On Saturday, May 13, 2023, ACDS joined community members, Governor Wes Moore, County Executive Steuart Pittman, and over 400 partners and supporters for a ribbon cutting ceremony at The Severn Center. The Center, which includes an outdoor plaza and flexible community space, a County Senior Activity Center, and state of the art Boys & Girls Club, is the culmination of over 30 years of advocacy by the community.  This innovative project, which will provide intergenerational programming opportunities for previously underserved communities, would not have happened without the vision of Glenda “Ms. G” Gathers, the advocacy and persistence of the Severn Community Partnership, the leadership of County Executive Steuart Pittman and the financial support of our Local Development Council, members of the General Assembly and County Council. Its development included securing over $16 million in financing, over 15 different public engagement activities and design charrettes, and careful collaboration among our partners and project management team.

Many thanks to our many partners including the Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis & Anne Arundel County, Anne Arundel County Department of Aging and Disabilities, the design team at Murphy Dittenhafer Architects, the general contractor, TMI, artists Nikki Brooks and Art With A Heart, along with the members of the Design, Art, History, and Program Committees, and our many County agency and Board of Education partners.

Last but not least, thank you to the former ACDS Executive Director, Kathleen Koch, our ACDS Board of Directors, ACDS Project Director, Chris Maruyama and our entire ACDS Team. It was such a joy to work on this project with you all and see it come to fruition from start to finish.  While we consider this project one of our ACDS signature initiatives, the real winners are the community. Here is to more projects like this in our future!

Erin Karpewicz