Hello, Neighbor: Union Square

Italianate and Federal-style rowhomes constructed decades before and after the Civil War largely define this historic Southwest Baltimore neighborhood’s residential fabric. Large, gracefully restored three-story dwellings line Union Square Park and surrounding streets, while blocks of smaller rowhomes—erstwhile workforce housing for the railroad and factories—emanate in all directions. Neighbors boast of their community’s sense of safety, racial and cultural diversity, and easy access to downtown and highways.

Shop: Hollins Market’s new grocery stall fills a gap for fresh produce and household staples within walking distance, or you can go fill up a shopping cart at Jumbo Fresh Supermarket at Mount Clare Junction. A one-of-one stop for fashionable streetwear is City of Gods in Hollins Market, a fixture since 2009.

Dine: Hollins Market, just a few blocks east, is Southwest Baltimore’s foodie hub with staples including Neopol Smokery, French- inspired Rooted Rotisserie, Zella’s Pizzeria, and the Back Yard across from the B&O Railroad Museum. The market building itself is getting a makeover, with new food stalls forthcoming. Other choices include Jamaican (HeyDaddy’s), seafood (Sea Pride Crab House), and assorted pizza and chicken carryouts dotting West Baltimore and Pratt streets.

Play: The 2.5-acre Union Square Park features its signature Greek Revival Pavilion and fountain at center, built atop a natural spring in the 1840s and ’50s. The park is a regular gathering space for residents (dogs included) and serves as the community’s nucleus. Other play spaces nearby include Vincent Street Park (basketball court, playground) and 117-acre Carroll Park with its nine-hole golf course, skatepark, ballfields, and more.

Arts & Culture: Union Square’s annual holiday cookie tour draws visitors into the homes of proud residents every December (not to mention a new Christmas market, added to the mix just last year). The park often hosts concerts, including weekly jazz and the monthly Sunday Sounds in the Park series from April through October. Historical attractions include, among others, celebrated journalist H.L. Mencken’s house and museum on Hollins Street and the B&O Railroad Museum.

Neighbor Spotlight 

Debra Rahl, 70, and her husband, Francis, have lived in their Union Square rowhome for 45 years. Rahl was a founding member of Union Square’s famous cookie tours.

“My husband and I were looking to buy a house in the city back in 1979. We used to just drive around, and one night we happened to drive by Union Square and we thought, ‘Well, this is pretty, what park is this?’ Our real estate agent suggested we come look at this house on Stricker Street across from the park. We came over and fell in love with it.

“It’s a really diverse community age-wise, and everyone is included in events around the neighborhood. If our neighbors see my husband and me doing something stupid, like trying to carry something heavy into the house, they’re right there to help us.

“Same way with shoveling the snow. When we first moved in, we shoveled the snow for our elderly neighbors. Now when I look out the window, I see someone shoveling snow and I just tell my husband, ‘Step back, we’re the old people now.’ Everyone looks out for each other.”

Neighborhood Stats
Population: 1,011 Occupancy Rate: 75 percent Owner/Renter Split: 37 percent/63 percent Median Home Price: $244,950 Estimated Monthly Mortgage: $2,117 Estimated Rent: $1,081 Walk Score: 86 Bike Score: 57 Transit Score: 77

—Sources: Baltimore City Department of Planning; Live Baltimore