Mayor Scott to nominate Timothy Keane as Baltimore’s next housing commissioner, Renata Southard as next planning director

Mayor Brandon Scott on Wednesday announced changes involving top-level city positions that affect Baltimore’s urban landscape and its redevelopment.

The mayor said he intends to nominate Renata “Ren” Southard to be the city’s next Planning Director. If confirmed by the City Council as expected, she will be the first female Planning Director in Baltimore’s history.

Southard will replace current Planning Director Timothy Keane, whom Scott plans to nominate to be the city’s next Commissioner of Housing and Community Development.

Keane will replace current housing commissioner Alice Kennedy, who will become Executive Director of Community Affairs and Engagement in the Mayor’s Office, a new position.

The changes will be effective on March 2, 2026. The nominations of Keane and Southard come after a six-month search process that included both local and national candidates, and the nominees will serve as acting directors of their respective agencies until confirmed by the City Council. City officials had previously disclosed that Kennedy would step down as housing commissioner to take a new position within the Scott administration.

As part of the transition, Scott has directed Keane and Southard to conduct an extensive examination of the structure of the housing and planning departments and to make recommendations about possible “strategic changes” that could maximize their resources and make them more effective, up to and including a potential merger of the two agencies.

“Baltimore is becoming a pioneer in housing and community development, literally breaking new ground in our work to overcome a challenge that has plagued our city for generations: the vacants crisis,” Scott said in a statement. “Alongside our partners at the State and in our communities, we’ve positioned ourselves to be a national leader in this space, thanks in large part to the work of DHCD under Commissioner Kennedy’s leadership.

“As we accelerate that work and continue looking for innovative ways to drive Baltimore’s renaissance forward, I am grateful to have such dedicated housing, community development and planning experts leading the way,” Scott continued. “Tim, Ren, and Alice have proven themselves to be creative and passionate public servants, who always keep the needs of our residents at the center of their work. I am beyond excited for them to continue bringing their experience and wisdom to this next chapter for housing and development in our city.”

Keane was nominated and confirmed as Baltimore’s Planning Director in 2025 and led planning departments in four cities before coming to Baltimore – Charleston, South Carolina; Atlanta, Georgia; Boise, Idaho, and Calgary in Alberta, Canada. Southard has worked for both the housing department and the planning department in Baltimore in various roles since 2018 and has a strong background in urban design.

At Scott’s direction, Keane and Southard will lead a six-month comprehensive study “with a specific focus on identifying silos and inefficiencies at both agencies that could be addressed by reducing duplicative efforts and improving coordination across the permitting, planning, design, and community development fields,” according to an announcement from the Mayor’s Office.

‘Moment of transformation’

“Mayor Scott’s reimagining of the housing and planning departments will form a stronger, more coordinated approach to tackling the key issues driving the City and State’s shared vacancy reduction strategy,” said Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Jake Day, in a statement. “Tim’s leadership and experience make him uniquely suited to lead at this moment of transformation, with a clear understanding of how planning and housing must work together to deliver lasting, neighborhood-level impact.”

Leading the planning departments in Baltimore and four other cities, Keane has been instrumental in making decisions involving housing, community development and other aspects of city revitalization. He also brings extensive housing policy experience to his new position.

According to the Mayor’s Office, Keane has guided major initiatives such as rezoning projects to expand affordable housing, city permitting operations, and implementing protections from displacement for low-income homeowners. He also has worked closely on reorganizing city agencies and departments. While serving as Planning Commissioner in Atlanta, Keane led a reorganization of both its planning and housing departments. While the head of Planning, Permitting, & Engineering in Charleston, Keane oversaw the consolidation of multiple city departments and offices, as part of an effort to make them more effective and service-oriented.

Keane holds both a Master of Science in Architecture and a Bachelor of Arts in Planning from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He also served as a Fellow at the University of Miami School of Architecture and on the adjunct faculty at the College of Charleston.

“The residents of Baltimore deserve a city government that can excel and fully deliver on its promise,” he said in a statement. “Perhaps nowhere is this more important than in the areas of housing, development, permitting, planning and design. The place we share has much to do with our prosperity. It’s exciting that Mayor Scott and his team are fully committed to action and I feel a deep sense of responsibility to make the Department of Housing and Community Development and the Department of Planning the most effective in the United States.”

Urban Design expertise

Southard is an urban designer, planner and licensed architect. She began working for Baltimore City government eight years ago at the planning department, where she was the Urban Design Division Principal working with the city’s Urban Design and Architecture Advisory Panel, and then moved to the housing department last year. In her most recent role with the agency’s Neighborhood Development Division, she has led a team of planners, architects and engineers to provide community design services, technical assistance and alignment with partners on investment strategies. Her title is Redevelopment Strategy Planning Supervisor.

Before joining Baltimore City, Southard spent more than a decade in the private sector working as a designer and project manager in Minneapolis, Detroit, Nashville, and Baltimore. She has a Master of Architecture degree and a Graduate Certificate in Urban Design from the University of Maryland, where she was awarded the Outstanding Graduate Assistant award for her teaching work.

Southard continues to teach and lecture regularly in the region and is engaged with the architecture schools at the University of Maryland and Morgan State University. She also serves on the board of AIA Maryland, the Maryland state component of the American Institute of Architects, and is the former chair of AIA Baltimore’s Urban Design Committee. In accordance with the Baltimore City Charter, Scott appointed her as Acting Planning Director on the recommendation of the Planning Commission. Her appointment is subject to confirmation by the City Council. 

“I am extremely honored to support the bold vision of Mayor Scott and his administration by serving as the Acting Director of Planning,” Southard said in a statement. “Throughout my career, I have worked to foster equitable development and positive, tangible outcomes for communities across Baltimore. Our city has incredible assets. I look forward to working alongside sister agencies to strengthen those assets by building Baltimore as a diverse, sustainable and thriving city of neighborhoods.”

‘Ensuring a strong transition’

Kennedy’s planned departure as Housing Commissioner was announced last September. She first joined the housing department in 2016 as Deputy Commissioner for Homeownership and Housing Preservation and has led the agency since 2020. Before joining the housing department, she was Baltimore City’s Sustainability Coordinator.

“Throughout her time leading DHCD, Kennedy has proven herself as a housing policy expert and dedicated public servant, with a special ability to engage directly and connect with residents who most acutely felt the impact of DHCD’s work,” the mayor’s announcement said. “Expanding on this connection to community will be a significant component of her work in the newly established role of Executive Director of Community Affairs and Engagement in the Mayor’s Office.”

“Serving as Commissioner of Housing and Community Development has been one of the greatest honors of my public service career, and I am deeply proud of the work we have done to develop Reframe Baltimore and reduce the number of vacant properties, expand housing opportunities, and strengthen communities across Baltimore,” Kennedy said in a statement. “I look forward to supporting Director Keane in his new role and ensuring a strong transition for DHCD and the residents it serves.”