Vital Signs 22, the latest in a series of reports created by the Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance-Jacob France Institute at The University of Baltimore, provides an analysis of Baltimore City's "new normal," via a year's worth of data from 2022, the first full year following the pandemic. Vital Signs 22 tracks more than 110 indicators that take the pulse of Baltimore's communities and explores neighborhood-level trends across eight different topic areas.

The data discussed in the report highlights how changes in data availability, accessibility, collection, and sharing over the past few years have shifted the question and answers that emerge in data analysis.

In 2022, for example, the population of children under five years of age appears to be declining in some Baltimore neighborhoods. More research is needed to understand if this data is related to undercounts from the 2020 census, overall declining fertility rates, or community level population change. Additionally, analysis of event permit data shows that between 2018 and 2022, block parties have declined by 43 percent in the city. While most communities lost block parties during that period, the greatest losses are concentrated in four adjacent communities in west Baltimore.

Vital Signs 22 also details declines in the rate of emergency calls through 911, despite an increase in the overall Part I crime rate. Given that the rate of 911 calls provides a barometer for use and trust in emergency services, the causes of this decline should be investigated further. Additionally, while the housing market struggled in 2022 as interest rates rose, the number of residential rehabilitation permits rose, suggesting that investment is being made in maintaining and improving homes in Baltimore.

This year, the report introduces three new or returning indicators:

• percentage of the population that works from home
• rate of evictions per 1,000 residents
• rate of car crash reports per 1,000 residents

Importantly, the return of the rate of evictions indicator is a first step to better gathering data related to the conditions and challenges faced by Baltimore's renters.

Vital Signs 22 chapters, visualizations, and maps are available for review on BNIA-JFI's website. An executive summary of key findings are detailed in the report's introduction. Data described in Vital Signs 22 are available for download through the open data portal.

Baltimore community and neighborhood groups are invited to find out more about Vital Signs indicators pertaining to their neighborhoods.

Send an email to bnia-jfi@ubalt.edu to schedule a virtual or in-person presentation.