Wins and Goals

Odette Ramos has had several accomplishments throughout her first term as Councilwoman of the 14th District including:

Eliminating vacant and abandoned properties by rehab or demolition

Councilwoman Ramos advocates for the continued implementation and expansion of the new Judicial In Rem system – where the City can foreclose on vacant properties and lots where the liens are in arrears. This will allow Baltimore to acquire vacant property quicker and dispose of it in a block by block manner. The City only owns about a thousand vacant properties, most of the vacants are owned by private owners. The Councilwoman also introduced and passed legislation to increase the fees and fines for vacant properties and reform the building permit office. Transforming our systems for acquisition and disposition of vacant properties is needed to expedite the elimination of vacant properties. Councilwoman Ramos introduced legislation to transform our systems for eliminating vacant and abandoned properties by creating Baltimore’s Land Bank. 

Councilwoman will continue to fight to eliminate vacant and abandoned properties. The In Rem system will work with more capacity through the Land Bank and significant funding from the city, state, federal, and private sources. This is the most important crisis in our city which connects to everything else we struggle with.

Keeping people in their homes

Councilwoman Ramos leads on tax sale reform so residents do not lose their homes because they can’t pay their taxes. Reforms include urging Mayor Scott to remove homeowners from tax sale - which he has done - and passing legislation that creates installment plans and payment plans for residents in arrears. Reforms will be implemented this year. Rental assistance has been critical for renters to avoid eviction. Councilwoman Ramos works with tenants to access rental assistance, and advocates for more funding to help. Councilwoman Ramos also introduced and passed the Mary Pat Clarke Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act which will help renters purchase the properties in which they live.

Tax sale reform is not completed, more work is to be done at the General Assembly level and city level for completely eliminating this form of tax collection. Councilwoman Ramos will continue to lead on tax sale reform. She will continue to advocate for tenants rights, better enforcement of landlord licensing and compliance, and more funding for rental assistance and eviction prevention.

Government Accountability

The Office of the Inspector General investigates waste, fraud, and abuse in City government and thanks to the voters, a charter amendment introduced by Councilwoman Ramos passed in November 2022 to make it independent. Before the amendment was passed, elected officials were on the Inspector General Advisory Board. That is no longer the case and now it ensures that elected officials do not have any influence or conflicts when investigations are being conducted against them or their colleagues.

Councilwoman Ramos will continue to strengthen the Office of the Inspector General, and work on several other initiatives to strengthen government, such as an independent Department of Legislative Reference and more oversight of government agencies. We also were waiting on an assessment of the procurement system, which has not materialized. The Councilwoman will lead on this effort.

Affordable Housing

The Inclusionary Housing legislation that Councilwoman Ramos introduced finally passed in December, along with a tax credit to ensure inclusionary units are produced. The goal for the Inclusionary Housing legislation is to produce more affordable housing options for low income individuals and families as the original bill only produced 37 affordable units since its enactment in 2007. It will also help alleviate the impact of the racist housing policies that continue to torment our city. Under the Inclusionary requirements, developers will have to produce 10% of affordable units if they plan to have more than 20 units.

Councilwoman Ramos also has a bill to increase the funding to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. She will continue to find ways to build more affordable rental and affordable homeownership in Baltimore City, as there is an affordable housing crisis here, and nationwide.

Older Adults Home Repair

Our district has a significant number of residents aging in place. It is only right and just to ensure they can age with dignity and a good home. Councilwoman Ramos advocated for more funding.

There is significantly more money for home repair, however, there is a serious backlog because there are not enough employees at HUBS to facilitate the cases and the work. Councilwoman Ramos will advocate for more operating funding to reduce the backlog, and make sure that residents can age in place with dignity.

Flood Mitigation

Long time residents of Ednor Gardens Lakeside have had to deal with major flooding issues in their neighborhood since the 1950’s. The residents cried for help for decades. They had to deal with so much property damage. Once Councilwoman Ramos was elected, she made it a priority to find a solution for this major flooding area. Ramos facilitates an inter-agency approach to ensuring that the flooding on 35th Street and Hillen Road finally eliminated. After multiple meetings with the community, there is now a plan for mitigation and is expecting work to start in 2024. Ramos is also working with colleagues on solutions regarding inland flooding in other areas of the city.

Flooding continues to plague other parts of the District including along the Stony Run and several other neighborhoods. Councilwoman has been working diligently on a resolution to these issues, including recognition of the hidden rivers in our city that can contribute to massive flooding.

Traffic calming

Councilwoman advocated for, and was successful in bringing, more funding for traffic calming measures. This funding has allowed for most of the speed bump requests in our district - going back several years - to finally be fulfilled. The Department of Transportation used to just install 30 speed bumps per year across the entire city. These past two years, thanks to the funding obtained from the state, our district has had over 60 speed bumps installed across the district - with a lot more coming! Several speed cameras were also installed across the area.

Councilwoman Ramos is committed to making sure our streets are not speedways. More traffic calming is coming in the next few years, including speed bumps, use of bump outs, and more.

Language Access

Councilwoman Ramos is the first Latine elected official in Baltimore City. This accomplishment comes with the responsibility to make sure that everyone who speaks other languages has access to city services. The Councilwoman sponsored two City Council hearings where there was simultaneous translation in Spanish which was history-making. Her efforts have also encouraged each City agency to offer translation at public meetings, and to hire more Latine residents, as well as use Language Line or other resources to make sure our residents can access city services. The Spanish 311 is coming, and 911 can now be accessed in Spanish.

Councilwoman will continue to advocate for residents who speak other languages, and encourage City government to hire residents of all backgrounds so that our workforce is as diverse as our residents.

Water Governance and Water Billing

Councilwoman Ramos introduced a resolution for oversight hearings regarding the Regional Water Governance Task Force that was put together at the state level. This task force is designed to figure out if and what structure is needed for our water system. The City Council was never included in the deliberations for this work, and yet we would have to pass any of the recommended legislation. This oversight continues as we ask for more time from the General Assembly, and also more consideration to stormwater as well as equity. Water billing has improved, but we continue to work through any challenges.

Commitment to Residents and Neighborhoods

Councilwoman Ramos and her team work diligently every day to answer calls and emails from constituents who are having trouble accessing city services or need assistance in some way. Our commitment is clear - everyone deserves access to city services.

If you have any questions on Councilwoman Ramos’ stance on issues, please email odette@odetteramos.com