Former Baltimore Deputy Mayor Khalil Zaied tapped to lead Department of Public Works

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott has nominated a former city official to become Baltimore’s next director of the Department of Public Works, a move that would end nearly a year of interim leadership.

Khalil Zaied, Baltimore’s former deputy mayor of operations, has been tapped for the role, which he is set to begin next week. Zaied, who last served as the head of public works in Champaign, Illinois, must still be confirmed by the Baltimore City Council.

“With more than 25 years of engineering and public works experience in both the private sector and municipal government, including right here in Baltimore City, Mr. Zaied is absolutely the right public works leader for this time in our city’s history,” Scott, a Democrat, said in a news release Tuesday. “I am excited to welcome him back to Baltimore, and look forward to the difference he’ll make in our residents’ lives.”

Baltimore has been without a permanent director of public works since the departure of Jason Mitchell in July. Mitchell’s less than two-year tenure was a tumultuous one that made him a frequent target of criticism for some members of the Baltimore City Council. He faced an outbreak of E. coli in a section of the city’s drinking water system, a state takeover of one of the city’s wastewater treatment plants and mounting criticism from council members over reduced recycling collection. Two members of the council called for his resignation.

Since his exit, the Department of Public Works has been run on an interim basis by Richard Luna, the department’s former deputy director. Scott’s administration kept Mitchell on the payroll on a contract basis. In December, the Board of Estimates approved a six-month contract for Mitchell’s consulting services costing up to $72,000.

Zaied began his career in city government in an entry-level role in Baltimore and eventually served stints as director of the Department of Transportation and the Department of General Services. Before he left the city, he served five years as deputy mayor for operations under then-Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake where he oversaw several agencies including the Department of Public Works.

Since leaving Baltimore, Zaied has worked as vice present for special projects at KCI Technologies and in El Paso, Texas as deputy city manager for public works and transportation. He graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in mechanical engineering, according to Scott’s office.

“Like Mayor Scott, I am committed to building cleaner, healthier communities and utilizing every tool at the city’s disposal to reduce waste, improve air and water quality and provide Baltimoreans with dependable routine services,” Zaied said in Scott’s news release. “It is an honor of a lifetime to return to the city I love and lead the Department of Public Works into the future.”

Luna will return to his role as deputy director when Zaied joins the city staff, city officials said Tuesday. Luna was paid $214,500 annually. Mitchell made $245,000 in fiscal year 2021, the most recent year for which records are available. Zaied will earn a salary of $245,000.