Baltimore City Councilman Mark Conway ran unopposed in this year’s Democratic primary and has served District 4 in North Baltimore since 2020.
Conway is one of the council’s least active sponsors of legislation. District 4 residents who spoke with The Baltimore Sun offered mostly positive feedback, saying he’s responsive to constituent service requests.
This is the 15th and last report in a series by The Sun and FOX45 News examining the effectiveness of the City Council in serving its constituents, ahead of a November ballot measure that proposes to reduce the council size from 15 to nine members by expanding the size of most council districts, except that of the council president, who is elected citywide. The measure is funded by David Smith, co-owner of The Sun and executive chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns FOX45.
Conway doesn’t support the measure, saying it will reduce representation and inhibit his ability to work directly with constituents.
“Not to say that we don’t necessarily need to reduce the council,” Conway said. “To reduce it in half, I think, would be too dramatic at this point.”
Conway sponsored or co-sponsored 64 ordinances since 2020, including 37 that were enacted, six that were withdrawn, and 21 that are still in progress.
Three of those bills dealt with crime, one with education, 13 with quality-of-life issues and six with government accountability.
Conway chairs the Public Safety and Government Operations committee. His legislation includes a measure establishing the structure of Baltimore’s Police Accountability Board, a state-mandated panel in which civilians review complaints against the police department. The board, which Conway said was meant to “rebuild trust” with law enforcement, reported more than 900 complaints against police in 2023.
Conway also sponsored several environmental ordinances, including enacted measures requiring the city to switch to zero-emission vehicles , mandating that newly constructed buildings adhere to “cool roof” standards , and requiring city operations to reach net-zero emissions by 2045.
Conway is the primary sponsor of 14 resolutions since 2020, most of which have not been adopted, including measures calling for hearings about preventing litter , alternatives to policing strategies , and crime prevention through environmental design .
The 4th District includes Bellona-Gittings, Belvedere, Cameron Village, Cedarcroft, Chinquapin Park, Evesham Park, Glen Oaks, Guilford, Homeland, Idlewood, Kenilworth Park, Kernewood, Lake Evesham, Lake Walker, Loch Raven, Loyola/Notre Dame, Mid-Govans, New Northwood, Pen Lucy, Radnor-Winston, Ramblewood, Richnor Springs, Rosebank, Villages of Homeland, Waverly, Wilson Park, Winston-Govans, Woodbourne Heights, Woodbourne-McCabe and York-Homeland, per redistricting boundaries set to go into effect after the general election.
Conway said he’s proud of the progress the city has made on declining homicides and believes the city’s Group Violence Reduction Strategy was a major contributor. But the “big question” to ask is whether crime reduction efforts will be sustainable after federal COVID-19 pandemic funds supporting them run out, he said.
Conway also sponsored a charter amendment to transfer control of the police department from state to local leadership . The measure will go into effect if approved by voters on the November ballot. Conway declined to offer specifics on what changes might be made once the department comes under local control, adding that it will not be the council’s job to “run” the police department.
“We don’t try to run the planning department. We don’t try to run the fire department. But we do make sure that in certain instances, the planning department or the fire department is thinking about certain things in their responsibilities,” he said.
Scott Graham, of the Bellona Govans Community Association, expressed skepticism about the transition to local control.
“They can’t even manage what they’ve got. Putting more on their plate — it doesn’t seem like a good idea to me,” he said.
Graham said Conway has been “very helpful” with his community garden and helped install speed bumps in an area where there had been a series of vehicle accidents.
“You could say I’m batting for the other team,” said Graham, who ran for the Maryland House of Delegates as a Republican in 2022. “I probably don’t agree with him on everything, but I like the guy.”
Conway’s greatest accomplishment, said Dan Pontious, of the York Road Partnership, was legislation establishing a business improvement district along York Road. While there’s still a lot of work to do, Pontious said he’s seen improvements in landscaping, cleaning up trash, and scheduling community events.
Pontious added that Conway’s office is “really sharp” in following up on 311 city service requests, like fixing street lights and planting stop signs.
Conway has assisted with restoring an area where deadfall and debris clogged up a culvert, contributing to flooding and some home basement damage, said Ed Chupein, of the Lake Walker Community Association. On one occasion, Conway brought representatives from city agencies and telecommunications and energy companies to walk around the area, addressing issues like trash, abandoned phone lines, and broken telephone poles, he said.
Conway also reaches out to law enforcement on issues like car break-ins, Chupein said.
“He’s always been responsive and gone to the police leadership and advocated for our needs,” he said.
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