Pen Lucy

Pen Lucy is a residential neighborhood in the north section of Baltimore. East43rd Street, The Alameda, Argonne Drive, East 39th Street and Greenmount Avenue generally form the borders of this neighborhood. As with many Baltimore neighborhoods, homes here are attached single-family “row homes” in various conditions. In addition there is a large number of multifamily housing here, some of which appears to be newer subsidized housing, which is always problematic for any neighborhood.

There are several schools here including Baltimore Christian School, Blessed Sacrament School and God’s Excellent Disciples. Dedicated green space can be found at Mullan Park. The neighborhood offers little in the way of shopping or restaurants, so many will venture out for these activities. The main roads offer many bus stops for those wishing to access public transportation. There are a few smaller places of worship here in the neighborhood.

Like many neighborhoods in large cities, crimes against people and property can occur at any time and crime rates can vary from street to street and day to day. As always, check recent crime statistics to make an informed decision on any neighborhood you are considering living in or visiting.

Overall this is a neighborhood that you should think twice about considering. Major improvements will need to be made before I would consider living here.

Pen Lucy is a small, mainly African American neighborhood in North Baltimore. It has a bad reputation in the area for its poverty and high crime rate. In fact, it is often accused of harboring drug dealers and other violent criminals who prey on the surrounding areas.
The primary cause of Pen Lucy’s poverty is that well over half of its homes are headed by single parent families, usually single moms, who do not make enough money to support themselves and their children. Many of these women became pregnant as teenagers and were never able to finish high school. They live in Pen Lucy because of its low cost housing. In fact, almost two thirds of the neighborhood’s residents do not own the homes they live in. Instead, they are dependent on government support rental properties and apartment complexes.
The Pen Lucy Neighborhood Association, Inc. is working hard to improve the lives for these mothers and their children. However, they have an uphill battle against numerous problems, including boarded up, falling down houses that attract every kind of criminal. They dream of a day when these homes can be repaired or even simply torn down and replaced by safe parks for the community’s nearly 1,000 children.