This Baltimore Sun article focuses on the controversy surrounding Jack Young’s purchase of his house on Central Avenue in East Baltimore. I picked up some revealing nuggets of information from quotes in the article that pertain to the original controversy over where Young lived before 2005. This is what I gathered:
“In 1993, Young paid about $5,500 for a rowhouse at 903 Durham St. He and his sister were listed as co-owners on the deed, though only she lived there. “His intent was for her to have a place to live,” his spokesman Dennis Edwards said.”
-Jack Young is clearly familiar with the very legal action of owning a home that is not his primary residence. Nothing wrong with that.
“On Aug. 16, 2001, Jack Young’s name was added to the deed for Cynthia Young’s new home on Central Avenue. About four years later, in 2005, he moved into the house. As his spokesman Edwards said last week: “The council president did not move into that house until his sister moved out. That was in 2005.”
-In 2005 the Central Avenue house that Jack Young’s sister once occupied became his primary residence where he still resides today.
“The first issue that arose involved a Harford County home he owned from 1993 to 2005. He claimed a homestead tax credit on the house, even though it was not his principal residence.”
There is the year 2005 again! Could that be a coincidence? It appears to me that in 2005 Jack Young sold his primary residence in Harford County and moved back into the city into what had been his sister’s house. Can I prove this? No. It is all in the past now, but it seems pretty obvious to me what was really going on.
If you are going to represent Baltimore then you should have to REALLY live in Baltimore. This article reminds us that in all likelihood our current city council president did not live in Baltimore for a period before 2005 and that he has tried to cover it up.
On the campaign trail it is very common for politicians to brag about their rough home neighborhoods. Certain neighborhoods are used as badges of honor that help gain votes. It is very difficult to live in many neighborhoods in Baltimore, but it is also absolutely pathetic to pretend to live in one of these neighborhoods when you do not.
Baltimore voter complacency has truly reached an unprecedented level. Voters in small city districts have lost the ability and the will to figure out where their leaders really live. Do not question authority, it’s the Baltimore way. One day a leader will have to be punished for misleading the public about where they really live. Until that day Baltimore will remain a breeding ground for political lies and deceit.
Adam is the most recognizable face of the recent resurgence in Reservoir Hill. He has appeared on many national and local radio shows, in several news publications, and at numerous events discussing his innovative urban redevelopment ideas and his unique lifestyle. Adam is a successful entrepreneur, community activist, and a local political guru who ran for city council in 2007. He is the founder and director of the TechBalt.com Buy a Block Project and BaltimoreHourly.com. His fearless local political commentary has rocked the local blog scene for most of this decade and he plans to take it to the next level in the next decade here on Charm City Current.
It does not matter. He is a part of the 20th century legacy thought. He only believes that cities are for the poor and disenfranchised. He is a “Boomer,” a part of the “Me” generation that is bent on leaving this Country in tatters as long as they get their benefits. He does not care, he has worked the system and has his. If we grew up in that generation, that so many work hard and fought for to provide, we too might believe it would last while we stripped it for our own selfish gains.