Columbia Bancorp Presenting at Sandler O'Neill Conference

    Business Editors
    Sandler O'Neill & Partners West Coast Financial Services
    Conference

    THE DALLES, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 7, 2005--Columbia Bancorp (NASDAQ: CBBO) today announced plans to participate in the Pacific Northwest Banking Panel at the Sandler O'Neill & Partners West Coast Financial Services Conference. Craig J. Ortega, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Columbia River Bank, a subsidiary of Columbia Bancorp, will present on March 10, 2005, at 4:15 p.m. PST.
    The conference, set for March 10 and 11 at Southern California's Four Seasons Resort, Aviara, will be available in its entirety, both live and via a 30-day replay, at www.sandleroneill.com or at www.columbiabancorp.com. In addition, the audio of the conference can be heard by dialing (800) 239-8730 and referencing Session One of the Sandler O'Neill conference.

    About Columbia Bancorp

    Columbia Bancorp is the financial holding company for Columbia River Bank, which operates 20 branches located in The Dalles (2), Hood River, Bend (4), Madras, Redmond (2), Pendleton, Hermiston, McMinnville (3), Canby and Newberg, Oregon, and in Goldendale, White Salmon and Kennewick, Washington. To supplement its community banking services, Columbia River Bank also provides mortgage-lending services through Columbia River Bank Mortgage Team and brokerage services through CRB Financial Services Team.

    About Sandler O'Neill & Partners

    Sandler O'Neill was founded in 1988 with a single mission: to help financial institutions increase their franchise values through the execution of sound financial strategies. Today, Sandler O'Neill is one of the largest investment banking firms exclusively serving banks, thrifts, insurance companies and REITs. The company raises capital, provides research coverage, acts as a market maker, advises on mergers and acquisitions, and trades securities for hundreds of clients nationwide. Its services extend to mutual-to-stock conversions, loan portfolio restructurings, strategic planning, and investment portfolio and overall balance sheet interest rate risk management. For more information, visit www.sandleroneill.com.

    Forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and the business of Columbia are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in such statements. These include, without limitation, the impact of competition and interest rates on revenues and margins, and other risks and uncertainties, including statements relating to the year 2005, as may be detailed from time to time in Columbia's public announcements and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, such as "may", "will", "plans", or other similar terminology. Columbia does not intend to publicly release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release, other than in its periodic filings with the SEC, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

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CONTACT: Columbia Bancorp Roger L. Christensen, President and CEO 541-298-6633 or rchristensen@columbiabancorp.com Craig J. Ortega, Executive Vice President and COO 541-298-3152 or cortega@columbiariverbank.com

KEYWORD: WASHINGTON OREGON INDUSTRY KEYWORD: BANKING TRADESHOW CONFERENCE CALLS SOURCE: Columbia Bancorp

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