Click HERE, or on the cover image to the left to view the Department of Planning 2016 Annual Report report, a special edition of the Compass.
The year 2016 marked a critical milestone for development in Baltimore City-- City Council’s adoption of a new comprehensive zoning code, the City’s first since 1971. The new code will encourage growth and development, making it easier to reuse old industrial buildings and develop more walkable neighborhoods.
In 2016, development projects large and small were underway throughout the City – Remington Row welcomed its first residents and new retail opened in Harbor Point. Public sites also saw improvements – several local schools are under construction as part of the 21st Century Schools initiative. The INSPIRE Planning process will assure that neighborhood level improvements will be implemented alongside the school construction process, wherever these key facility investments are occurring.
Other major Departmental planning initiatives moved forward this past year, including the publication of collaborative reports from the Technical Advisory Panels (TAP) studying the Greenmount and Pennsylvania Avenue commercial corridors as part of LINCS, and major public outreach for the Sustainability Plan Update. The Green Network Plan also moved forward with several public input forums and an analysis of sites most suitable for greening across the City. Read more about all of these important projects in the pages that follow.
Next year, staff at the Department of Planning will continue to work with community residents and stakeholders to tackle the most pressing neighborhood and city-level questions – how to address vacant properties; how to foster more equitable development; and how to build a more sustainable City. Our team is excited to be engaged in this work, under the leadership of Mayor Pugh and in partnership with Baltimore’s newly-elected City Council.
On behalf of all the Planning staff and the members of the Planning, Historic Preservation and Sustainability Commissions, thank you. We are grateful to serve Baltimore City, and to work with community members, business leaders and other City agencies to make Baltimore a more livable city for all.
We look forward with optimism to 2017.
Thomas J. Stosur, Director
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