BALTIMORE — West North Avenue has been empty for too long for West North Avenue Development Authority Chad Williams.
"This is catalytic all the way back to the 1960s," Williams said.
So he and his team are looking for qualified developers to bring life back to the area.
"Not just to revitalize Baltimore but also to revitalize the state of Maryland and Baltimore City's economy," he said, "When we have vacant properties, those properties don't produce property tax, you don't have populations in those properties produce income tax, and then you don't have revenue-generating places like Mondawmin Mall and the
commercial districts along the Black Arts District to generate sales revenue."
Economic authority looking for developers to fill West Baltimore vacancies
The relatively new economic development authority focuses on creating opportunities for minorities.
About 48% of their grants and loans go to women and Black-owned developers.
"We want to make sure that primarily small businesses, which are mostly owned by minorities and people of color, have the opportunity to reinvest in the neighborhoods that they grew up in."
They also put a covenants agreement on their grants so they don't displace anybody.
"So properties that are west of Fulton can only be sold for $250k if they use our grant, and those east of Fulton can only be sold for $275k."
But why are there so many vacancies in the area?
Williams told WMAR 2 News it goes back to the days of redlining.
"Where the displacement of Black folks from this area, the inability of city and state officials to invest in infrastructure, and the ability of Black families and Jewish people to actually get loans from banks."
He said ideas for West North Avenue include mixed-use housing and commercial areas and told us the authority has heard from the community many times.
"People in West Baltimore want the same thing people have that live right next to Johns Hopkins or down at the Harbor. They want to be able to go outside their homes. They want to be able to walk, shop, eat, have opportunities to engage in open space in safe public areas, so those are the things they want."
Qualified developers have until 11:59 pm on February 5th to throw their hat into the ring.
For more information head here.
