GRIA Community Meeting 1/21/2026
Board Members Present: Wynnona Engle-Pratt (President),Samantha Horn (Secretary), Sadie Baker (Treasurer), Frances McGaffey, Corey Jennings (Vice President), Michele Baskin, Peter Morrill (zoom)
Staff: Jennifer McKenzie
Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen
Councilman Jones
BGE
OEM
Total Attendees: 40
On Zoom- ~11
Zoom Recording Here
Password: Q.X=YPa3
Agenda
- Community Introduction
- JHU- Jennifer Mielke (Director, Baltimore City Government & Community Affairs) notified Wynn that JHU will not be attending the meeting at the last minute
- Hopkins has been made aware of a request for judicial review for Board of Estimates approval of DSAI Building construction. They have cited this request as excuse for not attending
- This is disappointing and frustrating for Remington given that they are proceeding with construction and community should receive timely updates on the impact
- Wynn requested follow up on the following questions:
- How are members of the community supposed to be communicating concerns about construction and traffic to JHU?
- Mielke cited the webform on their website, Wynn stated that it does not fultfill requirement for and “attendant on call” as previously stated
- How are members of the community supposed to be communicating concerns about construction and traffic to JHU?
- Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen
- Focus of council is BGE/energy bills– wants public service commission to stop BGE from tearing up roads and having residents food the bill
- Discussed housing bills– elimination of off street parking passed; currently hung up on subdivisions of homes and the process is ongoing;
- Strengthening Renter Safety Act– protects vulnerable populations living in multi unit buildings
- Regarding ICEActivity in Baltimore- City Council moved $2 million to the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs to support Baltimore immigrants needing legal support
- Budget– The state has $1.4billion deficit, and it’s expected to grow to $4 billion next year. Important that the gap doesn’t get passed down to the city.
- Johns Hopkins DSAI- What it is- academic center to study AI and data science. It is NOT a data center
- Does NOT want data centers in the city of Baltimore
- BoEmeetings for the building- Cohen requested restrictions, MOU in process, expressed disappointment that JHU reps were not at the community meeting. The perception is that JHU is not doing enough to engage w/ community. Cohen requested MOU he following key points in an MOU with JHU. The MOU has not been executed yet:
- Replace trees
- Provide parking for construction workers to park that’s not in the community
- Hopkins will pay for the Parking attendant and DOT needs to control traffic and address parking issues
- Commitment to a dedicated attendant from JHU staff to field concerns from the community
- Q&A– When Hopkins isn’t here at the community meeting, and President Cohen isn’t here, who do we approach with questions/ concerns?
- 3100 Remington blk resident- If BOE grants permission to take trees down, does that mean that JHU does not need to follow city regulations for taking down trees?
- A- If the project is by right on property, JHU had the right to take their trees down
- Was JHU provided special permission so that they did not have to post the cut down date on the trees on city property that came down?
- A- no answer on the moment
- Can you elaborate how city council can hold JHU accountable?
- Seeking MOU between city solicitor and JHU-
- What consequences can there be if JHU goes against the MOU?
- No concrete answer
- 200 blk 31st street- detour is not adequate- Remington ave needs a 4 way stop *Note: 4 way stop was installed the day after the community meeting*
- GRIA requested 4 ways stops and raised crosswalks since 2017; Cohenwill call DOT next day
- Comment- perfect example of what should have happened when hopkins applied with BOE. Permits were approved in June- why didn’t city request the traffic studies and have all this work done prior to the approval?
- Cohen brought up the original design options of the buildings- stated that JHU chose the by right building instead of a taller building with a smaller footprint that may have preserved the trees
- Stop signs and safety guardrails SHOULD HAVE been part of the approvals- permits are there to protect, but permitting is a different department
- Cohen expects higher of Hopkins in its engagement with community and they did not meet the bar; permits is not part of city council’s purview; council member will engage w/ developer/institution
- Do you know how long it takes for young trees to be planted to get to maturity?
- A- yes many years
- Q continued- Mielke stated that machinery would be moved to Remington Ave, did not mention the tree cutting. If JHU cared about being a good neighbor, why have they not planted their own native plants in stony run. Why didn’t Cohen do more before harm was done?
- A- visited the site with the neighbors on that block, apologized for disagreeing, committed to continue engaging with residents
- Q- What are we supposed to do about the construction workers parking?
- ZC- Hopkins is paying for a traffic enforcement officer on site, they should not be parking in the neighborhood, HG chimed in saying that the workers’ shop pays for parking tickets. There’s no enforcement
- Dylan- knowing that the foremen don’t care about getting tickets
- Wynn- What to do about parking- Per Jen Mielke- if you see someone parking where they shouldn’t, send JHU the info thru their webform, allegedly 3 ppl monitoring that inbox. If you have Jennifer Mielke’s email, then email her directly and cc info@griaonline.org so we have a record
- Jed- parking tickets- if dedicated TO is there all day, they can keep ticketing and then eventually a boot or a tow
- Q- 10 megawatt power consumption, 20 watts/square foot- how will this impact our BGE bills?
- Stated in BOE- allegedly 10,000 households’ worth of utilities
- A- Cohen unsure of the 10,000 households comparison. These substations are paid for by Hopkins
- Hopkins has offered parking spots to the community members- maybe JHU can give those
- Department of Emergency Management
- BGE- Christiano- Energy Assistance Program Manager
- Paving d/t Gas work- cannot happen until we’ve been above freezing for 3 days
- It was above freezing all summer and fall-
- BGE work was done in some neighborhoods a year ago
- BGE Rep did not have specific updates on hand to update community members
- BGE Overhead Transmission Lines- “Transmission lines cannot go underground due to cost”; in design phase; Percentage of design phase completed not provided
- Q- Can we request for a commitment from BGE for more community engagement throughout the process of the transmission lines?
- A- manages community engagement team, the project team plans to engage with the community in spring 2026.
- Community members notified Christiano that the neighbors and GRIA board have not heard from BGE on this topic since they presented at the May 2025 Community Meeting
- A- manages community engagement team, the project team plans to engage with the community in spring 2026.
- Q- proposed site for towers near her home- how much moneywill actually be saved? Many of immediate neighbors are against this and have NOT been informed or given chance to respond to proposal. Who are we saving money for?
- A– cited the process of
- Corey- BGE Implies that the public has a say, then tells us that this route saves money this way.
- Outreach team for Transmission Line Project should be reaching out to GRIA.
- Discussion-
- What was 2900 Block of Huntingdon work on 1/20/26 overnight?
- Jed- emergency work
- Re paving on Maryland and on the cycle tracks? Email him and he will get an answer
- 31st street work and paving- does not have the specific paving answers
- 2800 block Remington Ave- trenches are rough!
- Cresmont Ave- What happens when there’s utility damage? Busted water lines d/t gas work- what needs to be done to avoid this
- A- If a Waiver is in place- BGE will be liable. You can file a claim
- What is BGE’s guidelines around Data Centers?
- Data centers must provide their own power source, which would alleviate cost on the residents
- Does BGE have a definition for a data center and what would require them to have their own power?
- Doesn’t have that
- When does BGE NEED to be out of the current amtrak tunnel?
- Whenever Amtrak says to get out- timeline unknown.
- Paving d/t Gas work- cannot happen until we’ve been above freezing for 3 days
- Office of Emergency Management- local level FEMA
- Activates emergency operations center, EOC- response and recovery efforts
- Preparedness begins with individual- take some OEM cards- stay informed by signing up for Bmore Alerts; 211 for state level services, 311 for reporting city issues, 911 emergencies
- Consider pets and family when planning- communication cards help as a piece of paper with general info
- Emergency Kit- 3 days worth of supplies to get you through- 1 gallon per person per day, extra water for pets, 3 days worth of shelf stable food in case power goes out, meds, extra clothes, batteries etc.
- Presentation on HOW to put together a kit on a budget
- Wheres the nearest warming center? Mayors office of Homeless Services going to known sites to help get people to warming centers.
- Sisson Street Task Force
- Voted to eliminate the Falls Road Location off the table
- Site visits to Sisson Street, Reedbird, and Bowleys Quarters DPW sites on 1/31/26
- Website is live!
- Community Announcements
- Sacred Parks and Waterways (Formerly Bmore Against DSAI) Town Hall will be 2/12 at the Greenmount school. Email bmoreagainstdsai@gmail.com for more information
- Volunteer call out for flyer distribution! Please reach out to Jen at volunteers@griaonline.org to take a flyering route next month. Routes are ~2 blocks and a great way to meet your neighbors
- Church of the Guardian Angel thrift shop, runs 1st & 2nd Sat of the month, 10am – 2 pm, bring donations during open hours only, also seeking volunteers; Food Pantry, every
Wednesday from 9 am – 10 am, need volunteers for delivery drivers and some muscle on Tuesday mornings to unload trucks (9:30 – 10:15ish). Registration preferred but not required
Adjourned- 8:56 pm
Next Community Meeting: February 18, 2026