ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball today unveiled his selection for Howard County’s new flag. Photos from the event can be found on the County's Flickr website.
Entry #115, Howard County’s new flag was created by Ms. Esen Paradiso of Ellicott City and features rich, arching lines of gold and white over a field of green and blue. The flag’s design reflects the diversity and inclusion of Howard County’s natural and human resources – an historically proud and future-oriented central Maryland community and represents an evolving agricultural past blended with an optimistic cultural, environmental, and economic future which is cosmopolitan, vibrant, and thriving.
When we set out on this process over a year ago, I asked this resident-led Commission to deliver recommendations for an updated flag design that would inspire our community and be recognizable to all. I am impressed with the incredible degree of community input received throughout this process and proud to select this stunning design as an enduring symbol of Howard County’s vibrancy and diversity.
For her design, Ms. Paradiso states the arch represents both the historical past of Howard County - Thomas Viaduct - and its dynamic future - the Chrysalis. The stripes represent Howard County’s historical and contemporary abundance of agricultural and natural resources. The golden circle represents the boundless energy of the sun empowering a diverse community with a view toward the horizon, a bright and optimistic future – and a primary color from the Maryland flag as a location anchor for Howard County. The blue represents the optimism of endless skies, the hope of a bright future, the abundance of natural and recreational resources — lakes, rivers, waterways. The green color represents the planned preservation and utilization of the natural environment, the continuing investment in a thriving agriculture economy, and the promise of growing a culturally appreciative community.
Ms. Paradiso is the owner of Columbia Creative Services, a local business providing advertising, marketing, and graphic design services, and has been a resident of Howard County for nearly 50 years.
From day one, this has been a community-driven public process. I am so thankful to all 18 other members of the Commission, the hundreds of individuals who submitted flag designs and the thousands of people that voted.
The county’s new flag was selected from amongst three final designs recommended by the Howard County Flag Commission, as outlined in its Final Report on February 25, 2025. The recommendations were informed by a public vote on the top 10 designs identified by the Commission in the fall. The virtual public poll asked participants to rank all 10 flag designs from one to 10, with one being the most favorable design and 10 being the least desired. Participants were limited to one poll submission and were required to rank all 10 designs. The virtual poll received 1248 individual votes between November 13, 2024 and January 12, 2025. At the conclusion of the poll, the Commission utilized a cumulative vote methodology to determine the top five designs and then selected its top three finalists from among the top five vote earners to present to Ball.
In addition to Ms. Paradiso’s Entry #115, Ball recognized the other top 10 designers:
- Patricia Elia – Entry #6
- Grace Yang – Entry #11
- Kim Clarke – Entry #25
- Jennifer Murphy – Entry #71
- Adithi Kolli – Entry #89
- Grace Vega – Entry #106
- Paul Burke – Entry #123
- Stephanie Al-Adhami – Entry #173
- Matt Wallach – Entry #177
Ms. Murphy and Mr. Burke’s designs rounded out the top three finalists recommended by the Commission. Ms. Paradiso received a $1,500 honorarium and Ms. Murphy and Mr. Burke each received $1,000 for their work.
Adoption of a new Howard County flag requires approval by the Howard County Council. Next week, Ball will file legislation for the new flag design with the County Council for consideration in April.
Established by Executive Order in January 2024, the Commission was charged to conduct a public design process to create a new official Howard County flag. The Commission accepted designs via an online application portal between April 1st and June 30th, with individuals of all ages invited to submit up to three original designs for consideration for a new county flag. In accordance with the Commission’s Design Guidelines and Criteria, each design submission required a brief narrative describing how the design represents Howard County, including its enduring appeal, symbolism and color choices. Following public testimony submitted at a September 30th public hearing, two work sessions in October and in compliance with the Commission’s Design Guidelines and Criteria, the Commission voted to narrow the 184 eligible design submissions to 10 for public vote. To prevent bias, the identity of each flag designer was unknown to the public at large and the Commission throughout its process.
To learn more about the Howard County Flag Commission, visit www.howardcountymd.gov/flag.