Locksmith Services in Baltimore, MD

Homes and locks in Baltimore

Baltimore developers began building whole rowhouse neighborhoods in the mid-1790s, and tens of thousands of rowhouses faced in brick or Formstone still line the streets. City preservation guidelines call white Cockeysville marble rowhouse steps a Baltimore icon and describe tiled vestibule walls as typical in many rowhouses. They also note that de-icing salts speed rot and corrosion on wood and metal doors.

• Fells Point, Federal Hill and Mount Vernon. Among the earliest National Register districts in the country, and also Baltimore City historic districts, like Bolton Hill, Union Square, Seton Hill, Otterbein and Butchers Hill.
• Canton. Mostly two- and three-story rowhouses from around 1900, new townhouses, and condominiums in rehabilitated waterfront industrial buildings. A lockout there can mean an old rowhouse door, a new townhouse door or a unit door behind a shared entrance.
• Canton, Hampden, Roland Park, Charles Village and Patterson Park/Highlandtown. National Register districts, not Baltimore City historic districts.

In a city historic district, exterior alterations are reviewed by the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP) through an Authorization to Proceed application. CHAP's guidelines call replacing doors generally unacceptable and ask owners to repair historic doors and hardware and keep historic vestibules and transoms. They discourage new metal security doors on highly visible elevations and say security bars should not go on doors. Narrow-frame storm doors that match the opening are allowed. That is why lock repair on the existing door usually fits better than replacing it.

Businesses and buildings

Downtown and the Inner Harbor, home to Oriole Park at Camden Yards and the Baltimore Convention Center, form the main commercial district. The Howard Street Commercial and Five & Dime city historic districts sit within the Market Center National Register district. CHAP's citywide guidelines ask that new storefront entrances fit surrounding commercial buildings, require historic security grills to be kept unless deteriorated beyond repair, and call for small security cameras attached through mortar joints, not masonry.

Car trouble in Baltimore

• Snow emergency routes. During Phase II or Phase III of the city's snow emergency plan, parking is banned on these routes. Their black-and-white signs usually sit higher on the pole than other signs. A car left there can get a $52 ticket and be towed.
• A missing car. The city says to call 311 about a car towed during a snow emergency; its impound facilities are on Pulaski Highway and the Fallsway. Check before ordering car key replacement.

Local rules worth knowing

Baltimore's rental license inspection is limited to checklist items the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) sets under Article 13, Subtitle 5 of the Baltimore City Code. An inspector registered with DHCD completes the Rental License Inspection Form, and two items cover locks:

• Item I.1. Windows designed to open must open, close and have a working locking mechanism.
• Item I.2. All entry doors to individual units must close and have a working locking mechanism.

The inspector may not repair failed items or recommend anyone to repair them. A sticking unit lock or broken sash lock is worth fixing beforehand. Rekeying between tenants is not a checklist item; lock rekeying is the owner's separate choice. This is general information, not legal advice.

Requesting service in Baltimore

Maryland Locksmith Pros takes service requests from homes, businesses and drivers in Baltimore. Include your neighborhood, say whether the problem is a street door, vestibule door, unit door or storefront, and mention if the building is in a city historic district. See car lockout, commercial locksmith or the Maryland page.