IT'S BEEN just over a year since plans for a new, larger, better YMCA in Ellicott City crumbled after neighboring Baptists unexpectedly voted down a complicated land deal with a shopping center developer.

The developer needed, he said, a few of the church's acres and a few of the Y's to build a home improvement "big box" -- a Lowe's -- on Route 103, roughly opposite the bustling Long Gate Center. Except, when the Baptists voted not to sell, the whole deal collapsed.

And from Y managers' viewpoint, poof, $3 million from selling 4 of their 12.5 acres to that developer vanished. They had been picturing the money going into a new facility that would replace their now-36-year-old building.

So here the YMCA is, 12 months later, and as North Laurel banker Bruce Hollander, who heads the county Y's board of managers, puts it, "we're moving at a snail's pace" on what to do next.

In other words, the Y muddles on in its cramped, leaky building, complete with its ventilation, electrical and plumbing problems, mostly attributable to age. The largest component is an indoor pool. Workout equipment occupies a crammed basement area, and the 25,000-square-foot building includes a general purpose space and locker rooms.

Asked what's been happening since the Lowe's affair, Lyndon E. Murray, executive director for the past three years, responded, first, with upbeat stuff -- about 350 summer day-campers, continued growth in family memberships to something like 6,000 paying patrons.

But more questions produced a sense that the venerable Y is wrestling hard with its future -- and not just in this county. We're talking the parent YMCA of Central Maryland, not just the Ellicott City affiliate.

At that broader level, Murray said, management is forming a 10-year capital improvement plan, and "we have to wait to see how we're going to fit in the overall scheme of things."

He and his board from Ellicott City presented a wish list to the Central Maryland Y's directors in April, he said, declining to talk about specifics.

But part of that exercise, he said, was to look at new or renovated facilities, because throughout the YMCA of Central Maryland, "many of our facilities are outdated."

What is apt to happen in Howard County, or when, remains unclear, he said, suggesting that more about the big picture should best come from Gail Sanders, public relations vice president for the YMCA of Central Maryland -- and coincidentally, a Howard County Y user.

The proposed 10-year plan, Sanders said, has phases for new development and, indeed, Howard County's needs are part of Phase 1. Other components include a new flagship Y to be built on the old Memorial Stadium site in Baltimore, a new Y for recently donated land in Harford County and one at the Towson facility.

But Sanders also declined to talk specifics. How fast any of that work is likely to occur, she said, "is still very fluid, very much dependent" on fund-raising by local YMCAs, such as the one in Ellicott City. That includes gifts such as a $1.5 million state grant the local branch received two years ago but hasn't spent.

If anything came out of the Baptist affair, a questioner said to Murray, the Y got a sense for how much its Ellicott City land was worth, right? So, might the Y consider selling that acreage and building new, elsewhere in the county?

"I don't see us moving," Murray replied. "We're using every inch of those 12 1/2 acres right now. We're in a great location."

Later, he added: "We have not been actively looking to relocate. But I can't say that we wouldn't look at something off-site. ... We've had overtures from developers, and we might look at something that was advantageous to us."

Since opening, the questioner continued, the Howard County Y has remained the same size despite the county at least tripling in population.

And, there is competition, including from the Columbia Association, which operates three gyms and a host of swimming pools. Might the Y consider a second facility for Howard County?

Murray's answer: "The majority of our members come from the Ellicott City area, but as time goes on, people will see we're getting to the point of overcrowding and some members will move on."

Meanwhile, Ellicott City Y patrons have received about 20 additional parking spaces on gravel. And Murray said some renovation of the old building is being pursued, including a new, hard floor for aerobics, replacing carpet.

Once again, major locker room work is occurring. This time, Murray said, much of the plumbing is being replaced rather than repaired.

"We've put on Band-Aids before," he said, "but it's to the point where we've got to correct some things that are long overdue, because they could turn into health issues."

Added Hollander: "There's a high level of frustration from the board chairman right on down. ... The building definitely needs improvement, but we don't want any more false starts. Our members have been hearing the same things for seven to 10 years."

Call the writer at 410-332-6525 or send e-mail to lowell.sunderland@baltsun.com.