“People will be moving to Park Heights to buy homes, rent, enjoy the parks, send their children to school, and to join a community that’s on the rise; with incredibly committed neighbors, community organizations, and anchor institutions. The work being done in Park Heights represents what’s possible when we commit resources and work together to pursue a community vision.”

On Sept. 18 ― before a packed Langston Hughes Community, Business and Resource Center ― DHCD Commissioner Michael Braverman laid out a vision to transform a distressed neighborhood within the Northwest Baltimore community, and Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young announced the development team that will bring the plan to fruition.

The City awarded development rights to The NHP Foundation (NHPF), Inc., for 17.3 acres of city-owned, vacant land in the Park Heights Major Redevelopment Area. Over the past five years, the City assembled the land and invested more than $13 million in acquisition, relocation, and demolition costs. That investment will now yield more than $68 million in new development.  Plans include 288 housing units, a large neighborhood park, pocket parks, community garden space, and an urban plaza. A public subsidy is anticipated to support the new infrastructure required and for affordable housing. 

According to an Economic and Fiscal Impact Study, the project is expected to generate $47 million in labor income and nearly $130 million in economic output.  Additionally, the project is slated to create an estimated 804 jobs for city residents, including 360 employment opportunities directly tied to construction and redevelopment.

NHPF, headed by Richard Burns, will serve as the Master Developer under the proposed plan. Other principals of the development team include the Henson Development Company, led by Dan Henson of Baltimore, and Merenberg Enterprises, Inc., headed by Sandy Merenberg of Baltimore.

The City anticipates redevelopment efforts will be completed by 2025. Learn more.

From Park Heights to Broadway East − there are many community development projects underway throughout the City of Baltimore. These projects ― critical to locally driven community revitalization in Baltimore ― are possible because of strong partnerships between the City, local community organizations, and other stakeholders, including foundations, anchor institutions, and the state of Maryland. 

The City continues to commit resources to assist communities with these efforts through its Community Catalyst Grants (CCG) Program. On Sept. 27, Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young and DHCD Commissioner Michael Braverman announced 25 recipients of capital funds under the CCG Program.

Grants totaling $3.3 million are expected to leverage more than $52 million in development activity across Baltimore neighborhoods. The grants support projects that promote transformational, neighborhood-led investments that remove blighting influences, create a diversity of needed uses, and foster neighborhood-owned and led enterprises.  Much of these funds were expressly dedicated to new and emerging organizations. This first round of capital funds provided for acquisition, critical gap financing, cooperative economic enterprises, and planning efforts.  

These awards mark the second phase of funding through the CCG Program. Earlier in the year, DHCD awarded $2 million in operating funds, the bulk of which were dedicated to helping new and  emerging organizations build their capacity. Learn more.

View the event photo gallery.

In July 2019, the Pennsylvania Avenue Black Arts & Entertainment District Coalition won a state designation for the Pennsylvania Avenue Black Arts and Entertainment District ― the first of its kind in Maryland and one of a few in the nation.

From the 1920s into the 1960s, the Pennsylvania Avenue Corridor, located in West Baltimore, served as a thriving destination for black arts and entertainment. City officials and community members are striving to return the area to its former glory.  The Pennsylvania Avenue Corridor, with its rich history, is located within the new Westside Gateway, as well as DHCD's Westside Impact Investment area.  With strong community and public and private sector support, the area is poised for inclusive transformational investment.

DHCD was pleased to support the effort through the awarding of a Community Catalyst Grants Operating Award to Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle ― a member of the Coalition's initiative. Overall, the Agency has committed considerable resources to ongoing and future redevelopment projects in the Pennsylvania Avenue Corridor neighborhoods.  The City awarded more than $1 million in Community Catalyst Grants Capital and Operating Funds to organizations such as Arch Social Club; Black Women Build Baltimore; Countered; Druid Heights CDC; UPC Westside CDC; and Upton Planning Committee. 

DHCD, in partnership with HABC,  has been working for decades to support the transformation of distressed public housing.

On July 17, the City marked a major redevelopment milestone with a groundbreaking event for Phase 1 of the PSO Transformation Plan ― 1234 McElderry Apartments. The mixed-use complex will sit on the site of the former Somerset Homes.  

Phase 1 is a $30.1 million investment and kicks off efforts that are part of a broader, $1 billion revitalization of 200-plus acres in the East Baltimore community. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is partially funding the PSO plan through a $30-million Choice Neighborhoods Initiative grant. Additionally, the City approved a $1.5 million HOME Investment Partnerships Program Loan and a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) to assist with funding the project. 

Reintegrating public housing into the fabric of Baltimore neighborhoods is critical to the city’s overall health and strength moving forward. The PSO Transformation Plan calls for 1,345 total new residences and a commitment to 1-for-1 replacement of all public housing units. Additionally, the City will add new parks and green spaces and will build a new City Springs School. 

1234 McElderry Apartments will be a four-story, 104-unit, mixed-income rental property, featuring 2,400 square feet of ground-floor retail. Eighty-four units will be marked for affordable to lower-income families.

Henson Development Company and Mission First Housing Development Corporation are leading the project. 1234 McElderry Apartments is expected to be completed by November 2020, and the entire redevelopment project by 2025.

“Block by block, neighborhood by neighborhood ― it will take a little rolling up of our sleeves ― but I think there is a great opportunity to make this ordinance more effective and to get better outcomes. We have new resources and a new commitment. I really see an opportunity here.”

Commissioner Michael Braverman spoke with confidence about the City’s vision to improve outcomes from the inclusionary housing ordinance during a recent meeting of the Inclusionary Housing Advisory Board. The City created the Advisory Board as part of the 2007 law ― §2B-21, 22, and 23 ― that City Council passed to promote economic diversity while providing housing for residents who earn between 30-100 percent of the Area Median Income. DHCD administers the 15-member board, which enforces inclusionary housing requirements. 

Inclusionary housing requires publicly subsidized, city residential developments ― made up of 30 units or more ― to make 20 percent of its units affordable. Additionally, developments that receive rezoning and land use authorization are required to make 10 percent of its units affordable.  However, the present law has a number of built-in protections resulting in waivers that the new Board is grappling with. We see this as an opportunity for improvement.

William F. Ariano, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer, Baltimore Community Lending, is chairing the Advisory Board. DHCD’s Jalal “Jay” Greene, Chief Operations Officer, represents DHCD on the Advisory Board.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $9.7 million in funding to DHCD to address lead-based paint in Baltimore. The competitive award is the largest, single grant award made by HUD to support lead hazard reduction work in the city.

Members of Maryland’s Congressional Delegation pushed for the funding, which provides a demonstration grant for the elimination of lead-based paint hazards in low-income, private housing.  The federal funding allows the City to conduct lead-based paint risk assessments, inspections, abatement, interim controls, and clearance examinations.  These funds are part of DHCD's larger effort to promote healthy and thriving communities for all Baltimoreans.