Southeast CDC staff manage programs and projects that support the equitable revitalization of neighborhoods in Southeast Baltimore. Our successes over the past year have supported families, strengthened communities, and led to measurable impact on the revitalization of Southeast Baltimore.
Placemaking and
Public Space Projects
Our Neighborhood Revitalization team coordinates community improvements in our target communities, including planning alongside residents, fundraising for projects, and coordinating with property owners and contractors. In FY24, we:
- renovated the Rose Street Community Center in Milton-Montford,
- installed custom trash cans and benches in the Greektown neighborhood,
- added fencing to five community greenspaces in the McElderry Park and CARE communities,
- installed string lights in Ellwood Park,
- installed ground murals at two intersections in the Patterson Park neighborhood,
- and repaired concrete steps in Ellwood Avenue Park.
Small Business Support
Our staff operate the Highlandtown Main Street and Highlandtown Arts & Entertainment District, with over 330 small businesses and artists. In FY24, our team provided technical assistance support to over 96 entrepreneurs.
In FY24, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Highlandtown Arts District with a social media campaign, door-to-door marketing to all 5,000 residents in the district, and a birthday party. We hosted a five-part tour series of the Crown Industrial Park artist studios, where visitors toured over 25 unique studios. Our First Friday Art Walks continue to attract people to the district monthly for open galleries, dining, and performances, with an estimated 200-500 visitors attending each month. Our 2023 Art Walk online map had over 106,000 views.
Check out www.ihearthighlandtown.com for more information.
Southeast CDC is a participant in the Baltimore BASE (Business Assistance and Support for Equity) Network, a partnership of business support organizations led by the Baltimore Development Corporation and the Mayor’s Office of Minority and Women-Owned Business Development that helps BIPOC-owned small businesses access pandemic-related recovery assistance. From 2022-2024, we provided technical assistance to 37 businesses to help them access their BASE Network grant funds.
Homeownership
Helping families achieve affordable and sustainable homeownership in a thriving community is at the core of Southeast CDC’s mission. Southeast CDC is a HUD-approved provider of housing counseling, which includes helping first-time homebuyers navigate the complex process of buying a home. In FY24, our staff:
- Served 687 clients with 6+ hours of Homebuyer Education (including workshops, eHome, and Homebuyer Clubs).
- Hosted 27 total workshops for first time homebuyers, including three for Housing Choice Voucher holders in partnership with the Housing Authority of Baltimore City.
- Met with 478 clients for 1-1 prepurchase counseling, 22 clients for foreclosure prevention, and 21 clients for rental counseling.
Housing Rehabs
Southeast CDC’s Affordable Homeownership Program concentrates efforts in the Ellwood Park, McElderry Park, and Baltimore Highlands neighborhoods of Baltimore City to build homeownership while avoiding displacement. We purchase vacant homes, fully rehab, and offer them for sale at affordable prices. Simultaneously, our team is concentrating efforts on those blocks including block beautification projects, park improvements, resident involvement and homebuyer clubs for renters in the neighborhood who want to prepare for homeownership. So far, we have rehabbed and sold 11 homes (since 2021), with sale prices ranging from $130,000 to $180,000; seven of those were rehabbed and sold in FY24.
Additionally, we offer home repairs for existing homeowners on blocks where we are renovating properties for sale. In FY24, we completed home repairs on 28 homes, with projects including installing new furnaces, replacing roofs, adding handrails, repairing electrical, replacing worn joists, and converting tubs to showers for safe access. Home repairs range from $5,000 – $20,000 per home.
Community Schools
Southeast CDC is the lead non-profit partner for five Community Schools, zoned, public schools where we organize partnerships and resources to support families so their children can thrive in school.
In the 2021/2022 school year, we raised or leveraged $769,003 for our Community Schools.
Eviction Prevention
Southeast CDC has two Family Support programs that seek to prevent evictions and reduce other negative outcomes of financial instability, such as utility shut-off.
As of June 20, 2024, we’d enrolled 225 families in our United Way Family Stability Program since inception (July 2015), including 147, representing 599 children. (A key desired outcome of the program is to reduce student mobility in local schools due to housing instability.) Of those 225 families enrolled, 217 have exited, with a success rate of 80% since FY17.
We have 182 families enrolled in our second program, the Baltimore New Americans Access Coalition initiative. This program is funded with ARPA dollars through the Baltimore Civic Fund. All families in this program are immigrant households. Our BNAAC case managers have helped these families make 405 public benefits applications, as well as provided short-term financial assistance.
Summer Youth Jobs
Our summer youth jobs program provides a summer job to local youth who are enrolled in the Baltimore City YouthWorks program. In the summer of 2024, we provided a job to 30 YouthWorkers.