[Baltimore Sun] FOX45: Baltimore mayor’s new economic advisor facing lien, discrimination complaint
Read Time:5 Minute, 20 Second
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott hired his former campaign treasurer, Calvin Young, as a senior city hall economic advisor despite Young facing a lien on his home and an imminent discrimination lawsuit.
Before being hired at the mayor’s office, Young had a $1,783 lien filed against his home in March. This occurred during Mayor Scott’s reelection bid, according to state property records. Land records do not show the lien has been satisfied.
Mayor Scott’s spokesperson, Bryan Doherty, said he was unaware of the outstanding water bill lien when asked if Mayor Scott took Young’s financial history into account before hiring him as a senior economic advisor.
“[C]an you please provide the information you’re utilizing to claim that there is an issue with water bills,” Doherty asked FOX45. “We have not found any indication of that issue.”
FOX45 News provided a copy of Young’s publicly available lien to the mayor’s office. The mayor’s office did not respond further.
Maryland State Board of Elections records show that Young resigned on Sept. 3 as the mayor’s campaign treasurer. The campaign promptly appointed Calvin Young’s sister, Chanel Young, to fill the treasurer’s opening.
Calvin Young arrived at the mayor’s office after working for Green Street Impact Partners for several years. Former Baltimore mayoral candidate David Warnock founded Green Street after he established and led the private equity firm Camden Partners, according to the company’s website.
Green Street’s website says Baltimore City’s Green Street Academy inspired the firm’s name. This public city charter school was also founded by Warnock, according to the website.
During his reelection campaign, Mayor Scott appointed Young to serve on the board of directors of East Baltimore Development, Inc. (EBDI). EBDI’s bylaws grant the Baltimore City mayor authority to appoint up to three members to the board.
EBDI was founded under former Mayor Martin O’Malley’s administration to revitalize East Baltimore’s historically underserved neighborhoods around Johns Hopkins Medical Campus.
Calvin Young, Sen. Cory McCray, a Baltimore Democrat, and Caron Watkins were Mayor Scott’s unpaid appointments as of March to EBDI’s board. City records show Watkins doubles as the mayor’s assistant chief equity officer.
Meanwhile, EBDI’s executive director was grilled on Tuesday by the Baltimore City Council’s Ways and Means Committee. Young’s service as EBDI’s fast-tracked board chairman caused confusion among council members when a slide deck showed that he was listed as affiliated with Green Street Impact Partners rather than the mayor’s office.
“The slide says Calvin Young is part of Green Street Partners, but I believe he is part of the administration now, is that correct?” Councilwoman Odette Ramos asked.
Mayor Scott’s legislative representative responded that Young does work for the Scott administration as a senior advisor.
“I just wanted to make sure that was corrected,” Councilwoman Ramos said.
FOX45 News confirmed on Monday with Green Street’s managing partner Amy Bevilacqua that Young still works for the firm.
“Calvin Young is a partner with Green Street Impact Partners,” Bevilacqua said.
Andy Freeman was one of the first to speak at the city council chamber’s microphone during the public comment section of Tuesday’s EBDI hearing, addressing his grievances with the hearing and city government. Freeman said he was the vice president of real estate development at EBDI until he was fired by Young for racially motivated reasons.
“[I was let go] as a result of a blatant racial discrimination and a violation of my First Amendment rights by none other than EBDI’s board chair, Calvin Young, and Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott,” Freeman said.
Freeman’s civil rights attorney, Tonya Bana, told FOX45 News that her firm filed a formal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint last week. This filing is an administrative process necessary before a plaintiff can sue in court.
Bana told FOX45 News that she is concerned about Mayor Scott hiring Young despite being aware of pending legal action for alleged civil rights violations.
“[T]his development is concerning but it’s not surprising; Mayor Scott seems to believe that he can act with impunity,” Bana said. “Mayor Scott should be concerned that Mayor Scott is facing an imminent civil rights lawsuit.”
Senior city officials dodged FOX45 News’s questions about Young’s employment status for weeks. City agencies directly involved in human resources and Young’s new portfolio in the mayor’s office acknowledged requests but refused to provide answers.
FOX45 News took unanswered questions directly to Young on earlier this week as the 36-year-old Harvard graduate casually walked into City Hall.
“When did you start working for City Hall?” FOX45 News asked Young.
Young shook his head, indicating he was on a call, before quickly disappearing inside City Hall’s front entrance.
FOX45 News then resent a series of unanswered questions to the mayor’s office about his employment status.
Doherty, Scott’s spokesperson, denied that the administration had been hiding Young’s employment with the city, despite weeks of emails, phone calls and text messages sent by FOX45 News to him, Young and the administration’s chief of staff, Marvin James.
“Calvin Young is employed by the City of Baltimore,” Doherty said. “The identity of all city employees is a matter of public record.”
FOX45 News did not find any record on the city’s website or online databases announcing Young’s employment as Mayor Scott’s new senior advisor for economic development. Neither the Scott administration nor Young made any apparent announcements on social media about the new hire.
Despite acknowledging that city employment must be publicly disclosed, the mayor’s office did not respond to repeated direct questions after connecting with Young as to when he started working in a senior position for city government.
FOX45 News reported in June 2023 that Mayor Scott reassigned Chezia Cager, his former chief of staff, to serve as a senior advisor without public notice.
The mayor’s office never confirmed if Cager was fired, quit or placed on leave after abruptly leaving her post, citing the administration does not “comment on personnel matters.” FOX45 News later confirmed Cager was placed in the advisory role earning $160,000 annually.
The mayor’s office said Calvin Young will be making $140,000 annually in his new role.
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