Braverman’s departure caps tough year for Baltimore housing department

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If you were to have accessed the website of Baltimore City’s Department of Housing and Community Development in late August you would have seen a number of notable images – the welcome page with the smiling face of the housing commissioner, the admonition to complete your 2020 census form and, perhaps most strikingly, the globe festooned with menacing red spikes, that depiction of the coronavirus that has become so familiar across our television, computer or smartphone screens  during this season of pandemic.

It’s only fitting that the virus should be prominently displayed on the site, since so much of the department’s activities this year have had to pivot to meet the challenges posed by the public health threat itself and the many falling dominos that threat has generated. As the housing commissioner states on the website, “We continue to devote significant time and resources to adapting operations to mitigate COVID-19 related risks and innovating to address the unprecedented challenges surfacing due to the economic hardships exacerbated by COVID-19.”

Start with the fact that all public schools have been closed since mid-March. For many city public school children, the school-based breakfasts and lunches they received represented the only nutritious meals they could depend upon on a daily basis.

Given that situation, DHCD has stepped into the breach, partnering with Baltimore City Schools, the Recreation and Parks department, the Family League and other nonprofit organizations to make sure that the children, vulnerable seniors and other food-insecure segments of the population would have access to free meals during the health crisis.

Using its experience with its Summer Food distribution infrastructure, DHCD reports that it has been able to deliver almost 2 million meals to date.

Other urgent needs

DHCD also played an integral role in increasing hospital bed capacity back in the spring when COVID-19 cases were surging. It helped expedite the construction of a 32-bed acute-care unit at Mercy Medical Center, with timely permitting and inspection actions. With this help, Mercy was able to bring into service a $12.5 million state-of-the-art facility in record time, opening June 1.

While working to advance the city’s community development goals, the department is operating at an accelerated pace to see that distressed communities do not further unravel under the added burdens of the public health emergency and the economic fallout.

Anticipating the need to protect renters who have lost income because of the pandemic-induced business closings or reduced hours, the housing department has been leading the response to head off an anticipated wave of evictions. Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young approved the use of $13 million in Community Development Block Grant funds to provide rental relief. DHCD designed and implemented a temporary rent support program to mitigate the problems likely to ensue with the lifting of both state and federal eviction moratoriums.

We have to remember that all of these initiatives are on top of the ongoing programs and major projects overseen by DHCD.

These include the large-scale plans for development at Port Covington, the continuing development of Harbor East, the planned transformation of the Perkins Homes public housing site into a mixed-income neighborhood situated between the waterfront and the East Baltimore campus of Johns Hopkins Hospital, and the myriad projects in other parts of Baltimore, from Stadium Square in South Baltimore to the changes planned around the Pimlico Race Course and the wider Park Heights community.

With no explanation

All of this intensive activity has been taking place under the leadership of Housing Commissioner Michael Braverman. And yet, if you were to check out DHCD’s website today, Braverman’s face on the welcome page would be gone. Friday, Aug. 21 was his last day on the job, having been dismissed from his post without any public explanation by the city administration.

Braverman had a 33-year career in various positions in city government and is credited, among other accomplishments, with preparing a Framework for Community Development, with equitable development a key feature of the framework.

Over the years I have had occasional interactions with Braverman, such as meeting with him to understand the intricacies of the Vacants to Value program, or to hear his periodic updates to the Community Development Network of Maryland. CDN had this comment on its website: “Braverman’s sudden departure came as a surprise to community development practitioners throughout Baltimore, who appreciated his experience, integrity and openness to dialogue.”

We have only heard from Braverman that he was told that “they want to go in a new direction.” To learn about that new direction, I look forward to the next CDN monthly meeting. Alice Kennedy, deputy commissioner for homeownership and housing preservation, named acting housing commissioner by the mayor, will be the featured speaker.

Joe Nathanson is principal of Urban Information Associates, a Baltimore-based economic and community development consulting firm. Since 2001, he has written a monthly column for The Daily Record and can be contacted at [email protected].