Baltimore City has launched an interactive map to help residents understand how proposed zoning changes to more easily convert certain properties into multifamily housing will impact their neighborhoods.
Baltimore residents will be able to use the Housing Options and Opportunities Interactive Map to see how the bill, if passed, might impact their own block and the surrounding areas.
“This legislation is about lowering housing costs and giving homeowners the flexibility to make reasonable, safe upgrades to their property if they choose to,” Mayor Brandon Scott said in a statement. “We’re specifically focused on areas where it is nearly impossible to build multifamily housing due to outdated, strict zoning codes. This interactive map gives residents a clear look at the potential changes that would be allowed under this bill, so our communities can engage in this conversation with transparency and confidence.”
Users can enter their address or explore their neighborhood on the map to see which properties around them would qualify for adding additional units or being converted into duplexes. The map demonstrates that most homes will not be affected, as most Baltimore homes are under 1,500 square feet, and would see no impact under the proposed zoning changes.
Properties between 1,500–2,250 square feet could be converted into duplexes only if the homeowner chooses to pursue that option.
A minority of homes might be expanded to include three or four units. This would apply only to the largest homes: homes of 2,250 square feet or more could be converted into up to three units and homes of 3,000 square feet or more could be converted into up to four units. These represent only a small fraction of Baltimore City homes.
City Council districts are represented on the map by black dotted lines, Maryland Legislative Districts are shown with thick green lines, and different sized residences are color-coded on the map. Residents can type an address into the search bar to find a location in the city to learn how they will be impacted by the changes.
In May, Scott introduced the Housing Options and Opportunity Act to lower housing costs and increase housing opportunities. The bill would changes the city’s zoning code to encourage more duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes. In most parts of Baltimore, it is illegal to build small multifamily housing, and where it is legal, the process is lengthy and expensive. This bill would streamline the process, making it easier for homeowners to convert their properties if they chose.
The bill is being heard by the Land Use and Transportation Committee. The Department of Housing and Community Development, Planning Department, Zoning Board, Finance Department, and Law Department all studied and recommended the bill.
The map says my home is over 2,250 sq feet. It is not. Houses that I know are significantly larger show up up on the map as smaller. The mapping has quite a few obvious errors.
its from SDAT/state data so you might want to contact the state in case the error affects your tax bill
I think they are calculating lot area… threeplexes and fourplexes are at the very low end of tje multifamily designation when considering development typologies.
Baltimore has many examples of small apartment buildings in the 8 to 16 unit range (even up to 50 units) that fit in well with the residential urban fabric. There needs to be better urban design as part & parcel of the legislation which may best be implemented by neighborhood overlay zones developed individually and separate from the core legislation.
Map doesn’t make sense to me at all. Houses in Mt. Washington under 1500 square feet? I don’t think so.