Violent Crime in the Mid-Atlantic

Decline of Violent Crime/Homicides Continued in 2014

Metropolitan Police Dept. of the District of Columbia (MPD) Patrol Car, Washington D.C.
Photo Credit: Joe Flood via Flickr

While the Mid-Atlantic is widely known as home to some of the most dangerous cities in the nation, overall the vast majority of the region's cities are relatively safe. Moreover, the overall violent crime rate, as well as the homicide rate specifically, have been in decline in most of the region's big cities recently, mirroring national trends. Most notable is New York City, NY, which had an amazingly low 328 homicides in 2014 (3.9 per 100,000 residents)-- an improvement over the already impressive 335 total homicides in 2013 (4.0/100,000) and a rate unheard of for a large, densely populated city in the U.S. The city with the next lowest murder rate was Jersey city with 23 total murders (9.0/100,000)--over the double the rate of New York. 

New York Police Dept. (NYPD) Officer and Patrol Car, New York City
Photo Credit: Jay Miller via Flickr

Topping the list of large cities in the Mid-Atlantic, in terms of homicide rates for 2014, was Baltimore, MD with 211 murders total (33.9/100,000) barely edging out Newark, NJ which had 93 total murders (33.4/100,000). The good news is that, as in New York City, the number of homicides for 2014 in both Baltimore and Newark decreased from their 2013 totals. Murder rates in Washington D.C. and Philadelphia for 2014 were pretty much unchanged compared to the previous year (105 total,16.2/100,000 and 248 total,16.0/100,000 respectively). Unfortunately, homicide rates in the Rust Belt cities of Pittsburgh and Buffalo increased significantly. Even more troubling is the rate of violent crime and homicide in some of the small cities of the Mid-Atlantic. 

NYPD Precinct Times Square, New York City
Photo Credit: Tony Fischer via Flickr

Generally speaking, small cities tend to have significantly lower crime rates than their larger peers, but three of the region's smaller cities buck this trend in a major way. Camden, NJ; Trenton, NJ; and Wilmington, DE all had murder rates significantly higher than any of the largest cities in the region. Camden, NJ, often labeled as the "most dangerous city in America", actually saw a whopping 42.1% reduction in total homicides for 2014 compared to 2013 (33 in 2014 compared to 57 in 2013), but still had the highest murder rate (42.7/100,000) of any Mid-Atlantic city large or small in 2014. Trenton (41.5/100,000) and Wilmington (39.2/100,000) weren't far behind though.

Below is a table listing the frequencies and rates of violent crime and homicide in the Mid-Atlantic's largest cities in 2013 and 2014:

City	Population	Violent crime	Rate /100,000	Murders 2013	Rate /100,000	Murders 2014	Rate /100,000
Baltimore, MD	622,671	8,725	1,401.2	233	37.4	211	33.9
Newark, NJ	278,246	3,516	1,263.6	112	40.3	93	33.4
Buffalo, NY	258,789	3,249	1,255.5	47	18.2	62	24.0
Pittsburgh, PA	307,632	2,259	734.3	45	14.6	71	23.1
Washington, D.C.	646,449	7,880	1,219.0	103	15.9	105	16.2
Philadelphia, PA	1,553,153	17,074	1,099.3	247	15.9	248	16.0
Jersey City, NJ	256,886	1,655	644.3	20	7.8	23	9.0
New York, NY	8,396,126	52,384	623.9	335	4.0	328	3.9

*The 2013 numbers are from 2013 edition of the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Report published last fall. Homicide totals for 2014 are from local media reports and the rates are based on 2013 population numbers

City Halls of the Mid-Atlantic

The region boasts a vast collection of architecturally impressive municipal headquarters 

The city hall is the principal administrative building of a city. As symbols of local government, city halls often have distinctive architecture, and many of these buildings have great historical significance, being among the oldest buildings in their cities. 

The Mid-Atlantic region, which is one of the oldest and most heavily populated regions in the nation, is home to a relatively large number of city halls. As you'll see further down this page, certain city halls in the Mid-Atlantic hold records for being largest, tallest, or oldest in the nation. 

Most city halls in the region were built in the late 1800's when urban areas began to see heavy population growth, and municipal government services were in high demand. City halls in this era were usually built in central locations and designed in some form of Revival Architecture which gave these buildings with a grand presence. In addition to their elaborate architectural, many city halls were the among the largest buildings in their respective cities, and some still are today.  

Below you can view photos and information of the most exquisite city halls located in the Mid-Atlantic's largest (incorporated) cities.

WASHINGTON D.C.

John A. Wilson Building
Photo Credit: Wally Gobetz via flickr

Year Constructed: 1904
Architectural Style: Beaux Arts
City Population (2013): 646,449
Notes: Originally named the "District Building," the John A. Wilson Building is the city's second city hall. The original city hall was constructed in 1820 in the Neoclassical Style and is currently home to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals


DELAWARE
Wilmington

Daniel L. Hermann Courthouse

Year Constructed: 1916
Architectural Style: Neoclassical Revival-Greek Revival
City Population (2013): 71,525
Notes: This building originally held a number of courts and municipal offices and was at one point informally named the "Public Building," receiving it's current name only a couple of decades ago. The city and county government offices eventually moved to the Louis L. Redding City-County Building (built 1977) and in 2002 the courts moved to the newly built Justice Center, leaving the building vacant. The building was eventually purchased by developers and converted to office space, which has been occupied by a prestigious law firm since 2009.

MARYLAND
Baltimore

Baltimore City Hall

Year Constructed: 1875

Architectural Style: Second Empire
City Population (2013): 622,104
Notes: Designed by George Aloysius Frederick, a 22-year old architect. The building cost $2,271,136 and took eight years to complete.

Annapolis

Annapolis City Hall

Year Constructed: 1764 (original structure), 1867 (current structure)
Architectural Style: Neoclassical-Georgian
City Population (2013): 38,722
Notes: The original structure on this site was known as the "Ball Room" and used as different points in history as a meeting place of the Maryland Assembly, local headquarters
of Union troops during the Civil War, a guard house, and a prison camp. While being used as a prison camp it burned down and a new city hall was built on the ruins using three of the exterior walls of the original building.

Libraries: Setting a new standard for avant-garde urban design?

Part I

Seattle Central Library, Seattle, WA
Photo Credit: Wikipedia/Steven Pavlov

This article is one part of a multi-segment series titled The Urban Transformation, which takes a look at how certain public institutions and private businesses are adapting to nascent urban environments

In many cities across the United States some of the most architecturally distinctive and impressive buildings are libraries. In the Mid-Atlantic the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress and the main branch building of the New York Public Library are two of the most iconic buildings and are part of the second and third largest libraries in the world respectively. Both buildings feature neoclassical architecture and were constructed around the same time in the 1890's. In a number of urban communities in the Mid-Atlantic, as well as around the country, there is a growing trend to build architecturally striking libraries, if not quite at the same enormous scale as the grand libraries of the late 19th century.

Libraries as Architectural Icons
The main purpose of libraries has always been to serve as physical (and now virtual) repositories of society's collective knowledge, history, and achievements in all fields from religion to science to culture. Therefore it is fitting that libraries visually reflect the content they contain and provide inspiration to visitors and passers-by.

Soaring to New Heights: The Growing Airports of the Mid-Atlantic

John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport in New York, NY
Image courtesy allairports.net

According to the FAA's report on the busiest airports in the US (by total passenger boardings) for 2012, eight of the 50 busiest airports in the nation are located in the Mid-Atlantic. Of these eight airports, three are in the New York metropolitan area, three are in the Baltimore-Washington metro area, one is in the Philadelphia metro area, and one is in the Pittsburgh metro area. The busiest American airport in 2012 was once again Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport with 45,798,809 enplanements. The busiest airport in the Mid-Atlantic (and 6th busiest nationally) was New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.