The East Baltimore Revitalization Initiative

The Foundation also knew that East Baltimore retained a sizable core of residents who were devoted to their neighborhoods. Based on the failure of previous revitalization efforts, however, many of these community residents harbored considerable skepticism, distrust, and resentment of outside entitiesnot only for their failure to deliver on previous promises, but also for consistently failing to acknowledge the voices, interests, and needs of neighborhood residents in their plans for the area.

The East Baltimore Revitalization Initiative remains a work in progress. Already, though, it has achieved many successes—particularly in relocation, demolition, economic inclusion, financing, and the sustained alignment of the public, private, philanthropic, and community sectors. These achievements have surpassed the early expectations of stakeholders and are advancing new standards and practices for the field of urban redevelopment.