Yesterday I had to meet a friend at Oriole Park. I decided to walk back up Eutaw to my house and record my journey. I encountered many aspects of Baltimore that I have discussed on this blog in the past. The West Side of Baltimore, the city owned hotel, BGE, development, and many other topics that we all love are addressed in this video:
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Comments
I would say that I agree with most of what you said concerning the fact that the city does not take the citizens of Baltimore into consideration when making these million dollar plans for the so called betterment of our city.
I would like to add that I think the message gets a little loss as your anger builds up but I guess you are very passionate about what you are talking about
If you have a problem with the way we run Baltimore, then why don't you run for office and put the shoe on the other foot!
Didn't the governor say that we will be 2 billion in the budget hole next year 2010. They why is he building a billion dollar state office complex near the state center area? If I remember basic math right -2 billion + -3 billion = -5 billion. Hey I created a new math called Negative Budget Deficit Math. Apparently many of those in Annapolis including our COMPTROLLER who stated that we are spending more than we are taking in, keeps voting positive on frivious projects. Why not spend no money on nothin new, (vehicles, buildings, etc..), hold the line on present spending, and stop "FORECASTING" on what you MIGHT receive and deal in actual dollars. Also close the loop holes for the industries and your pals operating in Maryland. Guess what, we might really find out what we actually have in actual dollars! Also lower the taxes on the people, oh, yes I forgot the news says that we are riches State in the U.S. watch out for your pocket books Marylanders.
This is FUN, Adam! I hadn't expected to hang in there for your full, 10-minute clip, but I think you're a skillful provocateur for a voiceless part of the community. (And I hope that really was Shelia Dixon's comment, which means the voice is getting attention). Long live Baltimorehourly.com, and long live Meisterpiece Theater!
Hello Adam. My wife and I have lived in Seton Hill for 36 years - we raised 2 children within the city school system. We have long awaited the infamous "West Side Redevelopment" which stands to greatly improve a part of Baltimore that was once great, and has deteriorated tremendously over the past 40 years. The turnaround will be neither easy or quick, but we have watched progress taking place, and look forward to a continuation. Although I agree with a number of your points, I believe that the situation warrants a closer look. Especially your comments regarding the "luxury" apartments. I believe these are a valuable asset in that they will hopefully draw and support business to the west side area which is a necessary part of it's proposed renewal. Living here has been difficult as we have lost our stores, restaurants, bars, etc as the area declined. There needs to be a customer base if we are to ever get those back.
Come to Pigtown and I'll take you out on the WW Loop. Great material for a movie: hookers/junkies, drug dealers, johns from the burbs, the walking dead.
Bravo! Well done Adam. An excellent video showing you a good portion of reality in parts of Baltimore. Parts that Mayor would never be seen in because there are no good photo ops. Parts the powers that be would rather forget.
The passion and intensity you possess speaks to your sincerity in wanting to see better things for this place. Baltimore deserves better, but too many in positions of power couldn't care less.
Keep up the good work.
This video is awesome, Mr. Meister . It's unfair to knock development at the height of a real estate bust. It takes time for the positive impacts of new housing in redev. areas to manifest, and it doesn't help that many of these bldgs are empty or have high vacancy rates. Even w/o the bad economy, there's an oversupply of new rental housing downtown. I don't know if this is the result of over exuberance during the real estate boom, the public sector's role in incentivizing development in certain areas, or just bad decisions. I think over time you'll see new residents on the street, which will lead to new businesses etc.
I agree that if this area had transformed organically, through existing residents or "pioneers" renovating(a city planner said these are students, artists and gay people, but he didn't know you), then the results may be more impressive. But this may never have happened on its own, and the public policies that could encourage this do not get people elected!
Rebuttal to "your worst nightmare" - the most insightful point you made was the very last sentence of your post, which we can break down into part A: "But this may never have happened on its own" and part B: "the public policies that could encourage this do not get people elected!"
I would submit that part B of that sentence (the policies "do not get people elected") is Adam's very POINT. That in this town, politics and personal ambition get in the way of, and directly stifle, things that could make a real difference! Another way of phrasing it would be that the overall health of an entire CITY takes a back seat to certain people's political futures, and Adam is quite literally one of the only people calling this out in a public way. (Bob Kaufman also comes to mind).
I'd close by saying that because of this twisted and very BACKWARDS calculus I just described, part A of your sentence ("this may never have happened on its own") becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy...
great video, adam. like the part about the do nothing state workers.
"Sheila D", Adam DID run for office but was not funded by BG&E and the likes, and thus not part of the machine that gets people in office -the same machine that allowed Mercy Hospital to tear down the last group of historic row houses from the 1820's and replace it w/ a modern monstrosity which could have easily been built in vacant lots merely blocks away.
This needs to be brought to everyone's attention, I agree, but I think it's misleading that you skipped right past Chesapeake Commons and implied that the Congress is as derelict as the rest of the area, which hasn't been true for several years. There are definitely a lot of problems on Eutaw, and you're absolutely right on most of them, but BGE's new building is worlds better than it was, and the State Center project was largely stalled by the recession.
All in all, good work, but try to avoid becoming a Michael Moore; good points to be made, but half the potential audience turned off by your editing.
Love the video. So true!
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