Holiday Slide Schedule
Christmas
The Alpha Ridge Landfill will close at 2pm on Saturday, December 24, 2011 and will reopen Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 8am. There will be no curbside collection on Monday, December 26, 2011 in observance of Christmas Day. ALL trash,
recycling and yard trim collections will slide and be made one day later that week.
New Year's Day
There will be no curbside collection on Monday, January 2, 2012 in observance of New Year's Day. The Alpha Ridge Landfill will be closed on Monday, January 2, 2012. ALL trash, recycling and yard trim collections will slide and be made one day later that week.
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 Light Recycling
Recycle old, broken holiday lights at My Organic Market (MOMs) through January 31st and receive a 25% off coupon to HolidayLEDs.com. Or, send them to Christmas Light Source for recycling. |
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"Grow it! Eat it!"
 Join the Howard County Master Gardeners at The Hawthorn Center on Wednesday, January 25th at 7:30 p.m. for a seminar on spring vegetable gardening. You'll learn how to prepare the garden soil for planting, how to prepare seeds for transplant, how to guard your plants against critters and cold weather, and which structures will best support your plants. Best of all, this program is FREE! Advance registration is required - call 410-730-7327 to RSVP.
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Tax Assistance
Howard County's first Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site will open in January and run throughout the 2012 tax season.
The Howard County VITA site will offer free tax assistance preparation to most taxpayers who earned up to $49,000 in 2011. In addition to free tax return preparation, the site will also offer free electronic filing. Individuals who choose to take advantage of the e-file program will receive their refunds in half-the-time compared to returns filed on paper - even faster, when tax refunds are deposited directly into a bank account.
"Through the opening of this pilot site, we take another step forward to making and keeping all Howard County residents self sufficient," said County Executive Ulman. "Working families who might otherwise pay hundreds of dollars for tax preparation and electronic filing can now use those funds to pay bills, weatherize their homes or save for their futures."
The Howard County VITA site will operate out of the North Laurel Community Center, 9411 Whiskey Bottom Road in Laurel, from January 18 through April 14 on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. An appointment is necessary and can be scheduled after January 1, 2012 This year's tax deadline is April 17, 2012.
In preparation for the site's opening, the County is also seeking volunteers to serve as tax preparers, quality reviewers, greeters and office staff. Volunteer tax preparers are trained to help with special credits, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit and Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled. Training and certification for volunteer tax preparers are offered for free and sponsored by the Internal Revenue Service; no prior tax preparation or accounting experience is required. Residents interested in volunteering should contact the site coordinator, Enock Guerrier, by e-mail at vita@howardcountymd.gov or by telephone at 410-313-0386.
For more information, visit www.howardcountymd.gov/VITA.htm.
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Barking Calls
Several residents have complained to our Village Office about neighbors keeping their barking dogs outside for hours at a time, driving other residents to distraction. To quote the Howard County Animal Control laws: "Owners are responsible for preventing their dog from barking to the extent that it disturbs neighbors." Dog owners, ask your neighbors what they hear when you're away. You may discover that "Fifi" has quite a set of lungs!
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No Dumping
We all know that raking is a chore, and the only thing worse than raking is bagging the leaves! However, it is every homeowner's responsibility to dispose of yard waste appropriately. You can leave an unlimited amount of yard waste at the curb on recycling day in bags, trash cans, or  bundles (4ft length max). Please don't put debris on CA Open Space or in the Middle Patuxent Environmental Area. These areas are for everyone to enjoy - they are not the neighborhood dump! |
Nutcracker on Ice
The Columbia Figure Skating Club will present The Nutcracker on Ice on Saturday, December 17th, at 5:15pm and 7pm at the Columbia Ice Rink. They will also present the show on Sunday, December 18th, at 4:30pm and 6pm. This popular show is the only ice skating show of its kind in the Baltimore-Washington area.
Tickets are $12, and children under 3 are free. You can purchase tickets online at
www.seatyourself.biz/columbiafsc. For more information contact the Columbia Figure Skating Club at sbbloomfield@lerchearly.com.
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Food Bank Donations Sought
The Columbia Community Church of Seventh-Day Adventists, which meets at The Hawthorn Center on Saturday mornings, holds an ongoing collection of non-perishable food items for the Howard County Food Bank on Rt. 108.
If you want to contribute, bring your donations to The Hawthorn Center on Saturdays between 10am and noon. The church will issue you a receipt and deliver for you. |
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Reader's Exchange
FOR SALE: Nine drawer solid walnut dresser with mirror, $85. Smith-Corona Classic 12 Typewriter with case, $15. Contact 410-992-5513. |
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Online Updates
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Are you on Facebook? We are too!
Find us at www.facebook.com/hickoryridgevillage and become a fan! You may also have noticed our new, shorter web site address. We are now online at www.hickoryridgevillage.org. If you have our old address bookmarked, don't worry! Visitors will be automatically redirected to the new site.
We have made recent changes to the way we communicate by e-mail as well. You can go to our website and join one (or all) of our e-mail lists to stay up-to-date on Events, Board Meetings, Crime Reports, and even an online version of The Log. We will not share your e-mail address with others.
Keep your eye out for even more updates in the near future. If you have any suggestions for us, please contact Jessamine Duvall, Village Manager at jduvall@hickoryridgevillage.org. |
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Schedule
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Dec 19: Village Board meets
at 7:30 p.m.
Dec 20: Deadline for January 4
RAC meeting
Dec 24 -
Jan 1: Village Office closed
Jan 2: Village Board meets at
7:30 p.m.
Jan 3: Deadline for January 12 issue
of The Log
Jan 4: Resident Architectural
Committee (RAC) meets at 7:30 p.m.
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RAC Agenda
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This will be the last issue of The Log for 2011. The exterior alteration applications scheduled for review by the Resident Architectural Committee on January 4, 2012 will be published in our office and on our web site after December 20, 2011.
Our next issue of The Log will be published on January 12. |
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Village Services
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- Photocopying & Laminating
- FAX sending and receiving
- Postage Stamps
- Notary Public
- Car Seat Loans
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