Belair-Edison, Baltimore

Belair-Edison is a neighborhood in the Northeastern part of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It is located along Harford and Bel Air Roads, above Sinclair Lane, bounded on its eastern and northern side by Herring Run Park. It is a predominantly residential neighborhood with houses that range from middle class to lower income.^[1]

History

Originally Belair-Edison was part of Baltimore County until the annexation of 1888 when the southwestern portion became part of the city. In 1918 the rest of the area was annexed to Baltimore.

Belair-Edison was previously known as Georgetown in the mid-19th century. It was named after three prominent citizens of the area: George Brehm, George Lamley, and George Erdman. Georgetown was well known for its numerous breweries. George Brehm owned the largest of these breweries.^[2]

George Brehm procured Neisendorfer’s Brewery in 1866 and renamed it Brehm’s Brewery. The brewery was located at modern day Brehms and Bowleys Lane.^[3] At the time, the brewery was the largest employer in Georgetown. In 1899 Brehm sold his brewery for $400,000 to the Maryland Brewing Company. Two years later he bought it back for just $185,000. He died in 1904 and his son Henry took over the business. Henry expanded the brewery in 1907 by building a new brewhouse and storage house. During Prohibition, the brewery survived by producing sodas and resumed full beer production in 1933. In 1935 the Burton Brewing Company purchased the brewery and five years later went out of business.^[4]

The majority of Belair-Edison’s buildings were built during the Baltimore building boom of the 1920s. According to US census data, there were only 36 dwellings built in the area before 1899 and only 102 dwellings by 1919. By 1940 there were over 1,700 dwellings in the area. Many of these dwellings were designed and built by Frank Novak. Novak was the son of Bohemian immigrants and began as a carpenter’s apprentice at the age of 13. In 1914 he established the Frank Novak Realty Company. Until his death in 1945, he was known as the “Two Story King of Baltimore” for his two story porch front homes. Kavon Avenue (Novak spelled backwards) is named in honor of Novak.^[5]

Decline

Belair-Edison is often cited as an example of failed government relocation programs. In these programs attempts are made to forcefully integrate low income families with middle income families as a way to integrate and help lower income families form social bonds not possible in housing projects. Former Mayor of Baltimore Kurt Schmoke led the charge to demolish high rise projects in Baltimore and moved many former housing project residents into Belair-Edison throughout the early/mid-90s. This led to a mass exodus of middle income families out of the neighborhood and the city in general.^[6] Ultimately, these failed public policies led to the demise of the Northeast part of the city and many once thriving local parochial schools closed down.^[7] The Mayor should not be held solely at fault however, Thompson v. HUD (1994)^[8] essentially forced the government to forcefully integrate the neighborhood which failed miserably as the area is now almost exclusively African-American.

Other critics are quick to point out the role of slumlords in the decline of neighborhoods like Belair-Edison. The majority of blame has been placed squarely on investor schemes led by Gary Waicker. Waicker, and his companies Cavalier Realty, Monopoly Realty, and Investment Realty Specialists, pushed many investors into buying homes in the Belair-Edison neighborhood and promising to rent them to tenants receiving section 8 housing vouchers.^[9] Many of these slumlords were criticized for their disregard for neighborhood quality of life.

Crime has been steadily increasing in the neighborhood as a result of this forced integration by former city leaders. Belair-Edison has led the Northeast District, which also has led Baltimore City, in murders for the last several years.^[10]

References

External links

• Belair-Edison Neighborhood Profile
• "An honest look" story by neighborhood resident photographing impoverished Belair-Edison community