PIKESVILLE, Md. — It seems like a community walk around a Pikesville hotel that people in the area call a “crime magnet” may have worked.
The Randallstown NAACP says they have reached an agreement with the owners of the Howard Johnson By Wyndham on Reisterstown Road to make the property safer.
“We’re really happy with it,” says Randallstown NAACP president, Ryan Coleman. “It’s a historic, historic agreement to really get the management here to compromise with us and it’s a big win for the Pikesville community and Baltimore County.”
The hotel, which is just north of the city-county line, has long been a source of human trafficking, prostitution and other criminal activity and they’ve had enough. Coleman says he’s heard from residents and businesses that have concerns about the crime there. His branch has been trying to get changes for at least eight years.
In September, they held a walk with police, county officials and other community leaders. They also started a letter-writing campaign to the operator of the hotel, Hemant “Harry” Bhavsar, and to Geoff Ballotti, the CEO of Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, which owns Howard Johnson’s.
The NAACP says county 911 records show that police and/or medics have been called to the hotel twice a day for the last year. And crime data from county police from the past two years shows more than 125 crimes have taken place there, including violent assaults.
On one day alone in March, multiple online escort services showed 20 ads for sex workers working out of that hotel.
“These actions negatively impact the wellbeing of the residents, police officers and medical personnel in Baltimore County,” Coleman says. “This constant drain reduces the services of police and fire that can be provided to the greater community.”
Last week, Randallstown NAACP members, elected officials and police met with hotel management and Wyndham representatives. In that meeting, the owners agreed to a list of concessions:
- Renovating and maintaining the property, including daily housekeeping service.
- Additional lighting in and around the property.
- Adding cameras that Baltimore County Police can monitor.
- Training hotel staff to identify illicit activity so they can report it to police.
- Recording full address and license plate information of guests.
- Maintaining a do-not-rent list of previous guests who did not following hotel policy and the Maryland Criminal Code.
- Limiting hotel access to registered guests; anyone else will be treated as a trespasser.
- Raising rental rates. A recent search by WMAR 2 News showed rates as low as $77.
- No smoking and no pets will be allowed.
Coleman says the hotel has already started work on the list, adding cameras and lighting. The organization will stay in contact with Bhavsar and his staff to carry out the to-do list. Community leaders plan to do a walkthrough in about three or four months to see the changes.
In a statement, Baltimore County Police says they will “continue to work closely with our community partners to address any potential criminal activity in the area.”
Bhavsar did not respond to requests for comment.
