Baltimore County has just made it easier to identify vacant properties with the release of a new data portal.
“Providing the public with the tools they need to identify—and now view—vacant properties is another step in our ongoing work to find and transform today’s blighted and abandoned properties into tomorrow’s housing opportunities,” said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski in a statement. “This portal continues our work to provide a more accessible and open government for everyone, including our first responders who will now have critical safety information about properties before arriving on the scene of a potential emergency.”
After Baltimore County passed the Vacant Structures law earlier this year, the county created its first-ever process to designate properties as “vacant.” The new law gives the Department of Permits, Approvals and Inspections the ability to identify vacant structures and maintain a running inventory of these vacant buildings. The law also authorizes the department to verify that the building complies with all applicable laws, and is not detrimental to the public health, safety, or a hazard to police officers or firefighters who might enter the structure in an emergency.
Since April, more than 160 properties have been identified and verified as vacant, and 10 have been resolved or remediated by either becoming occupied or being demolished.
“Having the ability to identify, inspect and monitor vacant structures in Baltimore County is a game changer for us in Code Enforcement, and this new portal is a great way to share important data with residents and first responders,” said Adam Whitlock, the county’s code enforcement chief, in a statement. “This process is yet another way we are able to coordinate efforts with County agencies to address issues and keep the public informed.”
The new vacant properties portal is updated daily and includes detailed information on properties confirmed to be vacant, including:
- Property address
- Property owner
- Tax identification number
- Last date of inspection
This portal will be linked to the County’s 911 system – providing a warning for first responders on potential property hazards they could face when responding to emergency calls.
“The safety of our firefighters and EMS providers is a top priority. Fires at vacant properties can pose serious threats to Fire and EMS personnel, as recent tragedies in Baltimore City have shown,” said the county’s fire chief Joanne Rund. “This new portal is a huge step forward in preventing injuries to the County’s first responders.”
Residents who wish to report a property they believe may be vacant can contact Baltimore County by calling 3-1-1 or using the BaltCoGo app.
The Baltimore County vacant properties portal is available by clicking this link.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article used an image of Baltimore City rowhouses as the lead image. The article has been updated to feature a screenshot of Baltimore County’s vacant property tool.
The new law is a bunch of garbage. It is just another way to bilk the taxpayers.
Any reason an image of row houses located in the City of Baltimore was used for an article on the county’s vacant property tool? The city and county are two different jurisdictions and the county tool does not cover the city.