Community Services Background Report Anne Arundel Charting2040 our course for a better future Community Services Page | 2 Plan2040 Background Report Community Services Table of Contents Introduction 5 Planning Framework 5 Public Education 6 Library Services 16 Recreation and Parks 19 Aging and Disabilities Services 35 Health Services 41 Challenges and Future Needs 53 Plan2040 Background Report Page | 3 Community Services Page | 4 Plan2040 Background Report Community Services Introduction Anne Arundel County provides, operates and maintains a wide variety of community services and facilities to serve local needs. The ability to provide a high level of services is important to the County and citizens alike. Access to high quality public education, health services, recreation services, and services for the aging has a direct impact on quality of life for local residents. The provision of these services is an important component of the comprehensive planning process, as land use and development decisions will have a direct impact on the demand for these services as well as the County’s ability to provide them. This report will focus on five major community services provided by the County and will identify some areas of need that may be addressed in Plan2040. The community services provided by the County include: Public Education, Library, Aging and Disabilities, Public Health and Recreation and Parks. Planning Framework Anne Arundel County’s 2009 General Development Plan (GDP) established several key goals applicable to community services. These goals and recommendations are as follows: 1. Provide high quality education and public school infrastructure for all County residents by prioritizing capital budget and program to utilize school space as efficiently as possible, using funding and redistricting to maintain the most efficient and equitable use of school capacity, revising the adequate public facilities ordinance, incorporating green building features to new schools and renovations to existing ones, and developing programs for trade and / or industry specific vocational education. 2. Provide a diverse range of accessible recreational facilities and programs to serve the needs of all County residents by having joint use schedules at school sites to enhance the community’s use of public facilities; utilizing Senior Centers for community recreation purposes when space is available; promoting connectivity to existing and/or planned recreational spaces through the subdivision and site development process; assessing current and future needs for local community centers, including an evaluation of needs identified in the Small Area Plans, as well as other areas that may be underserved with regard to multipurpose community space; acquiring approximately 850 additional acres of land for active recreation projects; upgrading existing parks and developing new parks in accordance with the Land Preservation, Parks, and Recreation Plan; and completing an inventory of sites in the County that provide public waterfront access, making it available on the internet, and identifying future sites as needed to increase public access. 3. Provide a library system that continues to evolve to meet the changing public information needs through expansions of the North County and Annapolis Area Libraries and increasing the efficiency of library services by reviewing, operations including hours of service and allocation of funds for materials. 4. Provide quality health care opportunities convenient to all County residents by allocating funds to expand environmental health and school health programs as needed, expanding public health programs serving low income residents, and partnering with Anne Arundel Medical Center and Baltimore Washington Medical Center to present programs on health and wellness issues. Plan2040 Background Report Page | 5 Community Services 5. Provide services and opportunities for senior citizens to lead healthy, independent, and fulfilling lifestyles by identifying sites with development or redevelopment potential for senior housing that are located near needed amenities; working with private developers to provide a range of housing options for senior citizens including assisted living facilities, retirement communities, affordable independent living communities, and continuing care communities; addressing additional space needs at the Brooklyn Park Senior Center; and completing the planned expansion of the Pasadena Senior Center. Further detail regarding the status of these recommendations can be found in the 2009 GDP Implementation Report located at www.aacounty.org/Plan2040. The 16 Small Area Plans (SAPs) supported the 1997 GDP goals and recommendations by addressing community service needs such as provision of additional hiker / biker trails, athletic fields, public water access, senior centers, long-term health care opportunities for the elderly, programming funding for new schools and renovations to schools, replacing / expanding existing libraries, expanding library hours, increasing services at health centers, and using the schools as multi-use facilities within the communities. A status of the recommendations from the 16 Small Area Plans can be found in a separate background report located at www.aacounty.org/Plan2040. In addition, there are numerous functional master plans that help to implement the goals and recommendations of the General Development Plan and the Small Area Plans. These are described in the community services chapters below. Public Education Anne Arundel County Public Schools Anne Arundel County’s public school system is the fourth largest in Maryland and is among the 50 largest school systems in the Country. With a current student population of over 83,000 students, Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) strives to provide a challenging and rewarding educational experience for every child. The public school system includes a staff of over 10,000 employees working in 123 public schools and has an annual operating budget of nearly $1.184 billion for the current fiscal year. Programs and policies of the public schools are established by an eight-member Board of Education that includes seven members appointed by the Governor and one high school senior who serves as the student representative. Starting in fall 2018, the Board will be selected by election. The AACPS system includes 21 Maryland Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence, of which 18 are also National Blue Ribbon Schools. Facilities and Services The AACPS system is organized in 12 feeder districts, with each district served by a single high school. Within this array of high school feeder districts are 19 middle schools and 78 elementary schools. Figures 1 to 3 depict the County’s elementary, middle, and high school districts, respectively. The feeder system is a commonly used model for structuring the public education system and tends to be preferred because it builds upon a consistent stream of pupil enrollment from elementary school through middle school and eventually into the corresponding high school. This system helps ensure that the same social networks continually support pupils and enhances community building. AACPS also operates several Page | 6 Plan2040 Background Report Figure 1: Elementary School Districts ¹ºBelle Grove Overlook ¹º¹º Park ¹º Brooklyn Park ¹º Hilltop North Glen ¨¦§195 ¹º ¹º 10 Linthicum ¹º )" Solley )"295 ¹º George Cromwell Point Pleasant ¹º Glendale ¹º¹º Riviera Beach Jessup )"176 Richard¹º ¹º ¹º Harman )"100 Henry Marley ¹º Severn Lee ¹º ¹º ¹ºWoodsid¹ºe High ¹º Sunset Fort Smallwood Meade ¹º ¹º ¹º ¹º Point Heights Quarterfield¹º Southgate ¹º ¹º ¹º Freetown Manor ¨¦§97 Jacobsville ¹º Oakwood Rippling )"100 ¹º ¹º View ¹º ¹º ¹º Van¹º Glen Woods Pasadena ¹º )"295 SevenBokkelen ¹º Lake )"177 Pershing Burnie ¹º Bodkin Oaks ¹º Ridgeway ¹º Shore Hill Park Benfield ¹º Shipleys Oak ¹º )"175 Hill )"2 Brock Bridge Odenton ¹º Choice ¹º ¹º ¹º Folger Maryland City )"32 Mckinsey Severna ¹º Belvedere Waugh Millersville ¹º Chapel Park Piney ¹º ¹º ¹º Broadneck Orchard ¹º ¹º Four Seasons South Jones ¹º Cape St. Claire Shore ¹º Nantucket ¹º ¹º ¹º )"3 ¹º ¤£301 ¤£50 Crofton Crofton 97 Arnold ¹º ¨¦§ )"178 Rolling Windsor Farm ¹º Meadows Knolls West )"450 ¹º ¹º Annapolis )"450 ¹º Crofton Woods Mills - ¹º Annapolis Parole )"424 ¹º ¹º Eastport ¹º ElementarySchools Germantown ¹º Tyler Heights ¤£301 )"2 ¤£50 ¹º Edgewater ¹º Georgetown East Davidsonville ¹º ¹º )"214 Hillsmere ¹º ¹º Central )"214 Mayo ¹º )"468 )"2 )"255 Lothian ¹º ¹º Shady Side )"408 Deale )"256 )"4 Tracys )"258 ¹º )"256 ¹º )"2 )"261 Plan2040 Background Report Page | 7 Figure 2: Middle School Districts ¨¦§895 (!4 ¨¦§695 )"295 ¨¦§195 1(!0 )"10 (!9 (!11 )"176 )"100 1(!3 1(!4 1(!5 (!7 )"295 )"175 1(!5 )"100 )"170 ¨¦§97 (!6 (!11 )"177 1(!4 )"2 )"32 1(!8 (!2 1(!6 )"3 1(!2 ¤£301 ¤£50 97 (! ¨¦§ )"178 17 (!8 )"450 Middle School Districts (! "450 3 1 - Annapolis Middle School ) )"450 )"424 2 - Arundel Middle School ¤£301 )"2 3 - Bates Middle School £50 ¤ (!1 4 - Brooklyn Park Middle School 5 - Central Middle School )"214 6 - Chesapeake Bay Middle School (!5 )"214 7 - Corkran Middle School )"468 8 - Crofton Middle School )"2 9 - George Fox Middle School 10 - Lindale Middle School )"255 11 - Macarthur Middle School 12 - Magothy River Middle School )"408 1(!9 13 - Marley Middle School )"256 )"4 14 - Meade Middle School )"258 15 - Old Mill Middle North School )"256 16 - Old Mill Middle South School )"2 17 - Severn River Middle School 18 - Severna Park Middle School )"261 19 - Southern Middle