Demolish, Preserve, Rehabilitate:
Baltimore’s Alley Houses
Iryna Bondarenko isbondarenko@gmail.com
Ridhima Mehrotra rhythma22@gmail.com
Abidemi Olafusi a.olafusi@gmail.com
Andrew Seguin andrewjseguin@gmail.com
Nayo Shell nayo.s94@gmail.com
Holly Simmons hjsimm@gmail.com
Department of Urban Studies and Planning, University of Maryland
Abstract What role does strategy play in the demolition of Baltimore’s historic but undervalued alley houses? University of Maryland Planning and Preservation students present a methodology for identifying alley houses and prioritizing alley house demolition and rehabilitation based on physical condition and objective and subjective significance.
Background
Key Findings Preservation can be a catalyst for future growth. Careful preservation can serve as a development catalyst for alley houses, providing communities with a unique, diverse, and affordable housing option.
• Alley houses were integral to Baltimore’s cultural and economic development. Alley houses have been a mainstay of Baltimore’s housing landscape since the late 18th century, offering immigrants and the working class an affordable housing option. • Baltimore’s economic decline has negatively impacted many alley houses. As Baltimore’s economic fortunes declined in the middle of the 20th century, many alley houses fell into a state of disrepair, particularly those in distressed neighborhoods. Many alleys became hotspots for crime, causing large swaths of Baltimore alley houses to lie vacant.
Perception of safety is integral. Interviews with stakeholders indicated that enhancing the perceived safety of distressed alley houses will be integral to ensuring successful redevelopment.
• Strategic demolition initiatives threaten the future of alley houses. In order to curb the high rates of residential vacancy that have resulted from chronic population decline, local and state agencies have begun “rightsizing” neighborhoods through demolition projects. Most recently, Project C.O.R.E. (Creating Opportunities for Renewal and Enterprise) has targeted several areas with large numbers of vacant alley houses for demolition.
The importance of creative placemaking. Case studies of other successfullyredeveloped alleys indicate that accentuating the unique nature of these spaces through placemaking initiatives can attract new residents.
• Community stakeholders have cautioned against immediate demolition. In response to plans set forth as part of Project C.O.R.E., preservationists and community leaders have argued that the city’s remaining alley houses should be identified and evaluated to inform demolition decisions.
A holistic building survey approach. To comprehensively assess alley houses, we proposed a building survey that evaluates building conditions, historical significance, and stakeholder-led transect walks.
• Stakeholders have identified a need to document alley houses and prioritize revitalization efforts. This project attempts to comprehensively document Baltimore’s alley house stock and formulate a way to prioritize the rehabilitation, stabilization, and demolition of these spaces.
Community input should inform decision making. We believe it is important to supplement our survey with input from community members. Our report outlines a charrette model to include residents in the redevelopment and demolition process.
Phase 1 (Fall 2017) Analysis of the current alley houses situation. Geospatial analysis, stakeholder interviews, case studies, and literature reviews
Partner Institutions
Phase 2 (2018) Alley house identification methodology development Defining alley houses: from the academic and professional (or “grey”) literature and interviewing local stakeholders
Significance scoring methodology to inform demolition and preservation decisions Formulation of a methodology to evaluate current condition and architectural, historical, and sociocultural significance
Acknowledgments
Spatial inventory of Baltimore’s alley houses
Implementation of the methodology from Phase 1 to identify significance scores for alley houses
Spatial analysis using data provided by the Maryland Historical Trust, Baltimore City open data and alley house definition
Building and resident surveys, recording collected data via mobile application, and community outreach and involvement
We would like to thank Professors Lee Edgecombe and Jeremy Wells for their instructional guidance. In addition, we thank the rest of the studio team for their contributions to this project: Juan Castro Cerdas, Jamesha Gibson, Jack Narron, Meagan Pickens, Holly Simmons, and Hadassah Vargas. Finally, the following institutional counterparts were integral to the success of this project: Willie Graham (Phase 2 consultant), Amanda Apple and Peter Kurtze (Maryland Historical Trust); Melissa Archer and Tiffany Davis (Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development); Martin French (Baltimore City Planning Department), Eric Holcomb (Baltimore Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation), and Carlton Eley (U.S. Environemntal Protection Agency).
Alley house definition based on PHYSICAL CHARACTERSTICS
Alley house definition based on STREET CHARACTERSTICS
Alley house definition based on CULTURAL HISTORY
Alley house definition based on CONTEMPORARY MEANING
Alley house definition based on COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE
Small, affordable house Fosters strong sense of community 1-2 stories Inner block streets Social space for residents A point of pride for many owners
Working-class people
20-30’ depth Approximately 12 feet wide Photo courtesy: Holly Simmons
Late 18th century - 1909
30 feet wide or less including sidewalks
Diverse cultural and racial background Photo courtesy: Jack Narron
“Grey” area between public and private
“Group of Employees and Several Small Boys in the Littered Alley Entrance.” National Archives and Records Administration.
Photo courtesy: Ridhima Mehrotra
Baltimore and its Alley Houses
Photo courtesy: Ridhima Mehrotra
East Baltimore, one of the city’s most economically distressed neighborhoods, contained the highest rates of vacant alley houses.
Southwest Baltimore’s alley houses were among the first in the city’s history to be inhabited by industrial workers.
Federal Hill’s collection of alley houses, which originally were home to slaves and domestic servants, are the oldest in the city.
Due to careful preservation efforts, Fells Point’s alley houses have the lowest rate of vacancies and the highest median property values of any group of alley houses in the city.
Data Source: Baltimore Planning Department, Baltimore City open data and Maryland Historic Trust
By the Numbers
3,918 Total alley houses
727 Total groups of alley houses
407
Previously-documented groups of alley houses
320
Groups of alley houses newlydocumented by this study
320 Vacant alley house groups
NPC187051
Proposed Data Collection Methodology Building Survey (Quantitative score)
Resident Survey (Qualitative score)
Building Condition Score
Objective Significance Score
Subjective Significance Score
Purpose: Analyze the overall physical condition of buildings in terms of their state of maintenance and repair
Purpose: Assess objective values of a house’s historical character; which can be either seen or touched, or can be factually verified
Purpose: Reveals the meaning and value of alley houses held by residents
Document form: surveys
Document form: three-part survey: architecture, history, and authenticity
Document form: transect walks, interviews, and surveys
1 Not Salvageable
6 Well-maintained
Poor
Good
Five-point agree/disagree Likert scale
Excellent
Final QUANTITATIVE significance score
Final QUALITATIVE significance score
Cumulative Score 0-1: Candidate for demolition 1-3: Candidate for stabilization 3-5: Candidate for preservation Photo courtesy: Holly Simmons
Recommendations for Phase 2 • Host a charrette to guide redevelopment efforts. Because planning efforts in highly-distressed neighborhoods often involve the physical destruction of homes and other structures, it is critical that decisions are made with community input. As an extension, we believe a charrette process (possibly beginning with a single pilot neighborhood) would balance expert opinion with the redistribution of power to community members.
References
Photo courtesy: Holly Simmons
• Engage a more diverse cohort of stakeholders. The vast majority of community stakeholders involved in Phase 1 of this study were white males. To ensure more equitable representation, we urge researchers to include more women and people of color.
• Maintain flexibility in survey design. There have been very few attempts to use a significance survey to inform key planning issues. With this in mind, it will be important for researchers in Phase 2 to begin with a small pilot area, assess the model’s strengths and weaknesses, and revise ineffective dynamics.
Jeremy C. Wells, “Using Sequential Mixed Social Science Methods to Define and Measure Heritage Conservation Performance,” School of Architecture, Art, and Historic Preservation Faculty Papers, Paper 21, 2011.
“Appendix A: Housing Condition Survey Methodology and Results.” City of Oakland, California. Accessed October 13, 2017. http://www2.oaklandnet.com/oakca1/groups/ceda/documents/policy/oak051102.pdfFoley, Terri L.
John W. Cresswell, “Research Methods: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches”, Sage publications, Inc., 2013
Baltimore Urban Renewal Housing Authority (BURHA), Outline of Urban Renewal, 1961, (Baltimore, 1961), 2. cdm16352. contentdm.oclc. org/
Kalman, Harold. “The Evaluation of Historic Buildings”, Environment Canada Parks Service, 1980
Emily Weinstein, Jessica Wolin, and Sharon Rose. “Trauma Informed Community Building A Model for Strengthening Community in Trauma Affected Neighborhoods”, Healthy Equity Institute. May 2014. Fatorić, Sandra, and Seekamp, Erin. Assessing Historical Significance and Use Potential of Buildings within Historic Districts: An Overview of a Measurement Framework Developed for Climate Adaptation Planning (Raleigh: North Carolina State University, College of Natural Sciences, 2017) G. (2016, August). Mobile GIS Best Practices. Retrieved November 18, 2017 Gene Rowe and Lynn J. Frewer, “A Typology of Public Engagement Mechanisms,” Science, Technology, & Human Values 30, no. 2 (Spring 2005): 255-256. Glover, Peter. Building Surveys. Hoboken, NJ: Taylor and Francis, 2013. “Group of Employees and Several Small Boys in the Littered Alley Entrance.” National Archives and Records Administration. Accessed April 13, 2018. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/522861.w Guidelines for Conducting Historic Resources Survey in Virginia.” Virginia Department of Historic Resources, 2011. Hayward, Mary Ellen. Baltimore’s Alley Houses: Homes for Working People Since the 1780s. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008.
“Land-Use and Building Condition Survey Report – Poplar Bluff, MO 2012-2013.” Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Accessed October 13, 2017. https://dnr.mo.gov/shpo/survey/BUAS005-R.pdf “Linden Gateway Small Area Study.” Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission & Center for Great Neighborhoods of Covington, 2007. Mendes Zanchetti, Silvio, and Katrina Simila. “6th International Seminar on Urban Conservation: Measuring Heritage Conservation Performance.” CECI & ICCROM. 2006 “Monument - McElderry - Fayette Plan,” Baltimore City Planning Department, 2006. “OROSW Neighborhood Action Plan,” Operation ReachOut Southwest, 2002. “Sacramento County Housing Conditions Survey 2010.” Sacramento County, Planning and Environmental Review. April 2010. Accessed October 13, 2017. http://www.per.saccounty.net/applicants/Documents/HousingInformation/Housing%20 Conditionst%20Study_0710_web.pdf Yung Yao, “Multi-Criteria Decision Making for Urban Built Heritage Conservation”, 2009. All data was provided by the Baltimore Planning Department, Baltimore City open data and Maryland Historic Trust Icon imagery courtesy Freepik and Prosymbols at http://www.flaticon.com