Howard County Executive Calvin Ball on Monday announced plans to revitalize an aging village center in Columbia more than a decade after the county acquired it for that purpose.

Ball said at a news conference that Columbia Concepts, a real estate joint venture, has developed a plan to transform the Long Reach Village Center.

The proposal calls for townhouses, senior housing, community spaces, a senior center, a grocery store, retail shops, pedestrian and bike paths and a 100,000-square-foot indoor athletic facility that would offer pickleball, rock climbing, basketball and volleyball.

“This project will do more than bring back to life this once-vibrant focal point of our neighborhood,” Ball said. “This investment will lift the surrounding community and set a new bar for what a village center can be.”

The county owns the Long Reach Village Center, having purchased it about a decade ago with the intent to revitalize it. A Safeway supermarket that anchored the complex closed in 2011, leading to what Ball described as a gradual decline.

“Vacancies grew, buildings deteriorated, and the energy that once made the center vibrant began to dim,” he said. “As a result, the county declared the property blighted and acquired the struggling parcels.”

However, the project hit some snags early on, including a developer pulling out of the project and then the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nina Basu, the chair of the Long Reach Village Board, said she is excited to see the plans move forward.

“It’s been such a pleasure to be able to raise a family in Long Reach, but the giant hole in the middle of our community is something that needs to be filled,” Basu said.

The village center opened in the spring of 1971, followed three years later by Stonehouse, the community center. The village center was renovated in 1998.

“Thank you to the residents of Long Reach for your patience, your passion and your persistence,” Ball said. “You deserve a village center that lifts you up, reflects your spirit and makes you proud to call this place home.”

Columbia Concepts will present its project proposal to the county planning board on Dec. 18 at 7 p.m. at the George Howard Building. Residents are also invited to provide written testimony or testify in person.

The proposal would then go before the County Council. If it’s approved, county officials estimate construction will begin sometime in 2028.