Balto...

Tide Point Promenade offers a great view of the city skyline. (Sun photo by Andre F. Chung / August 28, 2007).

1. Read the Baltimore Sun, it always has great articles on revitalization. And Ed Gunts, their architecture writer, is one of the best around.

2. Envision Baltimore is a google group on the topic of urban revitalization there.

3. The Urbanite is a great publication for which DC does not have an equal. (The Baltimore City Paper too does a particularly excellent job focusing on Baltimore, especially the urban condition.)

4. There are two new blogs I came across, BC Planning/Urban Revival, by urban planners in Baltimore, and Urban Ethnic Focus. Plus there is Baltimore Inner Space which I've mentioned before.

5. There are many interesting groups and initiatives there, in part because as a relatively weak real estate market, Baltimore (like Pittsburgh) has to have what I call a "desperate willingness to experiment" in order to build demand. Tech Balt is a perfect example, see "Best of Baltimore 2004 Best God’s Gift to Urban Renewal: TechBalt" from the Baltimore City Paper, plus the Live Baltimore program.

The City has at least two arts districts (Highlandtown and Station North), seven Main Street programs and other revitalization efforts, and a wide variety of neighborhood and citywide organizations.

Baltimore's Citizen Planning and Housing Association does great work and the Neighborhood Design Center provides neighborhood planning services to community groups.

And the city government has a stronger orientation to involving citizens in government, such as the Weed pullers group, working to clear invasive weeds from city parks.

Kim Mead, Baltimore Department of Recreation and Parks.

The DRP has a booth at Artscape, explaining its mission to attendees. Live Baltimore and the City's Department of Neighborhoods also had booths.

And the City has best practice Office of Promotion and the Arts which does a lot more than DC's equivalent in my opinion. Plus a heritage area as part of the state program.

Etc.