Housing Vacancy and Community Redevelopment

Amid a growing national housing shortage, Baltimore is leading the nation’s most ambitious housing redevelopment program – supported by $1.2 billion in public investment commitments – and is aiming to leverage an additional $5 billion in private-sector financing, according to the Greater Baltimore Committee (GBC).

For years, a housing-and-retail complex northwest of downtown was so crime-plagued it was dubbed the “Murder Mall.” Today, Ashleigh Choi Cross and John Cross are living at that location in a brand-new $400,000 townhouse. Read More.

In the “birthplace of redlining,” an ambitious plan to promote homeownership and restore neighborhoods plagued by vacant houses is taking hold. Read More.

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development has accelerated the rollout of an initiative to address Baltimore City’s vacant property problems. Listen to Segment.

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development has launched an accelerated $50 million application round for the Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Initiative (BVRI). Watch Video.

Six months ago, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore packed into a crowded multipurpose room at a West Baltimore community center and set an ambitious goal: knocking 5,000 vacant homes off the city’s tally in five years. Read More.

It’s a major step towards combating Baltimore’s vacant housing crisis. After months of planning, officials are speeding up revitalization efforts. Maryland’s Housing Secretary approved $50 million for developers starting on July 1, 2025. Watch Video.

At Gold Street Park Wednesday, standing in front of a recently renovated block of rowhomes with still-vacant rowhomes in the distance — their windows covered by plywood and doors blocked off by chain-link fencing — city, state and local leaders gathered to share a message of hope for Baltimore City’s vacant homes: We can fix this. Read More.

Two years ago, an email arrived in my inbox. It contained some thoughtful ideas put together by Joseph “Joe” Meyerhoff II about Baltimore City’s perpetual vacant housing inventory and how to do something about it. Read More.

What constitutes a Renaissance and is Baltimore having one? Colin Tarbert, president and CEO of the Baltimore Development Corp. (BDC), says he doesn’t like to overuse the term when speaking about planning and construction activity in the city, but he can see why people might think the city is experiencing one. Read More.

Baltimore has more than 13,000 vacant and abandoned houses and buildings, a number that officials say has barely budged in decades. On Tuesday, state and local leaders announced a new initiative to redevelop those buildings. Listen to Segment.

Governor Wes Moore has signed an executive order establishing the Reinvest Baltimore program, a collaborative effort to tackle Baltimore’s longstanding issue with vacant properties. Watch Video.

State and city leadership converged Tuesday for a new plan that will address vacant properties in Baltimore a larger scale. Baltimore has more than 13,000 vacant structures and more than 20,000 vacant lots. Watch Video.

Legislation needed to create a first-of-its-kind tax zone aimed at rehabilitating thousands of vacant properties in Baltimore will be introduced to the Baltimore City Council on Monday, a crucial step in executing a $3 billion housing plan proposed by Mayor Brandon Scott. Read More.

Gov. Wes Moore set a target Tuesday of eliminating 5,000 vacant Baltimore homes in five years, committing state support and making the issue an administration priority. Read Article.

It’s been a seven-decade streak of population loss and disinvestment for Baltimore’s neighborhoods.  The post-industrial headwinds that shook the economic foundation of America’s rust belt left a trail of abandoned industrial sites and brownfields, crumbling infrastructure and blighted communities from the Midwest states to the Black Butterfly of Baltimore. Read More.

JPMorgan Chase is investing $8.45 million in nonprofit organizations and initiatives in Baltimore to help residents boost access to affordable homeownership and increase wealth among communities of color, the bank’s head of corporate responsibility said Tuesday. Read More.

One of the major issues he and the GBC team plan to tackle is the heavy presence of vacant buildings in the city. “It becomes the image that people identify with Baltimore,” Thomas said. “That impacts whether a small business can get a loan, because people think you’re in an area that people don’t come to.” Watch Interview.

On Dec. 11, Scott and the organizations’ leaders are set to host a public action meeting at Greater Harvest Baptist Church in Southwest Baltimore to update residents on their strategy to finance the rehabilitation of these homes. Read More.

A coalition of Baltimore faith and business leaders and Mayor Brandon Scott’s administration Monday unveiled an estimated $8 billion plan to revive thousands of vacant and abandoned homes funded by the city, state and private donors. Read More.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott unveiled an ambitious $3 billion plan Monday to attack the city’s thousands of vacant properties, promising to address a decades-old problem with funding from a newly created Tax Increment Financing zone and a yet-to-be-secured state investment. Read More.

“Baltimore’s vacancy challenge is complex, and is an amalgamation of many economic and social issues. It is also a backdrop for other challenges,” GBC CEO Mark Anthony Thomas writes. Read More.

There are more than 14,000 vacant homes in Baltimore. On Sunday, BUILD, the Greater Baltimore Committee, and Mayor Brandon Scott announced a joint effort to deal with the crisis. A steering committee will come up with a plan. Watch Video.

The Greater Baltimore Committee, the area’s pro-business advocacy group, merged with the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore last year, condensing into one larger voice. It coincided with the departure of the GBC’s longtime leader, Donald C. Fry, who stepped down after nearly two decades at the helm. Mark Anthony Thomas, a newcomer to Baltimore with a fresh set of eyes, stepped in to replace him by the year’s end, eager to build a legacy. Read More.

“When companies are making decisions, or when banks are making investment decisions for businesses they’re choosing to invest in, or when people are looking at a market at a hyper level, if you have population decline and blight, you’re already disadvantaged,” said Mark Anthony Thomas, President and CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee. Watch Video.

There’s a new $7.5 billion proposed joint initiative in Baltimore City that seeks to turn around the long-standing issue of property vacancy and abandonment in the city. Watch Video.

A new initiative will bring together Baltimore leaders and faith organizations to help combat the city’s vacant home crisis. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is partnering with organizations to build a steering committee together with a goal to get $7.5 billion to invest in vacant properties in Baltimore. Watch Video.