Last year, Long Reach village officials discovered with dismay that a parcel of land across from Long Reach High School - long thought to be owned by the Columbia Association - was privately owned and on a short list of sites being considered for a county crisis center.

Now, with the crisis center plans on hold - after vehement resident opposition - the village board is doing all it can to make sure village residents have more say about how the property is eventually to be used.

The board is seeking to have the 5-acre tract transferred from Howard Research and Development Corp., a Rouse Co. subsidiary, to the Columbia Association to be used as a recreational site.

"We would like to see it used for the benefit of our residents," said Karen Hitcho, the village board's vice chairwoman.

But achieving that goal may prove difficult.

Columbia Association President Maggie J. Brown has told the village board that the homeowners association's 10-year economic model does not include plans to build a recreational facility.

But she said the village board is "certainly free to advocate."

Alton J. Scavo, executive vice president of development for the Rouse Co., said the Long Reach parcel is being held for community use. He said the company would consider donating the land or selling it at a discounted rate for a specific use for the community, not just one village.

The land should not become "just a piece of grass someone can get control of and not have it used for anything," he said. "It's a valuable piece of property for community uses."

The land, on Old Dobbin Lane, is under consideration as a possible site for a $6.5 million crisis center that would offer county residents 24-hour service, including counseling and a shelter for runaways, the homeless or victims of rape or domestic violence.

Neighbors and community officials strongly opposed the crisis center being built in Long Reach and on two other proposed sites - in Kings Contrivance, between Hammond High School and the village center, and in Ellicott City, near Maryland School for the Deaf.

The proposed 33,000- square-foot facility would house three nonprofits: Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center, Domestic Violence Center and STTAR Center, which helps victims of sexual abuse.

While residents lauded the nonprofits' work, they argued that the locations were too close to homes and schools and could place students at risk, affect property values and bring crime into neighborhoods.

The coalition of nonprofits brought forward an alternative site in June - the former Harriet Tubman school, near U.S. 29 and Route 32 in Columbia. But some African-Americans opposed a crisis center on that site, saying that the 54-year-old building - once a segregated school for Howard County's black students - is a sacred part of history that should not be turned into a crisis center.

Lynne Nemeth, a project manager for the coalition, said the nonprofits have not ruled out any sites, but the group is looking into other options.

"We are very well aware of the community reaction against the crisis center," she said. "We want to be in a place where we can serve the community and where we are accepted."

Despite the Columbia Association's cool reaction to its recreational facility proposal, the Long Reach Village Board is forging ahead, advocacting transfer of ownership of the land.

The five board members have not given much thought to specific details, such as what kind of recreation area should be developed there. They are discussing ways to gather residents' input - such as a survey, town meetings or a task force - on the best use of the land.

Hitcho acknowledged that the village board does not hold much power in determining the land's future, but she said the group would like to act as "a catalyst."