Howard County leaders celebrate next steps for Ellicott City's new flood mitigation system

ELLICOTT CITY -- Howard County leaders Monday celebrated the next step in its Ellicott City Safe and Sound Plan: the North Tunnel Project.

The plan aims to prevent devastating floods from creeping into Ellicott City, which has had several major flood events since 2011.

Scars from those floods can still be seen on buildings around Old Ellicott City. Mark Hemmis, who owns what's now called Phoenix Upper Main, still feels the pain from those scars.

He's owned Phoenix since 2001 when it was originally called Phoenix Emporium. He's lived through the floods of 2011, 2016 and 2018.

"I have been neck deep in floodwater," Hemmis said. "These floods taught me that we have a responsibility to ensure the safety of our guests -- for the visitors of this town."

To bring that sense of safety back, Howard County leaders broke ground on the North Tunnel project. It's one of seven projects that are part of the EC Safe and Sound Plan.

Once completed, it'll be able to collect and carry around 26,000 gallons of stormwater per second. The 18-foot diameter, one-mile-long tunnel will span from the west end of the city right into the Patapsco River.

Howard County Executive Dr. Calvin Ball said this, and the other projects in the plan, will become a national model to mitigate climate change.

"When complete, it will be the single largest public works project Howard County has ever executed," Ball said. "Together, we are taking the essential steps today to ensure a vibrant tomorrow for this incredible, historic town."

A tunnel boring machine, which has been named Rocky, will be the primary tool to create the tunnel. It'll be carving through the granite throughout the area's topography.

It doesn't arrive until 2025, but crews will be prepping for its arrival until then by excavating a mining shaft.

For business owners like Hemmis, the tunnel doesn't just represent safety. It also represents hope.

"We have rebuilt twice, we have moved, we survived Gordon Ramsey, we survived a pandemic -- we are still here," Hemmis said. "This tunnel gives us the hope we will continue to be here."

North Tunnel construction is aimed to be completed by Fall 2027.