Was Baltimore’s proposed land bank the victim of political infighting? The bill’s sponsor says yes.

A proposal to create a land bank to help dispose of Baltimore’s thousands of vacant properties fell victim to political forces rather than opposition to the idea, the bill’s sponsor said this week. Councilwoman Odette Ramos, a Democrat and the bill’s primary backer, said the decisive vote taken last week against her proposal to create a quasi-governmental agency to acquire and sell vacant properties appeared to be personal in nature rather than substantive.