Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition

The Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition (BTEC) is engaged in a petition campaign to adopt an amendment to the Baltimore City Charter that will allow for the creation of a Baltimore Regional Transportation Authority. Similar to the U. S. constitution, a City Charter lays out the form and structure of the government, and establishes protocols for its operation. To amend the Baltimore City Charter, a majority vote must approve the change by voting “Yes” on their ballot in the upcoming election.  In order for the Baltimore Board of Elections to include amendment questions on the next ballot, the campaign is required to submit 10,000 signatures from registered city voters by August 1 before Election Day. This is to demonstrate that there is sufficient public interest in the question.   CLICK HERE for more details on how you can sign the petition! In 2022, BTEC organized a ballot petition campaign which resulted in submitting approximately 15,000 petitions to the Baltimore City Board of Elections for ballot access. Only 10,000 petitions were required, and despite evidence in our favor, the Board of Elections rejected our application. BTEC is now conducting another petition campaign for ballot access and our goal this time is to secure 20,000 petitions!! BTEC urges you to stand with them in advocating for better transportation in the Baltimore region. HOW YOU CAN HELP - A CALL TO ACTION  Gather petitions from family, friends and neighbors. Gather petitions from faith group, community association, sports team, etc.  Volunteer for a petition tabling event. Help coordinate a BTEC presentation to a group. Follow BTEC on Facebook and/or Twitter and share their social media posts on your social pages. ***** Sources: BE/CDN Weekly Update, June 6, 2023. https://moretransitequity.com/petition-campaign/

 Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition Event 

The 2023 Commemoration of the Red Line will be on June 24th

Saturday, June 24, 2023. 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Location Disclosed after RSVP•*, Baltimore, MD 21230

The Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition (BTEC) will hold a Downtown Walk at the Harbor to celebrate and mark the 8th anniversary of the cancellation of the Red Line Light Rail Project. There will be complementary music, buffet, non-alcoholic drinks, and alcoholic drinks. You must be aged 21 or older to drink alcoholic drinks in Maryland.

RSVPs are accepted until June 20, 2023. 

For more information and/or questions, contact btec.moretransitequity@gmail.com.

Please note that the Harbor venue and its bathrooms are wheelchair accessible. 

"The Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition is a resolute, community-led organization advocating for equitable, reliable transit that improves quality of life and the environment. Our anti-racist work was born out of Governor Hogan’s decision to cancel the Red Line project in 2015. That decision – a quintessential example of structural racism in the region – spurred many of the original Red Line planning committee members to action. Shortly after the governor canceled the project, these members gathered with others in the community to form our coalition. BTEC’s first major initiative was to submit a Title VI administrative complaint to the US Department of Transportation on the grounds that the decision violated the federal government’s anti-discrimination laws established by the 1964 Civil Rights Act. When that complaint was summarily dismissed by the Trump administration in 2016 (without comment), we continued to seek other avenues to develop equitable transit in the region."

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Sources:

Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition, Newsletter, June 3, 2023.

https://moretransitequity.com/.

 Free Concert to Celebrate Juneteenth 2023!

June 12, 2023, Juneteenth Jubilee at Govans Presbyterian Church - Celebrate freedom, justice, and love together as we kick-off Juneteenth week (the national holiday is celebrated on June 19!) with a concert celebrating African American music and culture! This amazing celebration will feature the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra musicians, conductor Jonathan Rush, the Knox Presbyterian and Govans Choirs, community musicians, poet Keith Snipes and much more. Admission is free and open to all. Email Lea Gilmore at lea@govanspres.org for more information.

 Happy Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in Baltimore!

Happy Asian Pacific American Heritage Month! Happy Asian Pacific American (or Asian American and Pacific Islander) Heritage Month! This month is a time to celebrate the histories and futures of Asians, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders across the country and in Baltimore. Here are a few fun facts about Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders living in Baltimore: About 15,000 people of Asian descent live in Baltimore City, and 9,600 of them are immigrants. Asian Americans have lived in Baltimore for many years! Baltimore’s first unofficial Chinatown was established in the 1880s and the first unofficial Koreatown began in the 1960s. This year, 2023, marks the 120th year of Korean immigration to Baltimore! Many Asian immigrants from various countries have found home in Baltimore: Vietnamese, Filipino, Afghani, Bangladeshi, Indian, Nepalese, Sri Lankan, Thai, Taiwanese, and more! The Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MIMA) hopes you have a great Asian Pacific American Heritage Month! Some MIMA events that are happening: Asia North 2023: TRANSition/TRANSformation/TRANScendence - Parlor (108 W North Ave, Baltimore, MD 21201) and Motor House (120 W North Ave, Baltimore MD 21201). Friday, May 5 to Saturday, June 3rd. EmpoweReer Leadership Development Summer Program from Islamic Leadership Institute - This year Baltimore is accepting a total of 65 youth for a six-week career empowerment and leadership development program. Young adults aged 14-19 will have an opportunity to learn project management skills, leadership styles and traits, public speaking, build a professional Linkedin presence, visit global employers in Baltimore, and enjoy a couple of inspiring outdoor retreats. This is a great opportunity for those inspired to align personal development and career growth with real-life hands-on projects. Learn more and apply online at https://empowereer.org/  The Program runs July 17th through August 20th, 2023. Participants are eligible to receive stipends at the end of the program based on their performance. Transportation stipends are available as needed. Note that the Program is conducted in English. For questions, email info@empowereer.org. Are You Ready to Become a US Citizen? While permanent residents have most of the rights of U.S. citizens, there are additional important reasons to also consider becoming a citizen. Listed below are a few of the many benefits a person receives when he or she becomes a U.S. citizen: Ability to vote. Serve on a jury. Travel with a U.S. passport which allows you to get assistance from the U.S. government while overseas, if necessary. Get priority when petitioning to bring family members permanently to the U.S. Obtain citizenship for children under 18 years of age. Apply for federal jobs. Become an elected official. Become eligible for federal grants and scholarships. Obtain government benefits.  For information regarding citizenship services such as application assistance, interview or exam preparation, and more in the City of Baltimore, please see the following brochures in different languages:  English Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen?  Chinese Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen?  Arabic Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen?  French Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen?  Korean Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen?  Nepalese Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen?  Spanish Are you ready to become a U.S. Citizen? ***** Source: MIMA Monthly Newsletter - May 2023.  The mission of MIMA (Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs) is "to promote community wellbeing, economic development, and the integration of immigrant communities by identifying needs and opportunities that immigrants bring to our city, while developing public-private partnerships to strengthen the development of these communities."

 Results of a Recent Study

Study Finds Baltimore Children who moved from High-Poverty to Low-Poverty Areas had Improved Asthma

The health of Baltimore children with asthma in a subsidized program assisting them to move from high-poverty to low-poverty neighborhoods significantly improved, according to a study just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The children experienced fewer asthma attacks after moving and had symptoms on fewer days. These were improvements on par with medication used to treat the chronic condition, said Dr. Craig Pollack, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Hopkins School of Nursing and a lead author of the study.

Asthma constricts airways in the lungs and causes wheezing, chest tightness, coughing, and trouble breathing. It affects 13.7% of adults in Baltimore compared to 9% across the state and country. About a third of Baltimore high school students have been told by a doctor or nurse that they have asthma, compared to about a fourth statewide. The city also has the highest rate of emergency department visits due to asthma in Maryland. Nationwide, Black children are two to three times more likely to have asthma than white children, and have more than twice the risk for emergency department visits and hospitalizations because of the disease, according to the study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The study found that a major reason why children’s asthma got better after their families moved was because their new neighborhoods had fewer stressors. “Housing mobility programs that help families overcome the barriers to moving can also impact health,” Dr. Pollack said. “As policymakers and practitioners are thinking about the cost of these programs, they should consider the health benefits as well.”

Dr. Corinne Keet, a professor of pediatrics at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and another author on the study, commented "Anyone living in Baltimore understands the impact of violence and poverty on people’s health,” she said. “I mean, it’s pervasive.”

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Sources: Angela Roberts, "Study: Baltimore children moved from high-poverty to low-poverty areas saw their asthma improve," Baltimore Sun, May 16, 2023.

 Free Program to Combat Anti-Semitism

Register Here

 Free Fair Housing & Tenant Rights Workshop on April 26th

Whether you are a renter or homeowner, do you know your fair housing and tenant rights? Join Citizens Planning & Housing Association (CPHA) and community partners for an educational workshop. Learn about your rights and resources. The CPHA, the Public Justice Center, Baltimore Renters United, and the Baltimore City Branch of the NAACP will lead presentations. Light refreshments will be provided. Registration is required. CLICK HERE to register. Questions? Contact Char McCready at charm@cphamd.org. ***** Source: CPHA.

National, State, and Baltimore Evictions

Evictions Rise Above Pre-Pandemic Levels

The study by the Princeton University's Eviction Lab has found that the rate of eviction filings has returned or exceeded pre-pandemic levels in many U.S. cities recently, stimulated by the historically high cost of housing and other basic necessities. The Lab's aims to fill the "information hole in the center of the evictions crisis" by collecting data from court filings and other sources.

The Lab's estimated national number of evictions for 2018 was 3,656,427.8 filings affecting an estimated 46,902,048 households, with a rate of 0.078. An estimated 2,734,662.8 households were threatened with eviction. For Baltimore, there were 52,200 Baltimore households threatened by eviction, with a 36.6% threatened rate compared to the national 7.8%. According to the Lab for 2018, Baltimore had a rate of 92.3 evictions filed for every 100 residents, with 132,000 evictions filed that year. The is extremely high, however, but because of the way Maryland records eviction notices, it has a much higher filing rate than elsewhere, but not necessarily more evictions. In Maryland, the eviction process starts with an eviction filed in court rather than most other states filing an out-of- court notice delivered to a tenant. Many landlords file against their tenants every month, resulting in a very high case volume. Here, the number of filings is inflated because of unique court procedures, resulting in a high rate.

During the recent - and continuing - COVID pandemic, widespread official local and national eviction moratoriums helped keep many families in their homes. Now, however, those moratoriums have expired in most areas, and many are faced with the threat of displacement. This is particularly bad now because the high rent costs have renters spending a historic percentage of their paychecks on monthly housing bills.

The study found that the eviction crisis tends to disproportionately affect minority groups — particularly Black women. In the Twin Cities, for example, a weekly average of around 300 evictions have been filed over the last four weeks. This is compared to 20 per week during the moratoriums.

Philadelphia, Cleveland, and some others have recently started or expanded programs to help tenants access financial relief, stay in their homes during eviction disputes, or mediate tenant-landlord disputes. Some other recently-enacted "good cause" bills restrict evictions to cases where tenants violate their lease agreements, as well as limit major rent increases.

It is important to note that the Eviction Lab's 34-city data set does not include illegal evictions or cases where renters are forced out primarily because of  large rent hikes. However, the Eviction Lab's data set is the nearest equivalent to a nationwide evictions database. It contains a newly updated map of all 50 U.S. states & D.C., with the ability to search for an individual "county, compare data across regions, interact with demographic characteristics, and create local reports." Recently added features also include data from 2000 to 2018, estimated data for every county in all states & D.C., and the new variable of households threatened with eviction.

While the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is working on new data-collection efforts, there is currently no government national database with full coverage. As a result, the available data always understates the eviction problem and makes policy development more difficult.

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Read the March 16, 2023 AXIOS article.

Baltimore Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement

Women's History Month

Throughout the month of March, The Baltimore Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) is excited to celebrate the history, culture, and contributions of women-identifying Baltimoreans. MONSE remains committed to telling #HerStory, supporting women (womyn) and bridging gender-disparities through our work to build a better, safer Baltimore.  

Stay tuned throughout the month across our social media platforms to learn more from our #VictimServices team about the work underway to prevent Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and address human trafficking across Baltimore. We'll continue to share useful resources, opportunities for engagement, and information so that you can get involved in co-producing public safety. 

It's also National Reading Month, so keep an eye out for MONSE Executive Director Shantay Jackson and other members of our team as we share the power of the written word with Baltimore's young people throughout the month. 

Follow us on Social ***** Source: Baltimore Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, March MONSE Mail, March 3, 2023.

 Financial Help in Paying Bills

 Did You Read This?

SEGREGATED, GENTRIFIED HOUSING REMAINS A PROBLEM IN 2022

Baltimore among top 20 "Extreme" Segregated Cities

ABC News has reported that "Despite 50 years of federal oversight under the Fair Housing Act of 1968, housing segregation continues in America’s largest cities and urban areas. A recent ABC News analysis of mortgage-lending data highlights a pattern of racial isolation that remains in place even after decades of failed initiatives."

ABC News’ top 20 “extreme” segregation list includes America’s largest metro areas, such as: Cleveland, Ohio; Buffalo, New York, Detroit, Michigan; St. Louis, Missouri; Memphis, Tennessee; Birmingham, Alabama; Jackson, Mississippi; Springfield, Massachusetts; New Orleans, Louisiana; Miami, Florida; Bridgeport, Connecticut; Baltimore, Maryland; Cincinnati, Ohio; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Providence, Rhode Island.

In addition to these cities, ABC News states, "unfair housing practices are ubiquitous across the States." In 2019, some 64.8% of the 347,000 white homebuyers who applied for mortgages in mostly non-white neighborhoods in the nation’s largest metro areas were approved for a loan. In contrast, only roughly 56% of the 715,000 non-white applicants got a loan in 2019 in those same majority non-white neighborhoods. 

In many cities, gentrification affects not only housing but the very communal spaces we associate with our home. Gentrification is forcing more non-white residents out of urban neighborhoods, along with the Black-owned businesses, churches, and cultural touchpoints that we’ve known and loved for years.

According to U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chairperson of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs "We have never, as a nation, gone ‘all in’ on fair housing,” Brown told ABC News. “We’ve never, as a nation, tried to close that gap … that gap between black and white ownership.”

Read the February 9, 2022 Black Wall Street Times article.

 Opportunity to Comment  on Maryland's Transit Funding Recommendations

FEEDBACK SOUGHT ON TRANSIT GOVERNANCE AND FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS BMC's Transit Governance and Funding Workgroup is seeking comments through Friday, December 23 on a draft set of recommendations for the future of transit in the Baltimore region. BMC's Board of Directors established the Transit Governance and Funding Workgroup in July 2022 with the objective of preparing recommendations regarding the management of transit in the Baltimore region. The workgroup has reviewed options detailed in a 2021 Baltimore Regional Transit Governance and Funding Study and is preparing a formal recommendation to the BMC Board of Directors, Maryland General Assembly and Governor. Additionally, the workgroup reviewed funding associated with the Locally Operated Transit Systems (LOTS) program, seeking to increase equity and transparency in the distribution of those funds. After the first meeting in September, the workgroup convened monthly to discuss and build consensus around a set of recommendations. These meetings have included opportunities for public comment virtually and in-person. Now, members of the public are welcome to comment on these draft recommendations by December 23. A final report will be released in January. See the full recommndations at publicinput.com/transitworkgroup   Baltimore Metropolitan Council, on behalf of the Baltimore Regional Transportation Board, Howard County and Baltimore County, is conducting a multimodal transportation study for Ellicott City in Howard County and Oella in Baltimore County to address parking, wayfinding, and multimodal access. You're invited to help shape the future of transportation in historic Ellicott City and Oella on Thursday, December 8 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Roger Carter Center (3000 Milltowne Dr. Ellicott City, MD 21043) for a public meeting on the Transportation in Historic Town Centers project.  As part of the process to develop this study, the project team has developed an existing conditions and analysis report and initial recommendations and they will have an open house format with lots of ways to share your comments.   Learn more at publicinput.com/historictowncenters

 Because the City’s Inclusionary Housing Law has created Only 37 Affordable Units in 15 Years, the City Council is Making Changes.

At its November 17th Baltimore City Council meeting, everyone agreed that the city’s existing inclusionary housing ordinance isn’t working. Passed in 2007, the law requires developers of market-rate housing to set aside affordable units for people with lower incomes, but it has led to the creation of only 37 affordable units. Instead, developers have paid into an offset fund or sought waivers.

A bill now proposed by Councilwoman Odette Ramos and co-sponsored by a majority of the council would eliminate the loopholes allowed by the previous law, while also reducing the percentage of affordable units required. Instead of developers building 30 or more units to set aside 20% as affordable for residents earning less than the Baltimore area’s median income, developers receiving a city subsidy to build a 20+ units project would need to set aside 10% of units as affordable for low-income households (earning 60% of area median income). Developments getting an additional city subsidy would be required to add at least 5% more affordable units for residents who are very low or extremely low income. These units would have to remain affordable for 30 rather than the current 20 years. Developers would be required to submit an inclusionary housing plan to the city before receiving any project permits. That proposal, which also would require plans to market affordable units to residents who have historically been excluded from new developments, would have to be approved by the city’s Inclusionary Housing Board.

Some city housing and finance officials proposed some changes to Ramos’s proposed bill based upon recommendations from a 2021 study that analyzed the city’s real estate market and the feasibility of inclusionary housing. The study, conducted by Enterprise Community Partners, found that only the city’s strongest housing markets could support an inclusionary housing requirement. As a result, city officials have recommended applying the legislation to only “core” areas such as around the harbor and other select development-rich neighborhoods.

Source: https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/bs-md-ci-baltimore-inclusionary-housing-20221118-jly3p7knxbe4jk3bfuajgurn3i-story.html.

 Johns Hopkins Professors Sue Real Estate Appraisal Company over Low Valuation of Homeland Property

Two Black Johns Hopkins University professors took down family photos and replaced them with pictures of white faces in an effort to increase the value of their home after an initial appraisal fell short of expectation, an outcome they believed was due to race and not the property’s condition. A different appraisal company valued the house at nearly 60% more when the home appeared to be owned by white people.

Hopkins professors Nathan Connolly and Shani Mott are suing for damages citing racial discrimination. They have filed a suit against loanDepot (Foothill Ranch, California), and 20/20 Valuations and Shane Lanham, the owner of 20/20 Valuations who conducted the first appraisal. The complaint alleges that all of the first appraiser's selected comparable homes were of lower quality than their home, and the appraisal wrongly said that their home had not been updated for 15 years. The complaint stated the appraiser “cherry-picked low value homes as comps,” and by doing so, he “ignored legitimately comparable homes with much higher sales prices.”

It is ironic that Connolly, a history professor at Johns Hopkins University, is an expert on redlining and the legacy of white supremacy in cities, with a lot of his research on the role of race in the housing market.

Over 97% of home appraisers are white, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since summer, 2020, after George Floyd's murder, dozens of Black homeowners have alleged discrimination in their home valuations. Some have filed lawsuits. The Biden administration in March, 2022, proposed reforms to overhaul the appraisal industry and try to dismantle systemic bias.

Sources: Read the August 19, 2022 Baltimore Sun article. Read the August 18, 2022, New York Times article. Read the August 19, 2022 CNN article.

WATCH AN ONLINE UPDATE OF RED LINE CANCELLATION ON FACEBOOK ON SATURDAY, JUNE 25TH 1-2 P.M.

Join the Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition (BTEC) as we mark the 7th Anniversary of the Cancellation of the Red Line 🙁 and share an update on what has happened to help complete the Red Line light rail project through establishing a Baltimore Regional Transportation Authority (BRTA) 😀. This is online this Saturday, June 25th from 1-2 p.m on https://www.facebook.com/moretransitequity/.

The Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition was formed from the Baltimore Red Line Title VI Initiative, a group of community economic development advocates in west Baltimore who helped plan the Red Line as a transportation and community development project. 

The Federal Transit Administration is in the process of conducting a Title VI investigation of the Red Line's 2015 legal cancellation as possibly discrimination against African-American and low income communities. Incidentally, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits the disparate and adverse impacts on African-American and low income communities accompanying the Red Line’s cancellation.

After the 2015 cancellation, the Baltimore Transit Equity Coalition was formed to build a broad political coalition in Baltimore and beyond that will push to reinstate and ultimately construct the Red Line light rail.

Help us bring #MoreTransitEquity to Baltimore by contributing.

If you can’t contribute, we need your help as a volunteer, or to connect us to volunteers and donors.

https://www.moretransitequity.com/

btec.moretransitequity@gmail.com

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Sources: 

https://www.moretransitequity.com/

https://www.facebook.com/moretransitequity/