Maryland feels pinch of thinning federal dollars
BALTIMORE -- Where Anthony Hurt once saw rubble and litter, he now sees a bright mural. From his second-story window, the view of drugs and decay has given way to sunflowers and trees.
More than 150 formerly vacant lots in this city, which is often derided for its high rate of violent crime, have been transformed into community parks — in part with the help of federal grants.
"It's what most neighborhoods need, instead of a dead lot," says Hurt, 52, who lives across the street from the new park. "It helps bring back up the neighborhood."
Urban governments rely on federal grants to pay for job training, police and even community parks. But many grant programs have been deeply cut in recent years, forcing local governments to find the money elsewhere or forgo services.
Reductions have hit especially hard in Baltimore, Maryland's largest city, which had 282 homicides last year, according to FBI statistics. The Census Bureau estimates that about 20% of Baltimore residents live in poverty.
"We rely heavily on those grants to revitalize neighborhoods and communities, to create opportunities for citizens," says Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon, a Democrat. "Over the last eight years … we've lost a great deal of grant money."
Party enrollment figures favor Democrats 2-to-1 in Maryland, giving Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama a significant advantage over Republican nominee John McCain. Both candidates have voiced support for grant programs that would help this state's poorest communities.
Obama would "roll back" cuts made to some programs, according to a campaign statement that offered few specifics about what he believes is an appropriate level of spending. McCain's campaign says the Republican would focus more attention on especially needy neighborhoods while reducing administrative costs.
Fixing up neighborhoods
Baltimore has 11,200 vacant lots and 16,200 abandoned structures, says Cheron Porter, a spokeswoman with the city's Department of Housing and Community Development. Block after block of vacant and crumbling homes attract crime and rats and lower property values, according to a 2007 report by the agency.
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