| Baltimore-Washington Conference Center on the move BY ERIK ALSGAARDUMCONNECTION STAFF 
Employees and staff of the Baltimore-Washington Conference moved to a new location Aug. 1, the penultimate step to finding a permanent home. The new conference center location (see map at right) is at 7178 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia, MD 21046-2132, approximately three miles from the former conference center at 9720 Patuxent Woods Drive. The previous center was vacated last November after mold was discovered in the building. Nearly 50 people were displaced by the mold into temporary office spaces across the parking lot, at 9730 Patuxent Woods Drive, and elsewhere. Phone numbers, e-mail addresses and the conference Web site address have not changed. Mail addressed to 9720 Patuxent Woods Drive will be forwarded by the postal service, but individuals and churches are urged to use the new address from now on.  The move to the location in the new building is short term, said Martha Knight, the person in charge of managing the move for the conference.
She told employees and staff at a specially called meeting July 24 that the move Aug. 1 would place them in suites next door to their permanent home, which will not be ready until Nov. 1. The permanent home will be in the same building, with the same address of 7178 Columbia Gateway Drive. T he building, currently owned by fiber optics maker Corvis, has filters on its filters, said the Rev. Don Stewart, conference director of connectional ministries. Addressing staff concerns around air quality, he added, Its one of the cleanest buildings around. Employees and staff are taking extreme care in moving from 9730 to 7178. At the meeting, a policy statement drafted and approved unanimously by an ad-hoc group of staff and employees representing each department of the conference center was distributed. It states that no paper products of any kind will be taken into the new space that have been in 9720 or (9730). In addition, no porous items, no plants, no decorative fountains, no books and no supplies that were in either location will be allowed. Non-porous items, such as some furniture and computers, will be cleaned before being moved, many for the second or third time. We know these may seem like drastic measures, said Knight, but we simply must put the health and well-being of our staff first. Knight also said that the 7178 location will not have any new carpeting or paint applied prior to people moving in, again in an effort to keep allergic reactions down. The policy also states, No staff person may wear perfume, cologne or any lotion or oil that contains a fragrance or scent, to work. All groups that visit the conference center are to be notified of this fragrance free policy, it reads. The new conference center, like the previous one, is easily accessible by car from I-95 and highway 175, and is somewhat closer to the Baltimore Washington International Airport. Weve been through an incredibly stressful time as a conference staff, said Stewart. With Gods help, and the assistance of many, many people, we are coming through this chaos stronger and wiser. | 
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