Majority of Baltimore’s Riot-Damaged Businesses Have Reopened

Baltimore’s economic development agency says 93 percent of the businesses damaged by rioting, looting and arson in April have reopened.

The Baltimore Development Corp. said in a statement on Nov. 24 that just over 400 businesses suffered property damage or inventory losses during unrest following the death of Freddie Gray.

The quasi-public agency says it awarded $206,000 in grants to 72 businesses. It also made 30 zero-interest loans totaling $660,000.

Those numbers bring the total riot-related costs to at least $33.2 million. That includes a state estimate of $19.4 million for emergency protective measures and public-property damage, plus $12.9 million in paid insurance claims.

Gray was a 25-year-old black man who died from injuries he suffered in police custody after he was arrested on a charge of carrying an illegal switchblade knife.