VERN'S LOCK & KEY

I had an iron security door which needed keys for the old locks. The landlord and I attempted to get the locks off so we could go to Home Depot or some other "cheap" place to get a new set of locks. In the process of taking off the locks, we drilled through one of the old locks making it unusable. After visits to several big box stores and several independent hardware stores to find a replacement, I realized that a visit to a local locksmith was in order.In looking up locksmiths, there were few that had a fixed location in which we could purchase goods. After several tries, one roving smith recommended Vern's which I tried. When I got to the building on Eastern Avenue, there was a sign for Vern's Locksmith with an arrow pointing to the back of the building and a telephone number. Behind the building is a set of shops which were protected by an iron fence. There were no signs on any of the shops. I called the telephone number and Vern came out to meet me and show me to his shop. The shop was a storage facility and it looked as it hadn't been cleaned in several years. This is not a place to go for the folks expecting a nice clean locksmith store. Yet he knew where all the parts were.Vern provided me with two new locks and the keys to go with them. He was also able find a couple of set screws that I had damaged when attempting to get the locks off the doors. Vern usually works on the road working out of his truck. I learned it's much better to call ahead if you have a need to go to a shop.The reason I scored Vern low on the professionalism was because of some comments he made about "illegals" moving into Baltimore and pushing everyone out. As I'm in a racially diverse neighborhood and in a mixed race relationship, I found it a bit offensive, I challenged him on it, but decided not to push to hard. Others might find it offensive as well. Next time, I'll go with a cup of coffee and we'll have a good discussion.