The new Midtown Community Benefits District and Management Authority Board was sworn in on Aug. 6 by Clerk of the Court Xavier Conaway, and a reorganization has begun with a series of board reviews and staffing changes. That follows the “Yes” vote by property owners in Bolton Hill, Madison Park, Charles North and Mt. Vernon in a March referendum re-establishing the special district.
Since then, a new governing ordinance was passed by the city council, and a new baseline service and financial agreement was negotiated with the city government. The City’s Board of Estimates signed off on the process in June and a transition and discovery report was led by Madsion Park resident Antionette Peele.
Midtown’s governing board elected Mary Ann Henderson from Mount Vernon as chair, Joelle Johnson from Madison Park as vice-chair, Oge Okoli from Bolton Hill as secretary, and Steve Johnson from Mount Vernon as treasurer and chair of the finance committee. Other committee chairs include Bradford Phillip from Charles North, operations; Nick Roberts from Mount Vernon, governance; and Petula Nasch from Mount Vernon for the nominating committee.
Jim Prost is filling the at-large board position from Bolton Hill. Jermaine Jones is the representative of the city council. Deputy Mayor Khalil Zaride represents the mayor’s office. In addition to Prost, Bolton Hill members include BHCA President Lee Tawney, Oge Okoli and Chris Howitz from MICA.
Midtown Community Benefits District and Management Authority was established in 1996 at the behest the Mount Vernon/Belvedere Association, Charles North Community Association, Madison Park Improvement Association and Mount Royal Improvement Association (precursor to Bolton Hill Community Association) in response to the reduction of services, particularly street cleaning, by the city. Midtown is a quasi-public entity responsible for the expenditure of taxpayer funds. Two thirds of the board must be people who pay the surtax assessed against property owners in the four neighborhoods.
In addition to neighborhood representatives, the board includes members from organizations in the district (presently MICA, University of Baltimore and JHU Peabody Institute). A former board member from Charles North, Colleen Stanley, is the interim executive director. Matt Hugel and Rayco Turner continue as staff members.
From its inception Midtown’s primary focus has been “clean, green, and safe.” Currently, Block by Block has a contract for the clean element, LandCare has a contract for greening services and Tactical Protectives Services has a contract for safety. These contracts are under review. Initiatives underway – including the corner pocket park Unity @ Park Avenue, Trenton Alley, and the Jones Falls Gateway project – will be seen through to completion. The tree planting program will continue.
Next steps include assessing the effectiveness and mission alignment of special projects, grants, fee-for-service programs, and vendors; reviewing and clarifying existing staff roles, and identifying what new roles may be needed; establishing a metrics system for monitoring performance; developing a board handbook and training; and creating a long-term organizational strategy.
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