Community Assessment

Community Assessment:
Canton Neighborhood of Baltimore City
Laura Ellis
Frostburg State University

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Introduction

The Canton neighborhood in Baltimore City, Maryland is a historic waterside

neighborhood with a population of just under 10,000 residents. Canton is a unique neighborhood
in Baltimore City in that gentrification occurred in the early 1990s and since that time, Canton
has flourished as a neighborhood of young professionals and families living in a healthy and rich
environment. The following community assessment will outline a community profile inventory
of physical location, population, and social systems, provide data for comparison of the rest of
Baltimore City, and analyze how the data and current Healthy People 2020 initiative interrelate.
Community health assessments provide valuable opportunity to integrate an in-person dashboard
assessment, current census data, and community goals to create recommendations for building a
healthier and growth focused community.
Location Perspective
Located in the southeastern section of Baltimore City and nestled along the Patapsco
River, the Canton neighborhood of Baltimore City has changed significantly since its founding in
the late 18th century. The current neighborhood of Canton is bordered to the north by 155-acre
Patterson Park, known as Best Backyard in Baltimore, and the Patapsco River to the south
(Collins, 2008). Spanning 26 city-blocks east to west, Canton lies between other up and coming
Baltimore City neighborhoods Fells Point and Brewers Hill. Canton is within walking and biking
distance of popular downtown attractions such as Oriole Park and Camden Yards and the
Baltimore National Aquarium located in Baltimores Inner Harbor. Not only is Canton flanked by
the beautiful green space of Patterson Park, but the neighborhood also features ODonnell
Square. ODonnell Square is the heart of the Canton neighborhood where residents can frequent

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an indoor market, an art gallery, and a multitude of trendy restaurants and bars. Refer to
Appendix A for a geographic perspective of the Canton neighborhood.
The Canton neighborhood is one that is lined with turn-of-the-twentieth century row
homes the majority of which feature red brick exterior and popular exposed brick interiors. Many
of the homes in the neighborhood have been renovated but strive to maintain most of the historic
integrity of the buildings. According to Baltimore City 2011 Neighborhood Health Profile for
Canton, the average row-home in Canton is two to three stories, requires street parking and often
features a small patio area or rooftop deck. The price of these row-homes is usually around
250,000 dollars (Ames, 2011). In comparison to the rest of Baltimore city, Canton has one tenth
of the incidence of lead paint exposure and five times fewer abandon buildings and lots.
Pollution is a general problem for the city of Baltimore and likewise in the Canton
neighborhood. According to scorecard.com, a non-profit sponsored website that compares
pollution data, Baltimore city ranks above the 70% percentile in seven of the eleven categories
making it one of the most polluted cities in the United States. A graphic of this fact can be found
in Appendix B. Given the Canton neighborhoods close proximity to the Patapsco River, water
pollution is also of great concern. Fortunately Blue Water Baltimore has worked hard to improve
upon the water pollution problem in the city of Baltimore. One measure that is frequently used to
measure water safety is the dissolved oxygen level. According to the United States Geological
Service, most fish and wildlife can survive with a dissolved oxygen (DO) level between 4-5mg/L
with even the hardiest fish dying at a low DO level of <3mg/L (usgs.gov). Blue Water Baltimore
has tracked the DO levels at the Canton Park Station for 2016 and found the average levels to be
between 6-8mg/L with the levels falling below 3mg/L just three times during the warmer water

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months (Canton Park Station, 2016). A visual of the Blue Water Baltimore groups project can be
found in Appendices C & D.
In an effort to decrease the citys carbon footprint, Baltimore Bureau of Solid Waste
Management has set out goals to decrease waste and increase recycling. The bureau runs
operations to collect waste from over 330,000 homes throughout the county. In 2012 the bureau
made a commitment to add less annually to landfills and opened the Wheelabrator Baltimore
Waste-to-Energy Facility located in the Inner Harbor, just 2.5 miles from the Canton
neighborhood. The Wheelabrator facility consumes about 70% of all of Baltimores waste and
reduces the trash volume by 90% through the incineration process. The rest of the citys trash is
taken to the Eastern Sanity Landfill, in 2015 that was only 12% (baltimorecountymd.gov).
Burning trash is generally thought to have a negative impact on the air quality thus Baltimore
County is working toward clean burning techniques to decrease the impact on the citys air
pollution.
Population Perspective
The neighborhood of Canton in Baltimore City is predominantly made up of White
young professionals ages 25-44 according to 2010 census bureau data. In comparison to the rest
of Baltimore City which features a much more diverse population, Canton is nearly 90% White
and only 4% Black or African American while the rest of the city is over 60% Black or African
American. Nearly 60% of Cantons residents 25 years or older hold a Bachelors degree or higher
where as the rest of Baltimore City only 25% of the population has Bachelors degree or higher.
The ratio of men to women in Canton is nearly 50/50 which is similar to the rest of the city.
Crime rates in Canton are significantly lower than the rest of the city with a non-fatal shooting
rate of 2.5 per 10,000 residents compared to the citys rate of 46.5 per 10,000 residents according

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to the Baltimore City Police department. Not surprisingly given the higher rate of education and
lower rate of crime, the life expectancy in Canton is 6 years more than the rest of the city (Ames,
2011).
Morbidity and Mortality rates in Canton are similar to that of the national average as the
top 5 leading causes of death are heart disease, cancer, chronic lower respiratory disease, stroke,
and tied for 5th are injury and diabetes. According to the Center for Disease Controls National
Vital Statistics System, the average life expectancy nationally is 78.8 years and the leading
causes of death mirror those of the Canton neighborhood of Baltimore City (Kochanek, 2016).
As it was addressed above, the Canton neighborhood is very well educated. The high
level of education amongst residents has led to a low unemployment rate of about 3%, which is
considerably lower than the national average of 4.9% and the Baltimore city rate of 11.1%
(Ames, 2014). High levels and education and low unemployment rates lend to a variety of
occupations. The leading occupations for women in Canton are sales and office jobs, healthcare
practitioners, and business and financial operations positions. The leading positions for men in
Canton are management, sales and office positions and service jobs such as a bartender (Citydata, 2013).
Overall the neighborhood of Canton has experienced steady growth in population and
development of community systems.
Social System Perspective
The social resources throughout the neighborhood of Canton have grown over the past 10
years. The community features several public and charter schools as well as Baltimore
Montessori School. Although the Baltimore Public schools are not highly rated, the charter

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schools in the area are gaining regard and offer tuition assistance and transportation services to
promote diversity in the school.
Canton is a very active neighborhood that boasts a running club and cycling club and
features a variety of gyms including 9-rounds boxing gym, crossfit gyms and yoga studies. When
driving through Canton one would often see people out exercising, walking their dogs, and
cycling through the streets. Canton also features outdoor green spaces such as the Canton
Waterfront Park, the Canton Dog Park, and Patterson Park. The Canton Waterfront Park and
Patterson Park host events throughout the week and on the weekends such as Zumba, festival of
lights walking tour, and birdwalks. Baltimores Creative Alliance routinely hosts events in
Canton such as art classes and pop up art galleries.
Transportation in Baltimore and the neighborhood of Canton a sufficient but lacks the
network and infrastructure of other major cities like Washington, DC or Boston. The main source
of public transportation in Canton is the bus system, which is grossly under utilized. More
recently private transportation services like Uber and Lyft have become popular in Baltimore to
get from one neighborhood to the next. Residents can also get a water taxi from the Canton
Waterfront and travel to Federal Hill, Fells Point, The Inner Harbor, and Riverside. The water
taxi is popular throughout the city as it is bike and dog friendly and provides quick access to the
various waterfront neighborhoods.
The city of Baltimore is saturated with healthcare divisions including Johns Hopkins,
University of Maryland Medical Center, Mercy Hospital, and Sinai Hospital to name a few.
While Canton does not have a hospital located within its boarders, there are several primary care
doctors offices in row homes turned office space and two minute clinic style healthcare services.
The closest hospital system to the Canton neighborhood is Johns Hopkins Bayview which is a

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full service hospital linked to the Hopkins network. Hopkins Bayview has a unique feature of a
mobile treatment unit that focuses on psychiatric health and as well as delivering flu and
pneumonia vaccinations that can often be found on the streets of Canton. For common primary
care or urgent care, Canton has the health care access to serve the community but for specialty
consults or emergency care, residents will have to seek assistance outside of the neighborhood.
Strategic Plan Analysis
The Canton neighborhood of Baltimore City was the focus of major urban development
in the early 1990s and 2000s and has since been a model of planning and development for the
rest of the city. Canton itself has not had a strategic plan dedicated to the neighborhood in several
years but the general goals of Baltimore citys strategic plan can certainly be maintained by the
neighborhood.
Based on Baltimore Citys 2015 Annual Report, Baltimore has three main focal points;
development, historical preservation, and sustainability. As identified by the city planning
commission, these goals should be the focus and guiding principles for the Canton neighborhood
as well.
Needs Assessment and Recommendations
Based on the data compiled, Baltimore Citys neighborhood of Canton has been
successful in growth, development and revitalization but there are points that can be improved
upon in each of the above categories. The data describes a community that is a flourishing
neighborhood of active young professionals who often stay within the community and settle
down. This sentiment is reflected in the age distribution of Canton in Appendix E. Community
members who stay and are committed to the neighborhood present the biggest value in
contributing to the growth and development to the neighborhood.

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Despite being a cozy neighborhood that features most of the possible needs of a
community, Canton does suffer with growing air pollution. For this problem the nursing
diagnosis of risk for contamination related to air pollution is appropriate. While it may seem as
though the average citizen can do little to affect city wide air pollution, according to the EPA,
there are small steps that individuals can take daily to help reduce their energy use and in turn
reduce air pollution. A neighborhood campaign reminding residents of energy conscious actions
might be an effective way to help reduce the citys air pollution problem. Some of the easy
energy reduction techniques include turning lights off when exiting a room, switching to energy
efficient light bulbs, maintaining emissions for personal vehicles, and advocating for more
stringent emissions reductions for warehouses and plants such as the Wheelabrator waste plant in
Baltimore (des.nh.gov). Energy reduction in an effort to lower air pollution coincides with one of
the environmental health objectives of Health People 2020 which seeks to reduce air toxic
emissions to decrease the risk of adverse health effects caused by mobile, area, and major
airborne toxics (Healthypeople.gov).
Baltimore Neighborhood Indicator Alliance (BNIA) data on the Canton neighborhood
indicates that while the community is full of educated young professionals, the community is not
very diverse with over 85% of the population being white Americans. One possible reason for
the lack of diversity in this neighborhood is the increasing cost of housing and low rent
affordability index. In 2014, the median price of homes sold in Canton was $275,000, up nearly
$25,000 from the median price in 2010. Also in 2014, the BNIA found the rent affordability rate
to be 33% indicating that only 33% of the average family or individual can afford the rent in
Canton (Canton CSA and Neighborhoods, 2015). With increasing costs to buy homes and low
affordability rates, Canton living is not achievable for many low to moderate-income families.

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Given that Canton is a nice neighborhood with low crime rates, it is a very desirable location to
live and thus those who wish to live there but cannot afford either buying property or renting
may be at risk for relocation stress syndrome. One way to combat this problem is to plan for
affordable housing in Canton. Although Canton has a lower incidence of vacant lots than the rest
of the city, the neighborhood has had great success renovating old warehouses into condos and
apartments. Converting warehouse and old buildings follows one of Baltimore Citys guiding
planning principles of preserving historic commercial buildings, roads, and residencies. This goal
goes towards the Health People 2020 social determinants of health objective of decreasing the
proportion of all households that spend more than 30% of income on housing. It is important for
communities to have affordable housing for all levels of income in order to break the cycle of
poverty and promote healthy living (Healthypeople.gov).
From a social system perspective the Canton neighborhood is well rounded with physical
activity offerings, cultural festivals, and a variety of diverse restaurant options. What the
neighborhood lacks is sufficient medical services due to a lack of hospital in the community. Not
only do hospitals offer emergency care but they also offer perinatal care, ambulatory surgery, and
clinic care such as a heart failure clinic that primary care doctors simply do not have the
expertise to provide. Given the need for further medical services in this neighborhood, an
appropriate nursing diagnosis would be readiness for enhanced knowledge. As mentioned
previously, Canton boasts an intelligent group of residents but continues to have high incidence
of preventable diseases such as heart disease and chronic lower respiratory diseases. With better
access to mid-level healthcare services such as a cardiovascular health clinic could go a long way
to promote better health and nutrition-focused consumption and lower the risks of developing
cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular health clinics have the ability to offer stress tests, cardiac

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rehab and routine screenings that are difficult to offer at a standard primary care office. One of
the goals for Healthy People 2020 is to increase the portion of insured persons with coverage for
clinical preventative services (Healthypeople.gov). Increasing the access to mid-level healthcare
services will help to decrease preventable illness in this community.
Conclusion
After completing a full community assessment on the Baltimore City neighborhood of
Canton, it is clear that Canton is a pillar of the community. Canton has risen from a history of
being a rundown and vacant industrial graveyard to a thriving community of young professionals
and families. Now that Canton has established itself as a desirable community, it is time for the
residents and city council members to begin focusing on sustainability and accessibility of
healthcare and housing. With the Healthy People 2020 and Baltimore City annual goals as a
guide, the community can continue to grow into a diverse and healthy neighborhood.

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References

2015 Annual Report. (n.d.). Retrieved December 3, 2016, from

http://www.baltimorecity.gov/sites/default/files/Planning 2015 Annual Report.pdf
2020 Topics and Objectives Objectives AZ. (n.d.). Retrieved December 03, 2016, from
https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives
Ames, A., Evans, M., & Fox, L. (2011). Canton - Baltimore City Health Department. Retrieved
December 3, 2016, from http://health.baltimorecity.gov/sites/default/files/5 Canton.pdf
About Bureau of Solid Waste Management. (n.d.). Retrieved December 03, 2016, from
http://www.baltimorecountymd.gov/Agencies/publicworks/solid_waste/bureauinfo.html
Canton CSA and Neighborhoods. (2015). Retrieved December 3, 2016, from
http://bniajfi.org/community/Canton/
Canton neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland (MD), 21224 detailed profile. (n.d.). Retrieved
December 02, 2016, from http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/Canton-BaltimoreMD.html
Canton Park Station. (2016). Retrieved December 03, 2016, from
http://www.harboralert.org/stations/15
Collins, D. (2008, December 18). Patterson Park: Best backyard in Baltimore. Retrieved
December 05, 2016, from http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/patterson-park-bestbackyard-in-baltimore/article/43971
Fells Point & Canton: Port of Call. (n.d.). Retrieved December 01, 2016, from
http://www.icwplanningguide.com/Publications/ICW/2010/ICW-Side-Trips/Fells-PointCanton-Port-of-Call.aspx

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Kochanek, K., Murphy, S., Xu, J., & Tjada-Vera, B. (2016, June 30). Deaths: Final Data for
2014. National Vital Statistics Reports, 65(4), 1-121. Retrieved December 3, 2016, from
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr65/nvsr65_04.pdf
Pollution Locator: Smog and Particulates: Baltimore County Report. (n.d.). Retrieved December
03, 2016, from http://scorecard.goodguide.com/env-releases/cap/county.tcl?
fips_county_code=24510
Population estimates, July 1, 2015, (V2015). (n.d.). Retrieved December 03, 2016, from
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/2404000,00
Water Quality. (2015). Retrieved December 05, 2016, from
https://www.usgs.gov/science/science-explorer/Water
What Can I Do to Help Reduce Air Pollution? - Air Quality Monitoring and Data Program - NH
Department of Environmental Services. (n.d.). Retrieved December 03, 2016, from
http://des.nh.gov/organization/divisions/air/tsb/ams/aqmdp/share.htm

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Appendix A

Map of the Canton neighborhood of Baltimore (icwplanningguide.com)

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Appendix B

Air Quality Rankings for Baltimore City (scorecard.com)

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Appendix C

Dissolved Oxygen and pH levels from the Canton Park Station water monitoring plant (Canton
Park Station)

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Appendix D

Dissolved Oxygen Levels and Fish Livelihood (usgs.gov)

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Appendix E

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Appendix F

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Appendix G

Graphic of race distribution in Canton (city-data.com)

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Appendix H

Morbidity rates for Canton (Ames, 2011)