Broccolino. “This campus will bring dignity-based care to our neighbors, meeting them where they are, reducing transportation barriers, and empowering whole families with healthy food and early education. Nearly one-third of CAC’s clients come from the Route One Corridor. This is not just a groundbreaking. It’s a promise kept. It’s a call to action to build a stronger future, together.”
To assist CAC in moving this project forward and help secure the land needed to build this new facility, Ball’s administration committed $2 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to the project last year. The project has also received $1 million from a State Legislative Bond Bill sponsored by the Howard County Delegation.
“The Route One Corridor Campus represents exactly what Community Action is all about: meeting people where they are with the services they need to thrive. I was proud to sponsor Senate Bill 666 to ensure Maryland’s Community Action Agencies, like CAC, have sustained support to continue their vital work. This new campus is not just a building. It is a commitment to the hardworking families of Howard County and a powerful investment in long-term stability, dignity, and opportunity for all,” said Guy Guzzone, Maryland State Senator, District 13.
“Far too many Marylanders are struggling to put food on the table and find affordable child care. That’s why we fought to pass the American Rescue Plan and bring critical investments into our communities – including $2 million to support this new campus. With this expansion, the Community Action Council of Howard County can help ensure more families have access to nutritious food and the early childhood education services they need to thrive. That access is essential to putting Marylanders on a path to improving their health and economic stability,” said U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen.
"The Route One Corridor Campus is a bold and necessary step forward. It represents what is possible when public and nonprofit sectors work together to create lasting change for working families," said U.S. Congresswoman Sarah Elfreth.
Since taking office, Ball’s administration has assisted the CAC in expanding its services to better meet the needs of the county’s population. In July 2024, Ball committed $750,000 to support an innovative, new partnership between CAC and Howard Community College (HCC) that would expand the number of early childhood education opportunities for infants, toddlers, and two-year-olds in Howard County and create the county’s first-ever Early Head Start program. This funding allowed CAC to expand its Head Start programming to include children ages two and younger with the opening of five new childcare classrooms, with three classrooms located at HCC’s Children’s Learning Center (CLC) in Columbia and two classrooms at CAC’s Ellicott City Early Childhood Education Center on High Ridge Road.
In addition to the County’s $750,000 grant, as Ball announced in June, the CAC was also awarded a $12.6 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Head Start program. This grant has enabled CAC to expand its services to include Early Head Start, marking the first time in Howard County history that CAC has earned the Early Head Start designation. CAC is now able to provide early childhood education services to eligible children under the age of three under a certified Early Head Start program.
Since 2013, CAC has served approximately 4,100 children through its early childhood education programs, including approximately 3,500 through Head Start alone. Just last year, CAC served 269 children and their families through its Head Start programs.
Additionally, this past August, Ball announced the launch of Howard County’s first Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) pilot program in partnership with the CAC. Through this pilot program, CAC is providing 20 families with $1,000 in economics assistance per month for 12 months to prioritize household needs to ultimately improve overall economic stability, as well as access to wrap-around services and programming sessions from community partners. The participating families reside in Columbia, Laurel, Elkridge, and Savage, have household sizes ranging from two to five people, and children ranging in age from infants to 17 years old.
“Let today be more than a celebration. Let it be a call to action. A moment where we recommit to showing up, working together, and lifting up every neighbor who calls Howard County home,” said Jackie Scott, Director, Department of Community Resources and Services. “This groundbreaking is not the finish line. It is the beginning. And together, we are just getting started.”
About the Community Action Council of Howard County:
For 60 years, the Community Action Council of Howard County (CAC) has served as the county’s designated non-profit anti-poverty organization. As part of a nationwide network of Community Action Agencies, CAC helps hard-working individuals and families overcome economic challenges and achieve lasting self-sufficiency.
CAC delivers impact through five core service areas:
- Early Childhood Education (including Head Start and MSDE-funded Pre-K)
- Food Assistance (through the Howard County Food Bank)
- Housing Assistance
- Energy Assistance
- Weatherization Services
To learn more, visit www.cac-hc.org.