North Laurel/Savage
- Angela Latham Kozlowski
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Local news covering the North Laurel, Savage, and Scaggsville areas
North Laurel is Home to Olympic Bobsledder
Bryan Sosoo, a Laurel native, made his Olympic debut at the 2026 Winter Games in Italy as a push athlete in four-man bobsled. A 2014 graduate of Reservoir High School, Sosoo was a track standout at Monmouth University, winning three conference titles in the 60 meters before competing internationally in track and field. He joined the U.S. bobsled national team in 2024 after switching sports.
At this year’s Winter Olympics, Sosoo was part of the U.S. team captained by Frank Del Duca; they finished in 12th place overall with a combined four-run time of 3.40.06, which was 2.49 seconds behind the gold medal-winning German team. The other U.S. team finished in 11th, less than half a second ahead of Sosoo’s team, with a combined time of 3.39.94.
Howard County Joins Growing List of High Schools Offering Girl’s Flag Football
Thanks to support from the Baltimore Ravens and the Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks, all 12 Howard County Public School System high schools will participate in a newly added sport. “Girls Flag Football is rapidly growing in popularity, and we are excited to add it to our already outstanding athletics program for the 2026-2027 school year,” indicated HCPSS Superintendent Bill Barnes. The girls flag football league will be run by the school system like other high school sports. The addition of the county’s league clears the way for the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) to officially sanction the sport and establish recognized state championships. Recreation and Parks will offer flag football skills camps over the summer for girls aged 11 to 18.
To sign up for a camp, visit tinyurl.com/HCRP-GirlsFlagFootballCamp.
FILM Task Force Seeks to Entice Major Productions to Howard County
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced the formation of a new Film Industry and Location Marketing (FILM) Task Force. The 13-member FILM Task Force is made up of leaders in the arts and business sectors, with the charge of developing a coordinated strategy to position Howard County as a leading film-ready jurisdiction in Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic region for major productions.
According to the county’s website, since 2012, the Maryland Film Production Activity Tax Credit has generated a total economic impact of nearly $1.5 billion, driven by 21 major productions, including House of Cards, Veep, Lady in the Lake, and Special Ops: Lioness. These projects have directly spent $827 million in the state, hiring more than 1,000 Marylanders and utilizing thousands of local businesses per production. The task force will review background data and economic impact potential; identify and recommend policies, investments, partnerships, and processes that strengthen the County’s attractiveness to film and television productions; expand economic opportunities for local businesses and workers; and elevate Howard County’s unique historic, cultural, and natural assets as competitive filming locations.
Robert Neal Marshall, Task Force Co-Chair and actor, director, producer, and playwright, said, as an “Emmy Award–winning casting associate with Pat Moran on major productions filmed right here in Howard County—including Game Change and Veep for HBO—and through my own work as an independent casting director, producer, actor, and executive producer of the Columbia Maryland Film Festival, I’ve seen firsthand the creative energy and vital economic impact that film brings to our community. Howard County has extraordinary potential for filmmakers of every scale, and I’m honored to bring my experience and passion for film to this important effort. I’m deeply grateful to County Executive Calvin Ball for the opportunity to serve, to his outstanding team, to Co-Chair Amanda Hof, and to our distinguished partners on this task force as we work together to build a vibrant future for film production in Howard County.”
Howard County to Purchase Property in North Laurel for Mixed-Income Housing
As part of a planned mixed-income housing project, Howard County will purchase the property where the former Randy’s California Inn has sat vacant for many years. According to county news releases, the county already owns the adjacent sites where an antique store and a mobile home park once operated. This additional land purchase will allow the county to add about 60 houses, 30 percent of which will be priced around $300,000, below the area’s $500,000 average home price.
County Executive Calvin Ball also has drafted an amendment to change how the county funds affordable housing projects. His proposal would allow the use of bonds to pay for the developments, similar to the use of bonds to finance schools and road projects. He stressed the importance of providing affordable housing for working families: “Older adults on fixed incomes, teachers, nurses, first responders...[they] make our community function and thrive every day. And they deserve a place to live in the community which they serve.”
Angie Latham Kozlowski is a staff writer and member of the Board of Directors for the Laurel History Boys. In addition to her investigative reporting, her articles frequently spotlight Howard County.
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