[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6255293,"mediaKeyId","3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237","parentId",3166344,"title","Council committee approves renaming of Easterwood playground for longtime community leader Margaret Powell","audioSeconds",2577,"startMs",5097000,"endMs",7674000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237&start=5097&end=7674","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237/thumbnail_5097000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6255293/Baltimore-City/Baltimore-County/Maryland/Council-committee-approves-renaming-of-Easterwood-playground-for-longtime-community-leader-Margaret-Powell","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6255293-86eb20b29331086d24599eca50fd275a/orig.mp4?Expires=1771186501&Signature=LrLf8Ggft3eIh0XsEPgS62jNZOI2Un5jllvRSMpDKMrMEhWKbwDKsogs~HHnq-JGx8-YV~JkdiLxaVo0Y-9ylcLMz49hVmuK4YfOGQKB--OTS3xBD2GfI-gKb7pP1tQSh5P1hd~ToDcdVUQffaVp5crO5XiZ3PwJar922lckFt-cMGdhAnSWU0tdau00m~r3kihwMwP4VxGlRfWiJm8XEFwvfACUoAUSnyXlPFoZ45X7CLXfi8VP-uQSkE~UydQXvYl-cIrjPEj9OucRsKpSy5m0wR0mIQyNcxBjf16X6OQVFFHG-38dp3LbDUcqJB0rjhYIFz9~Aon5~5e1R1h0Qw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City Council of Baltimore, MD","date","2025-05-01T10:09:55.34Z","article","The Baltimore City Council’s Housing & Community Development Committee voted unanimously to advance legislation that would name the playground at Easterwood Park for Margaret L. Powell, a long‑time educator, volunteer and neighborhood leader.

Sponsor remarks and committee reports: Chair James Torrance and sponsor Councilman John Bullock described Powell as a community organizer and educator who ran programs for children, curated a small African‑American history museum at Matthew A. Henson Elementary, and coordinated neighborhood cleanups and resource lists for residents. Department of Real Estate and Recreation & Parks offered favorable reports; the Department of Planning recommended the bill favorably.

Public testimony: Dozens of neighbors, family members, former students and colleagues offered testimony supporting the renaming. Bumani (Bumani) Ivy, Powell’s son, read letters from relatives and said the family supported the dedication. Witnesses described Powell’s daily community resource texts, weekend academic programs, and a library and museum she maintained for students. A succession of family members — including a niece and a granddaughter who spoke about Powell’s influence on their education and careers — and multiple neighborhood leaders testified to Powell’s decades of local service.

Committee action: Vice chair Odette Ramos moved the bill, Councilman Jones seconded, and the committee voted unanimously to advance the legislation to a second reading. The chair thanked speakers and observed that the playground dedication would attach a public, long‑term name to local recreational improvements that community members helped design.

Why it matters: Testimony emphasized Powell’s intergenerational work with children and seniors, daily information-sharing on community resources, and grassroots organizing — activities committee members said merit public recognition. The bill accompanies a larger investment of $2.5 million in park improvements the committee discussed during the meeting.

Next steps: The measure will proceed to second reader in the full council on the scheduled calendar.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City Council Hearing: Housing & Economic Development; April 29, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The City Council committee unanimously advanced a bill to name the playground at Easterwood Park for Margaret L. Powell after family members, neighborhood leaders and former students testified to her decades of community and educational service.","taxTitle","Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Maryland","taxId",4816,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6255298,"Council committee rescinds prior edits and gives administration a year to implement conservation-district tax credit",505,4488000,4993000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237&start=4488&end=4993","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237/thumbnail_4488000.jpg","/articles/6255298/Baltimore-City/Baltimore-County/Maryland/Council-committee-rescinds-prior-edits-and-gives-administration-a-year-to-implement-conservation-district-tax-credit","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6255298-8ef48fac3ea98ab44d515ad32fbf1bb7/orig.mp4?Expires=1771186501&Signature=RJ5mlwQwWCyVFgRK3-RBpL0YFBRNf~BIS3EcqV9lixJfgPY2dnwrr1xXIjlHAY~uaaKvXaP8842fSmdAv0E5aIyXXycXh5kT26v0khK~Bb7q6bF4nyN8WqX~wNtX~X15yVdq9JZU-6Vc9cpsg4DudjI1Wcdg5rHeQLkY0Rt1Crcvj-Za6T30DvGpLoYwv2A65Ia5wfyROqJaZglsOSmx5Uc~fsIjkTmgqHPP-EJBZmfdxY~YZevXSsdIwi4YCrY4kYrnDHUyuXO5nPpkDfnq4r2ek-5cVFB54SDedtGlPfXtmbUwrUarC5QqNvHPHLx1Zcf2JSrVzDv8URXgMH2FVg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Baltimore City Council’s Housing & Community Development Committee voted to rescind earlier committee amendments to a bill creating conservation districts and to approve language that gives the administration one year to set up program staffing and determine funding for an associated tax credit.

The committee convened under Chair James Torrance to consider City Council Bill 25-0003 (conservation districts). Jeff Hochsteller of the law department advised the committee on the technical steps needed to recall prior amendments. Councilman Glover moved to rescind the previous amendments; the motion passed unanimously.

After rescission, the committee considered a technical amendment (identified in the record as an amendment from CHAP) to add a one-year implementation window. The amendment replaces a thirty-day timing reference with a 365‑day (one‑year) window to allow the mayor’s administration to staff the office and finalize funding arrangements for the credit. The amendment passed on a unanimous committee vote.

Chair Torrance and council members said the one‑year delay intends to give the administration time to complete a 10‑year financial plan review and to bring forward a revenue plan for any new tax-credit program. The chair described the change as shifting the administrative burden to the executive branch while allowing the measure to move forward in its original form.

The committee voted to advance the bill, as amended, to a second reading in the full council. Committee votes recorded on the floor were unanimous in favor of rescission, of the one‑year amendment, and of advancing the bill.","The Housing & Community Development Committee voted to rescind prior amendments to the conservation-districts bill and approved an amendment giving the administration 365 days after mayoral signature to staff the office and identify funding for a new tax credit program.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6255303,"Baltimore officials say more permanent supportive housing and services needed as homelessness rises",3649,97000,3746000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237&start=97&end=3746","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3166344-9c7e174467550fe7b830eabac784e237/thumbnail_97000.jpg","/articles/6255303/Baltimore-City/Baltimore-County/Maryland/Baltimore-officials-say-more-permanent-supportive-housing-and-services-needed-as-homelessness-rises","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6255303-276fcac49c91e6d78cd3f913c8f2e498/orig.mp4?Expires=1771186501&Signature=gCAOB1kSKLAAMxefn2XBKQISfY~H4RJsdCmULY9bm8xC8wK4mDsa8YlSmSazl30JIpV5yV2v-G8eqaxcWXDQ7qjOe3Vu0tty~ucZFj8RveoSWlta58bRfPXcjpMW4FBqEJ9MYDV5SpAiXvVna0OZHvT8fZk1QgT3N5LqMghkl~t-HozSICpaX1lHn~Kq5-MHIbwIvYhxZKd1whX2Fpyu04afrhNB~kOAu3ZB1x~eGERZgYjoloMNXZ1fQN9Gp-oioUPncOsLDqfV~UxkIv3077MhBtK0b1fNnQpujD-a3ceAST-09GhEmka7SVPGvGv5BFWF~DaDLWDubO4NWi~7nQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Baltimore City Council’s Housing & Community Development Committee heard a report Tuesday from Ernestina Simmons, director of the mayor’s Office of Homeless Services (MOHS), saying the city served more people in 2024 and that the number of residents experiencing homelessness for the first time rose sharply.

\"Our mission is to make homelessness rare and brief,\" Simmons told the committee, then outlined program counts and system measures. MOHS reported serving 21,306 clients in 2024 through supportive services, shelters and housing programs; enrolling 6,609 clients in the coordinated entry system; and providing permanent supportive housing to 4,249 clients. Simmons said the city exited 1,044 clients to permanent housing and that outreach teams served 3,106 people, delivering 63,261 services.

Why it matters: City and nonprofit leaders said permanent supportive housing (PSH) — housing linked to on-going case management, health care and substance-use treatment — is the most effective intervention for people with chronic needs. But they warned that funding for supportive services is sparse, restricting how many units can include the services that sustain tenancy.

Simmons told council members the city lags national trends for moving people from unsheltered situations into permanent housing. She said MOHS’s 2025 unsheltered point-in-time count recorded 188 people on the street the survey night and that among those unsheltered, self-reported substance-use disorder rose from 23% in 2023 to 76% in 2025.

Dan McCarthy, of Episcopal Housing Corporation, and Kevin Lindemood, CEO of Healthcare for the Homeless, described a planned conversion of two city‑owned hotels on Fallsway into PSH. McCarthy said the proposal would renovate the former Holiday Inn and demolish the adjoining Sleep Inn to build a new structure, combining the sites into roughly 170 units. He said the sponsors planned to apply for Maryland tax-credit financing in mid‑May and expected an award decision by August; construction would begin roughly 12 months after financing, with phased occupancy starting about a year after that.

McCarthy and Simmons confirmed the hotel sites are currently used for noncongregate shelter and that the city intends to secure replacement shelter capacity while proceeding with the conversion. Simmons emphasized that residents currently using shelter beds are not guaranteed tenancy in the new PSH projects; referrals into the finished development would follow the coordinated entry process.

Healthcare for the Homeless, which provides clinical and supportive services, said it now operates approximately 550 PSH units and that its integrated care model — clinics, mobile units and shelter-based services — is designed to improve housing stability once people are housed. \"For every $100 increase in median rental costs, homelessness goes up by 9%,\" Lindemood told the committee, citing research from Pew and the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

State and federal programs: Danielle Meister, assistant secretary at Maryland DHCD’s Division of Homeless Solutions, told the committee the state provided about $7 million to homeless-specific programs in the last fiscal year and has expanded a Medicaid housing case-management waiver (described in testimony as the Access to Community Integration Services or \"ACES\" waiver). Meister said the state received federal approval to expand slots from 900 to 2,100 statewide and that the state will cover the non‑federal match going forward, which she said should increase local capacity to provide long-term supportive services.

Funding gaps and service costs: All presenters said the principal shortfall is supportive services funding. Simmons and partners showed that while capital subsidies and rental assistance fund many housing units, the annual cost of intensive case management and wraparound services is not consistently underwritten. Simmons cited a Medicaid pilot that provides roughly $2.685 million to fund 300 case-management slots; she said that leaves many PSH units without matched services. In committee discussion, Lindemood and a COC representative said an \"ideal\" case-manager-to-client ratio for intensive PSH ranges from 1:14 (best-case) to 1:20 or 1:25, and that services costs are roughly $8,000 per person per year — less than average unit costs but difficult to finance sustainably.

Prevention and eviction-related questions: Council members asked whether reductions in eviction-prevention dollars explain the rise in first-time homelessness. Simmons said MOHS does not track eviction filings and does not collect a client's reason for entering the system, but she and the committee discussed coordinating with the mayor’s Office of Children & Family Success and state partners to get eviction-prevention spending and eviction-filing data. Simmons said in 2024 the city used flex funds for shelter diversion and diverted 1,599 clients; with those funds largely exhausted, the city now sees more first-time shelter entrants.

System performance and next steps: Speakers stressed three fronts: (1) add more PSH units, (2) secure sustainable funding for supportive services, and (3) maintain accessible, decent shelter for people entering the system. The committee’s vice chair said the committee will hold quarterly follow-up hearings and requested MOHS provide data and a plan for prioritizing scarce resources if federal funding declines.

Ending note: Officials said the city has ramped up interagency coordination among MOHS, DHCD, the Housing Authority of Baltimore City and nonprofit providers and that the expanded Medicaid waiver and recent state tax-credit policy changes may accelerate PSH capacity, but that service funding remains the limiting factor to reduce chronic and unsheltered homelessness.","City and state officials told a Baltimore City Council committee the number of people entering homelessness rose in 2024–25, that permanent supportive housing and case management are critical, and that funding gaps — especially for services — limit the city’s ability to house and keep its most vulnerable residents.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Council committee approves renaming of Easterwood playground for longtime community leader Margaret Powell

Council committee rescinds prior edits and gives administration a year to implement conservation-district tax credit

Baltimore officials say more permanent supportive housing and services needed as homelessness rises