Columbia Lakefront Free Wi-Fi Expansion — 2026-06-16

Tuesday morning: sunny, high near 80 degrees. West wind 2 to 6 mph.

Good morning. Tuesday, June 16. Howard County is expanding free public Wi-Fi at the Columbia Lakefront. Three county schools will have extra police presence this week as online threats continue. And four Howard County students earned National Merit Scholarships in the third round. This is your morning brief for Howard County.

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced a major expansion of free public Wi-Fi at the Columbia Lakefront. The expansion is the county's latest move to improve digital accessibility across Howard County. The full announcement and the coverage area are on the county news page at howardcountymd.gov. CBS News and Yahoo News Baltimore have also covered the announcement.

Three Howard County schools will have additional police presence this week as online threats continue, according to WMAR 2 News Baltimore. The WMAR report follows the two-school coverage from Friday. The specific schools, the nature of the threats, and the duration of the added presence are not detailed in the WMAR headline. Watch WMAR or Howard County Police for updates as the story develops.

Four Howard County students were awarded scholarships in the third round of the National Merit Scholarship Program, per Patch. The Patch report confirms the four students and the third-round designation. The names and high schools are not in the headline — watch the Patch article for the full list and details on the scholarship awards.

At the East Columbia Branch library tonight, Pajama Time Under The Stars runs from 6:30 to 7 for ages birth through five with an adult.

Coming up this week. Voting in the Manga for Mayor program at the Glenwood Branch closes tomorrow, Wednesday June 18. Today at East Columbia: Teen Afterschool Programming Half Day from 1 to 3:30. Summer of STEAM Little Learners at Elkridge runs at 10:30. Teen Live at Savage from 12:30 to 2:30. Create with Magic Clay at Elkridge tonight at 6. And Knot Just Knitters at Glenwood tonight at 6:15.

Also today. Howard County's heat advisory remains in effect — check howardcountymd.gov for the full guidance. County Executive Calvin Ball broke ground earlier this month on Howard County's first Bus Rapid Transit stop. The county Finance Department updated information on residential tax credits at howardcountymd.gov slash finance. Howard County Finance also rolled out Property Tax Digital Communications for residents. Howard County joined the Dementia Friendly America Network this week. The Aging and Independence office posted updated Housing Resources for older adults. 195 Howard County teachers achieved National Board Certification, per Patch. A Certified Peer Recovery Specialist from the Howard County Health Department is at the Central Branch library today from 10 to 4. At Glenwood, 3 2 Fun for ages two to three runs at 10. At Elkridge, ELKS Excellent Reads meets at 12:30. At East Columbia, Little Learners Storybook Friends runs at 2 p.m. And also at East Columbia, All Together Now all-ages storytime runs at 10:30.

Here's what I'm watching today. The free Wi-Fi expansion at Columbia Lakefront and the school threat updates landed in the same news cycle, and both are about access — one to the public square, one to a safe school day. I'll be watching for the names of the schools involved and the rollout timeline on the Wi-Fi. The heat keeps going. Back tomorrow.

That's today's brief. Full edition at hocobrief.com — newsletter, archive, send tips. I'm at the desk. Back tomorrow morning. Stay cool, Howard County.