Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Council – April 2026 Meeting Recap
As part of the Reinvest Baltimore initiative, the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development created a blog series to highlight updates from Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Council meetings. For more information on the Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Council, visit our website.
When Reinvest Baltimore, the coordinated effort between the State of Maryland, Baltimore City, and others to eliminate concentrations of vacant properties and revitalize neighborhoods in Baltimore was established October 2024, it also created the Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Council (BVRC).
The council has key community, corporate, philanthropic and government leaders working to leverage targeted investments to move at least 5,000 vacant properties into homeownership or other positive outcomes. Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Jake Day serves as council chair.
During BVRC’s April meeting, Tim Keane, acting Baltimore City Department of Housing and Community Development Commissioner, was formally introduced as the council’s new vice chair. He succeeds former Baltimore City DHCD commissioner Alice Kennedy, who now serves as Executive Director of Community Affairs and Engagement in the Mayor’s Office.
“I thank Mayor Scott for the opportunity to be at the center of this momentous effort to help the residents of Baltimore,” Keane said at the meeting. “I came to Baltimore, frankly, to help this effort we’re discussing today.”
Keane brings a wealth of experience to the council. Before his current role in the city, Keane served as Baltimore’s Planning Director and is a nationally recognized city planner. He had previously led the planning departments across the United States and beyond including Atlanta, Charleston, South Carolina, and Calgary, Canada.
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.
“Tim is stepping into this role at a critical moment for the city and for this work,” said Secretary Day. “I am confident that his leadership in planning, zoning, housing, community development and urban growth and his deep experience in systems change will drive real progress for Baltimore neighborhoods. Tim knows how to move from vision to execution.”
Earlier that day, Secretary Day, Acting Commissioner Keane and BVRC Councilmember Leslie McMillan, Co-Chair of BUILD, were part of a group of state and city officials who celebrated a milestone in the West North Avenue Revitalization project.
Led by Coppin Heights Community Development Corporation, this project will transform long-vacant properties along West North Avenue into new housing that strengthens neighborhood stability and restores confidence in the corridor.
The project leverages state and city resources, including financial support from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. Coppin Heights CDC was also one of the first awardees through the Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Initiative, which is part of the Reinvest Baltimore strategy. The organization and others like it have access to $30 million in total state funding to help redevelop city neighborhoods with a high number of vacant properties.
For more details on the presentation, a full video of the meeting and other information about the work of Reinvest Baltimore, visit the Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Council webpage.