Monday, March 23, 2009

N. Elwood?

Tweets our Facebook friend the BPD: "SHOOTING: Police investigating @ 500 block of N ELWOOD AVE."
Google maps says there's no such street in the city. Are there unexplored, primordial and unGooglized parts of the city?
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7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I noticed that - I also drove by this crime scene by accident last night (my boyfriend lives on S. Ellwood) and Channel 2 was hanging out...they called it "Ellwood Road" on their website. Ugh.

Tue Mar 24, 07:45:00 AM EDT
buzoncrime said...

Ellwood, of course, is the correct spelling. And, yes, there are streets which Google Maps and Mapquest have a problem with in cities. But this tweet was probably sent out quickly with no quick read and, in fact, the sender (Guglielmi?) like TV2, probably had no idea it was incorrect. (There is some value in having us Baltimorons around).

The McElderry-Decker neighborhood has been suffering with violent crime for a while now. I remember back in the late 80s when it was a blue-collar/lower middle class area. When they tore the projects down, it went from that to a high-crime area in less than a year. And it's only a few blocks from Baltimore Street, the northern boundary of Patterson Park.

With the bankruptcy of the Patterson Park Community Development Corporation, and the collapse of the general economy, Buz wonders if the neighborhoods closer to the park will still be considered "nice." A friend's brother bought a house just east of the park, and now owes more than he could possibly sell it for. He's been trying to rent it, but no one has even looked at it in 6 months-as the area no longer feels safe: kids hanging around during the day when they should be in school, trash, and a number of boarded up properties, as well as a few for sale/rent.

Tue Mar 24, 11:57:00 AM EDT
Mr. Mephistopheles said...

Buzz,

I'm a resident of Patterson Park, so consider me biased, but I think our neighborhood has a more than decent shot of surviving without the PPCDC. Obviously, we'll miss them as a homebuilder, but we have a strong neighborhood association and very motivated volunteers. We're picking up some of the CDC's slack by doing a Spring Home Tour on Sat, May 2nd.

If your friend's brother lives within PP's boundaries (Clinton/Pratt/Milton/Fayette), tell him to get involved with PPNA .

Tue Mar 24, 01:59:00 PM EDT
buzoncrime said...

Mr. M---
Well, those of us who care for the city and are taxpayers are certainly rooting for you at the macro level. I recently read a letter in the Sun (perhaps by you) with similar comments. And, you know the area covered by the PPNA (and adjacent areas) have a lot of fans and upper-middle-class people living in the area. And a strong neighborhood association-and "very" motivated volunteers really help.

At the individual micro level, one has to be careful before buying or renting in the eastern part of the boundaries you've named-more especially just outside PPNA boundaries. There have been a number of serious incidents in the area, including murders on South Eaton and Lombard Street. When I took a family relocating to Baltimore to the 3300 blk. E. Baltimore Street recently to look at a house for rent (they have 3 dogs--hence, the nearby park), they did not even want to get out of the car to look at it. A kid, about 15, was sitting across the street staring at us in a vaguely menacing-looking way, along with two women sitting on the steps nearby. A city-owned boarded up house sat near them. Trash swirled in the street near the rental property (which was also for sale.) It just did not feel comfortable, even in the middle of the day.

So, with Patterson Park CDC now gone, and the banks gobbling up its properties, the risk is high that the crow-like "investors" (who don't wanna make any investments), are already circling hoping to buy low and pack the renters in. We don't hope that will happen, but the CDC was a tremendous force against blight.
My friend's brother was transferred to Atlanta now, and is doing his best to re-negotiate his mortgage.

I wish you well, my friend; perhaps I will try to join one of your citizens-on-patrol walks.

Tue Mar 24, 03:44:00 PM EDT
Mr. Mephistopheles said...

Buzz,

Hopefully, the high property taxes will prevent many of these vultures from scooping up these properties and renting them out Section 8. For example, I know of a Section 8 property in the 3200 block of E Baltimore St that was appraised for $161,000 in late 2007. When the third year phase-in takes effect in July 2010, the owner's tax liability will be close to $4,000.

Tue Mar 24, 04:56:00 PM EDT
buzoncrime said...

Ok; I grew up just west of the Park in the area they now call Butcher's Hill, and roamed the park a lot. Learned to swim at the Patterson Park pool, and went to the rec center next to there where the actual Virginia Baker worked. My grandparents lived and died in the 3000 blk. E. Baltimore Street.

So, though I don't live in the area anymore, I keep an eye on what's going on.

We'll be following the housing situation there (and all around town) closely.

Tue Mar 24, 05:09:00 PM EDT
Susanne said...

As the owner of a PPCDC house I was especially disappointed to see them go under. I'm grateful for the active neighborhood associations we have but fearful of what could happen if all of the remaining CDC properties are sold off. The City Paper recently did an interesting story on this.

I'm sorry that folks didn't want to get out of the car to see the house on E. Baltimore Ave. The neighborhood has a lot to offer.

Wed Mar 25, 12:13:00 PM EDT

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