Congratulations, Baltimore County Citizens -- You're Landlords!

by Steve Whisler

Every taxpayer in Baltimore County is the proud co-owner of apartment complexes in Dundalk. County government hopes to purchase a total of 56 complexes in the east Baltimore County region by the summer of 2007. You might enjoy being a property owner, but be careful what you wish for.

These new properties in your portfolio exist in a crime-infested neighborhood. Some call these apartments a blight and eyesore for the community. Critics question why the county failed to hold former property owners accountable to basic code enforcement laws. Why hold the current and former property owners accountable? Instead, let’s rely on the county to buy the properties, rebuild them, and revitalize the area. Great idea!

On March 27, 2006, county authorities thought they could purchase all 56 buildings in an 8-acre neighborhood for $11M. Well, their estimates were a bit off and they now expect to pay over $17M – a figure that will very likely increase since landowners are holding out for better offers, which the county seems willing to pay.

And Dundalk is not the only community where county government seeks to expand their role as Section-8 HUD housing landlords. The Smith Administration and his rubber-stamp county council are investigating the purchase of complexes in the Baltimore Highlands, Landsdowne, and Riverview area. Complexes like those in Circle Terrace are notorious crime areas and current owners are not held accountable to follow existing code enforcement standards. Not to worry, the government can purchase these properties too and do a much better job.

County Council Chairman, John Olszewski, seems to think, “It’s worth it … a great investment.” Call me cynical, but the first $7.6M spent on 20 buildings in Dundalk that contained just 79 units is not a great investment.

Would you invest your own money in these projects to buy, demolish, and rebuild the apartment complexes? Officials estimate they will spend $17.2M just to purchase the apartment complexes in Dundalk. What other related issues are taxpayers funding?

Tax dollars will also be used to move the families displaced by the county’s purchase of these apartment complexes. Citizens have already paid to move 51 families that likely already draw public assistance.

Displaced families will also receive rental assistance for one year, and they’ll receive vouchers for new units in February 2007. I’m sure the County Council and Executive are eager to call a press conference and let us know the total cost to purchase 56 apartment complexes in Dundalk and others planned in the southwestern portion of the county.

How much will Baltimore County citizens pay to demolish those buildings this summer? How much will it cost to erect new Section-8 housing? The current pricetag for these so-called Renaissance Redevelopment projects is the tip of the iceberg.

When all the project costs are calculated, I wonder how many police officers could have been hired to suppress and/or eliminate neighborhood crime activity. How many teachers could have been hired to reduce student-teacher ratios in our schools? How many Code Enforcement officials could have been hired to enforce standards in these dilapidated communities? I’m willing to bet the price tag could have been substantially less … and the county could have created new jobs!

County Executive Smith has already touted $90M in renovations for Dundalk during his first four years in office, and it appears that much, much more is on the way to a region that already garners the vast majority of public assistance funds in the Baltimore County budget.

Like it or not, Baltimore County citizens will pay for these projects, and I wonder if any of you or your politicians would stand in line and be first to move into one of the new apartments?

Perhaps those in county government should consider a return to basics and manage the infrastructure of communities – not seek to become a landlord. Like it or not, the crime in these areas will remain unchanged. The total price tag for these efforts will not change statistics that directly influence local housing prices — statistics like local school test scores, shootings, robberies, and car thefts.

Nice try, Baltimore County government, but the tax dollars you’ve allocated and will allocate for these projects is not a great investment, but instead a social experiment that will merely erect a new landscape and do very little for what is truly ailing these areas.