From the Director

Rudolph S. Chow, P.E. 

The Baltimore City Department of the Public Works (DPW) may seem an unlikely engine to help power the region’s economy, but every day we are actively promoting business growth and job-development.

DPW plans to invest billions in capital construction on water, wastewater, storm water and other projects to enhance service delivery and better protect our environment. DPW accounts for a majority of all City of Baltimore capital expenditures. Our Small Business Development Program prepares small businesses to compete for City contracts. In September, we will launch the third class of the "Growth by Design" Small Business Development Program. 

In addition, we continue to train young City residents for careers in the water industry with our award-winning YH20  Water Mentoring Program. This summer, DPW employed 100 young city residents through the YouthWorks program. Some of these young people worked together to create a DPW-themed mural, which is located across the street from our Park Terminal Utility Maintenance Facility. This is the first mural in recent memory for DPW. It gives us another reason to be #DPWProud!

Some of the youth workers assigned to DPW this summer had an opportunity to collaborate with a local artist to create community-based artwork highlighting how the department serves the City of Baltimore every day.  These young people worked side-by-side with some participants of the  YH20 water mentoring program to create a nine-panel mural depicting nearly every facet of DPW’s Solid Waste and Water and Wastewater operations. “Thanks to our collaboration and partnership with The Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA) and the Mayor's Office of Employment Development (MOED), we were able to provide young City residents with hands-on employment to stimulate their creativity and educate them about the value of Public Works and beautifying communities,” said Director Chow during the Aug. 17 ceremony to spotlight the young workers’ hard work and to dedicate the mural.  

Director Chow visited a worksite on Aug. 10 where a small business owner and graduate of DPW’s 2016 Small Business Development Program cleaned a City sewer line. Christopher Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Grace Management and Construction LLC, was one of the first in his small business development class to secure a subcontract on a DPW project.

At the worksite, the Director encouraged new businesses to follow in Mr. Williams’ footsteps by participating in the 2018 "Growth by Design" Small Business Development Program, which begins its third year on Sept. 6. The deadline to apply is Aug. 24. For more information or to enroll, call 410-433-2400, email sbd@baltimorecity.gov, or log on to publicworks.baltimorecity.gov/smallbusinessdevelopment.

DPW's YH20 Program is a winner! We've been notified that this innovative program will receive the 2018 Water Environment Foundation’s (WEF) Public Communication and Outreach Program award. This award is for significant accomplishments in promoting public awareness and water and environmental issues through development and implementation of outreach, education, and communications programs. The award will be presented at the Water Environment Federation’s Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC), which will be held later this year in New Orleans.The YH20 program prepares young Baltimoreans for a career in the water industry. The YH20 program launched in January 2015 as the Baltimore City Water Industry Mentoring Program. 

 Learn More