The Baltimore City Housing Department has an interesting search tool that you might not know about. You can search for cases that have been referred to the Legal Section for court action. You can either search by address or by neighborhood. You can also use that page to search for outstanding violation notices, and the name and contact information for your local housing inspector. We wondered if any of the properties we’ve featured here have been the subject of legal action, or have any pending cases before the court — indeed, there are quite a few. Here are two properties that have pending court dates associated with them:
701 Washington Boulevard: Upcoming court date, 4/16/2009
2 N. Decker Avenue: Upcoming court date, 4/22/2009
If you want to make a difference in your community, write a “community impact statement” regarding these properties, and send them to the Housing Department, your City Councilperson, and your local housing inspector. You can do this as an individual or as a community group. State how these properties have negatively impacted your neighborhoods and what you would like to happen next. Unless people get involved, the problem will only continue. Slumlords get away with their crimes because they believe that nobody cares, nobody is looking. Stand up for your neighborhood!
March 8th, 2009 at 11:54 am
Have you ever submitted a community impact statement for a housing code case? The State’s Attorney who represents our neighborhood has downplayed the effectiveness of these statements being used in Housing Court.
March 8th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
No, I never have. On the other hand, I think it’s very important for judges and others to truly understand the impact slumlords and bad investors have on the community. Frankly, I don’t give a damn what the State’s Attorney has to say about it — this is YOUR community, not his (or hers). One of the reasons why this blog was started was to encourage people to take matters into their own hands, and stop listening to people who want you to sit back and put up with this garbage.
March 12th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
[...] I learned that on April 16th, there will a court hearing for the Save A Lot space, and I’m thinking about going, just [...]