A long-vacant rowhouse in Southwest Baltimore has become more than an eyesore for the people living beside it.
Residents near a home off West Lexington Street told CBS Baltimore that the property has drawn rats, insects, trash, and unauthorized visitors after years of unresolved problems.
Neighbor Shirley Townsend told the station the conditions have spilled into her own yard and home. She said people have used the backyard, thrown trash onto her property, and left her waiting for the city to force a fix.
The case puts a familiar homeowner problem into one Baltimore block: when a privately owned vacant house stays unsecured, the people next door can end up dealing with pests, debris, overgrowth, and safety fears before any legal remedy reaches the property.
Neighbors Say the Vacant Home Has Brought Rats and Open Access
CBS reported that notices posted on the vacant home’s front window point to a long history of city violations. Townsend told the station that some of the notices referenced mold, asbestos, and lead.
The station also reported that the home’s front door was open Monday and that the adjoining yard was overgrown. A nearby resident identified as Mr. Less told CBS that he knows the owner, occasionally helps maintain the property, and sealed the front door himself because of the condition of the house.
Mr. Less said he contacted the owner about neighbors’ concerns and planned to clear the yard. CBS reported that WJZ also tried to contact the owner but had not heard back.
The City Says Legal Action Is Still Possible
Mayor Brandon Scott’s office told CBS that Baltimore’s Department of Housing and Community Development is aware of the property and is using available legal tools to address it.
According to the statement reported by CBS, DHCD issued a vacant building notice for the property in 2019 and has continued citing the owner for failing to abate that notice.
Baltimore City Councilmember Dr. John Bullock told the station that the property has had a vacant building notice since 2017 and has received multiple failure-to-abate citations over the years. He also said private ownership limits some of the city’s options while officials work with DHCD.
Baltimore’s vacant building notice rules define that notice as a violation notice designating a structure as vacant and include penalties tied to failing to abate one. CBS reported that repeated violations could eventually lead to receivership or foreclosure proceedings.
Vacant Houses Can Turn One Property Problem Into a Block Problem
For neighbors, the immediate issue is not a dashboard number or a redevelopment plan. It is the open door, the overgrown yard, the rats, and the trash they say are affecting the occupied homes around the property.
Baltimore’s Department of Public Works directs residents who think they have a rat problem to call 311 or submit an online request for the city’s Rat Rubout program. The city’s rat control page says the program can inspect and potentially bait an area.
The West Lexington Street complaint also sits inside Baltimore’s larger vacant-property push. Maryland’s Reinvest Baltimore initiative says it aims to move at least 5,000 vacant properties into homeownership or other positive outcomes between Fiscal Year 2025 and Fiscal Year 2029.
For Townsend, the timeline is more immediate. She told CBS she wants the city to get people out to the block and deal with the property before the conditions next door get worse.