BALTIMORE | Projects: proposed, under construction or approved

[30 Floors Up]

Nonprofit wants BRAC workers in Baltimore City

BALTIMORE - Live Baltimore wants to roll out the welcome mat.
Dave Carey, The Examiner
Read more by Dave Carey
Feb 7, 2007 3:00 AM (10 hrs ago)

A local nonprofit organization that promotes the benefits of city living, Live Baltimore has proposed an advertising deal in excess of $450,000. The deal will lead the city government in showing off Crab Town to the thousands of people being relocated as a result of the Base Realignment and Closure initiative, also called BRAC.

In Mayor Sheila Dixon’s State of the City address, she announced that Baltimore will make a multiyear commitment to Live Baltimore, and work with it to promote the city. “At the center of a thriving region, Baltimore has the capacity and the need to grow,” Dixon said. “I want to use every tool available to us to tell Baltimore’s story to the world.”

With the consolidation of military bases from Virginia and New Jersey to Fort Meade in Anne Arundel County and Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford County, an influx of new residents will migrate into the region. Live Baltimore hopes to make urban real estate an attractive housing option.

“Baltimore City has tremendous assets, and we just think there is an opportunity to market them to people,” Live Baltimore Board President Jon Laria said. “[We want to] provide a one-stop shop for people who are interested in living in Baltimore.”

Under the terms of the proposal, Live Baltimore will focus on expanding its staff and its advertising capabilities to present Baltimore City as a viable option for the relocated workers. The estimated $450,000 campaign cost covers just the first year of Live Baltimore’s work, with total BRAC relocation not slated for completion until 2011. Live Baltimore now receives about a quarter of its annual operating budget from the city government, Laria said.

“We need to do some hiring and programming, but we will start as soon as we can,” he said. “We are having ongoing meetings with the city, but we are continuing to work at it and listen to suggestions and put together the best possible program.”

Live Baltimore definitely will keep busy. Baltimore City housing statistics from Metropolitan Regional Information Systems Inc. for December show a 20 percent drop in property sales for the year, and a 15.5 percent drop in the volume of total dollars sold. With what experts describe as a tough housing market, local officials consider effective marketing as a key to success.

“I think educating them on what is here [in Maryland] as far as facilities and what they can do for their quality of life is really going to help and be important,” Howard County BRAC Office Executive Director Kenneth Menser said.

[30 Floors Up]

For downtown, a thriving 2006
$1.9 billion worth of development projects is most in many years; employers optimistic
By Jamie Smith Hopkins
Sun reporter
Originally published February 8, 2007

Development projects under way last year in downtown Baltimore totaled nearly $1.9 billion, more than the area has seen for years, according to a report scheduled for release today. Much of that - about $1.6 billion worth - is still under construction, the nonprofit Downtown Partnership of Baltimore said in its annual State of Downtown report.

The construction work includes five hotels and nearly 1,500 apartments, condominiums and townhouses, more activity than experts remember since a recession began in 1990 and definitely the most since the group issued its first comprehensive report in 2000.

On top of that, if developers' plans come to fruition, work will begin downtown on nearly $2.8 billion in construction between now and 2010, according to the report.

"The challenge is managing growth now," said Kirby Fowler, president of the Downtown Partnership. He said the expected increase in the number of workers and residents will create demand for better traffic management, public transit and schools.

A building boom doesn't always play out the way developers expect. The increase in downtown construction could increase vacancies downtown if it outpaces demand, said Richard P. Clinch, director of economic research with the University of Baltimore's Jacob France Institute. But the rise in activity is good news for the city, he said.

After years of construction largely involving hospitals and universities, a diverse mix of projects are under way downtown, Clinch said. He attributes that to regional change: Suburban land is harder to come by, and what remains costs more than it used to, making the city more competitive. "At some point, these things do become self-reinforcing," said Clinch, who was not involved with the Downtown Partnership report. "You're reaching a critical mass."

Downtown's economic health matters to the rest of the city and the region because it is a key employment center. About a quarter of Baltimore's 375,000 jobs are downtown, according to the Downtown Partnership, which includes the central business district, the Inner Harbor, the west side and Mount Vernon in its calculations.

The number of jobs downtown held essentially steady last year, the group said, dropping by about 225, a decrease that the group characterizes as statistically insignificant because of wiggle room in the estimate resulting from data-collection issues such as businesses that decline to participate.

The report finds that private-sector employers added nearly 1,300 jobs last year, but government cuts of 1,500 jobs overwhelmed that gain. The biggest job increase was in education services, closely followed by the accommodations and food-services sector.

More businesses opened downtown than closed or left. One of the newcomers, the software company Metastorm Inc., moved its headquarters, with about 40 people, from Columbia to new Inner Harbor office space in April and has been delighted by the variety of hotels and restaurants within walking distance. The company, which has about 160 employees overall, often has investors, customers and potential clients coming in for meetings.

"From a business perspective, being located in the heart of a city is a good thing," said Laura Mooney, Metastorm's senior director of corporate and product marketing. Downtown employers have high expectations for the near future. They told the Downtown Partnership that they plan to add more than 6,000 jobs this year. The group says that might be overly optimistic, but increases on that scale were posted in 2005, an unusually good year.

"Some huge projects started in '06," said Bob Aydukovic, vice president of economic development for the Downtown Partnership. "This is going to start playing into the employment rolls this year and into 2008."

Some of the construction is transforming old offices into hotels and residences, which is having a ripple effect. The group found that office vacancy rates dropped to about 11 percent at the end of last year, compared with 13 percent a year earlier, and that rents inched up. Class A space, the highest-quality offices, rented for $25 to $30 a square foot, up from $24 to $28 at the end of 2005.

In another apparent ripple effect, development is expanding, touching neighborhoods that were long ignored. In communities near downtown, nearly $900 million in construction projects were completed or under way last year, and about $3.7 billion worth were planned, according to the report. Among the projects is the huge mixed-use community planned by developer Patrick Turner in Westport, south of downtown. "The prosperity is spreading from the heart of downtown outward," Fowler said.

[30 Floors Up]

These are the type of announcements Baltimore is seeing more of. First Microsoft took a big chunk of space downtown, and now these guys are getting on the band wagon! The article above makes reference to a Columbia software company that moved downtown. We seem to be getting lots of software companies Downtown these days!!!

Oshyn, Inc. Celebrates Opening of Baltimore Office

LOS ANGELES, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- February 06, 2007 -- Oshyn, Inc., a leading U.S. technology implementation services company, announced today that it has opened an office in Baltimore, Maryland. Together with recent staff additions in the Northeastern U.S. and a new software development center in Quito, Ecuador, the Baltimore office represents a further step toward the firm's goal of providing high value and cost effective technology implementation services for clients across the U.S.

"We are pleased with the growth and operating performance of our Northeast U.S. operations and are excited about the opportunity to expand our capacity to deliver outstanding technology solutions to both new and existing customers in the Northeastern Corridor," said Travis Cole, Chief Operating Officer of Oshyn, Inc. "The opening up of a Baltimore office with such a fine group of technology professionals will also enable us to serve better those clients doing business in Baltimore, Washington, DC, New York, Boston and other cities in the Eastern U.S."

This is the second new office for Oshyn in the past eight months. In May the firm opened an office in Quito, Ecuador, which provides software development services in support of project teams servicing clients across the U.S. "Our clients have awarded us substantial opportunities that resulted in achieving critical mass in the Northeastern U.S., and we can foresee additional offices in the near future," said Diego Rebosio, CEO of Oshyn.

Founded in 2001, Oshyn provides teams of dedicated, professional and experienced individuals with expertise in various areas of technology delivery including software development, design, usability, and technology strategy and program management.

The new Mid-Atlantic office is located at the corner of Eastern Avenue and Albemarle Street in downtown Baltimore, a few blocks from the Inner Harbor and historic Fells Point. The office is a short taxi ride from BWI airport, and from Amtrak's Penn Station serving Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, and other major East coast cities. In the heart of Baltimore's "Little Italy" neighborhood, Oshyn will host an open house in early 2007. For more information please contact Oshyn's Chief Operating Officer, Travis Cole, at 888-483-1770.

About Oshyn, Inc.

Oshyn, Inc. is a privately held technology implementation services provider with offices in Los Angeles and Baltimore/Washington in the U.S., and in Quito, Ecuador. Oshyn strengthens the competitive position of clients by delivering measurable results through the balanced application of strategic technology. Founded in 2001, Oshyn provides teams of dedicated, professional and experienced individuals with expertise in various areas including technology, design, usability and business and program management. For more information on Oshyn, please visit: http://www.oshyn.com or call us at 888-483-1770.

[marc1969]

"The challenge is managing growth now," said Kirby Fowler, president of the Downtown Partnership.


How great is this quote: "The challenge is managing growth". What a nice change from a few years ago when the situation was how come we can't sell out the Harbor View Condos.

[pfd103]

Both articles made feel a bit more optimistic today. I've been worrying more and more since I bought my house in Federal Hill. There was that fear in the back of my head that the city would revert back to the way it was years ago. Every time I read about more and more development downtown it really does help me feel a bit more secure about the largest investment I've ever made (so far).

Here's a pic from the baltimore sun of the Zenith...

[30 Floors Up]

You'll not lose money in Federal Hill. The cardinal rule of real estate is "Location. Location. Location". Federal Hill has a great location. I do some of my best drinking in the bars down there. Christ, I've been going to Regie's since Regie owned it in the 80's. Turners, No Way Jose, and others are good too.

[30 Floors Up]

Downtown Baltimore has ‘come of age’

Kate Prahlad, The Examiner

BALTIMORE - Baltimore City has just hit its stride.

During the next six years, the city should look younger, get richer and run more smoothly.

Outlook 2012, a study commissioned by the Downtown Partnership, conducted studies and trend forecasts of Baltimore City’s demographics, housing and economics — and painted a rosy picture for downtown’s future. “Downtown Baltimore has come of age,” said Sister Helen Amos, chairwoman of the board of trustees for Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, at Thursday’s release of the report. “Everything that goes up will rest a bit, and then go up again.”

And go up it will.

The study said housing demand will produce 7,430 new residential units, including 2,980 multi-family rentals, 2,200 multi-family units available for sale and 2,250 single-family town houses. Occupants of those houses will be young, single and highly educated, based on a survey of new downtown residents, according to the Outlook 2012 study.

Forty-eight percent were between 25 and 34 years old, 49 percent were single, and 94 percent hold a bachelor’s degree or more. “We need to enhance and balance what we do,” Mayor Sheila Dixon said. “And the key to that is in the people of the city.”

For newcomers, there may be more than 17,000 new jobs in Baltimore City, which should increase income opportunities annually by nearly $1 billion and business sales by $2.2 billion, annually. “Downtown is where we put things we cherish the most,” International Downtown Association President David Feehan said.

Baltimore City has the elements to a great downtown, such as private investment, urban design and a clean, friendly environment, Feehan said. “There’s more you can do, but that’s true for every city,” he said.

[pfd103]

This one really jumped out at me...

The numbers say Greater Baltimore is on the move
CHRISTIAN S. JOHANSSON
Special to The Daily Record
February 8, 2007 6:27 PM
The past few years have been an exciting time to be in economic development in Greater Baltimore. Our work force continues to grow and our community is behind the investments in knowledge industries such as health care and technology. The Baltimore region is poised to raise its profile on the national stage, becoming a key destination for the most talented workers and dynamic companies.

Our numbers from this past year are telling the story. Maryland’s economy is growing and vibrant, with 36,400 new jobs added in 2006, according to Department of Labor statistics.

One of the most compelling stories is that Baltimore gained 400 jobs in 2006. This is the city’s first annual job gain since 2000 and it means people are coming back into Baltimore to work. Part of this is the renewed success of Baltimore’s tourism industry. Moody’s Precis Metro Report shows that leisure and hospitality employment has increased 4.2 percent since 2005.

Our region is a driving factor in Maryland’s economy. The increase of the labor force in the Baltimore area exceeded the entire state’s growth in 2006. The Baltimore region increased its labor force by 3.5 percent compared to a 1 percent increase statewide.

Due to the strength of our labor force, the most recent four-year data shows that the per-capita income in Greater Baltimore increased 17 percent — more than the 16 percent across Maryland and the 11 percent growth nationwide. Average earnings per job in the region have grown by 19 percent since 2000.

The work force in Greater Baltimore is shifting toward knowledge workers in the health care and technology sectors. While the overall employment growth in Greater Baltimore was 3.5 percent in the most recent four-year data, knowledge worker sectors have been seeing considerably higher growth. Employment in professional and technical services has grown 8 percent and educational services have grown 13 percent over that period.

Twenty of the top 25 employers in the Baltimore region are either in the fields of health care or technology. Employment in Greater Baltimore is dominated by employers such as Fort Meade, the Johns Hopkins University and Health System, the National Security Agency, Aberdeen Proving Ground, the University of Maryland Medical Systems, MedStar Health, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin.

With initiatives related to the military base realignment and closure process and with the bio and tech parks under way at Johns Hopkins, the University of Maryland Baltimore, and the University of Maryland Baltimore County, our region is investing in our strengths and ensuring future success.

As these sectors grow, they continue to lower the unemployment rate. Unemployment in the region has been steadily decreasing since 2003, with the 2006 number at 4.2 percent — below the national average of 4.6 percent. Of the seven jurisdictions in the region, four had less than 4 percent unemployment: Howard County, 2.8 percent; Carroll County, 3.0 percent; Anne Arundel County, 3.4 percent; and Harford County, 3.6 percent. Baltimore County stood at exactly 4 percent.

With growing employment in industry sectors that demand highly educated workers and unemployment continually decreasing, it is of the utmost importance to have an education system that can dependably fill the pipeline with new talent. Greater Baltimore is already well known for our excellent universities and community colleges, but our public schools have not always received the same accolades.

It may come as a surprise to you that Expansion Management Magazine has ranked Greater Baltimore third out of all the major metropolitan areas in the United States for our public school districts. We have been fighting the negative perception of our public schools for decades and can now see that the work of our community to provide a better public education is being recognized.

This education ranking has put the Baltimore region ahead of such metro areas as Minneapolis-St. Paul, Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston and Seattle, to name a few. These areas are known for their strong knowledge worker economies, and we compete against them in attracting new business.

The facts and statistics tell the story of a region on the move. Greater Baltimore is positioned for growth and prosperity in knowledge industries such as health care and technology. The region’s strengths and potential will soon be national news

[pfd103]

Va. REIT acquires Centerpoint development
Baltimore Business Journal - 5:13 PM EST Thursday, February 8, 2007by Daniel J. SernovitzStaff
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An Alexandria, Va.-based real estate investment trust has acquired the Centerpoint development on Baltimore's west side for $78.5 million, an official with the company said Thursday.

Avalon Bay Communities Inc. (NYSE: AVB), a publicly held company which bought a pair of properties in Columbia last year, is making its first foray into the Baltimore market with the Centerpoint deal. It completed the deal with Bank of America in January.


The $85 million, mixed-use Centerpoint project takes up an entire city block starting from the intersection of Howard and Fayette streets and extending to Eutaw and Baltimore streets. The project includes 17 properties that include nearly 60,000 square feet of retail space, 370 housing units and 450 parking spaces, according to the Maryland Department of General Services.

John Christie, Avalon Bay's investor relations director, said the company set its sights on the residential and retail development as an opportunity to take part in Baltimore's ongoing revitalization efforts.

Christie said he believes the west side in particular is gaining momentum as the city's efforts and those of the Baltimore Development Corp. help to generate interest in redevelopment projects such as Centerpoint.

"It looks like a neighborhood that's gentrifying and we saw an opportunity to jump in," Christie said. "You can't necessarily time it, but you get a pretty good sense of where the direction of growth is."

Avalon Bay bought the Centerpoint project from Bank of America, which in November 2006 celebrated the completion of its combined redevelopment project with the Harold A. Dawson Co. Inc. of Atlanta, Ga.

Mike Muldowney, a broker with CB Richard Ellis in Baltimore, represented Bank of America in the deal, which he said gives validation to the city's efforts to revitalize the area. Muldowney said he believes projects like Centerpoint have helped Baltimore reverse the trend of net population losses over the past several years.

"It's a validation of the renaissance of the west side, it truly is," Muldowney said. "To now see that the vision of the Centerpoint and Howard Dawson people have now brought a Fortune 500 company to Baltimore is significant."

Last June the Maryland Board of Public Works approved a $7.4 million grant to offset the costs the city incurred during the acquisition of the west side properties, which the city sold to Bank of America in June 2002 for $1 million. Centerpoint's completion marked $1 billion in completed revitalization projects on the city's west side area, which has included:
The 2003 reopening of the Hippodrome Theatre, at a cost of $33 million, which officials estimate has spurred $750 million in private investment in the area;
More than $10 million in renovations to the Lexington Market;
An infusion of new stores and restaurants such as Maggie Moore's Irish Pub & Restaurant.
The University of Maryland, Baltimore and the University of Maryland Medical Center have also launched new building projects over the past several years, including new law and dental school buildings, and both have significant new projects in the planning stages. The medical center is planning to build a $328 million outpatient care building in the area, and the university is working o a plan to build a $27 million headquarters for its administrators.

Earlier this week, the BDC said it is seeking proposals for several parcels surround St. James Place, the site of a $7.5 million redevelopment project being launched by Renaissance Place LLC. Construction has begun at the site, where developers Wendy Blair and Derrick McDaniels are planning to create 25 market-rate rental units, 1,910 square feet of retail space and 44 parking spaces.


Christie declined to say what the vacancy rate for the Centerpoint is. Avalon Bay is not planning any significant work at the development, but Christie said he hopes to find tenants for some of the vacant retail spaces along the ground floor of the project.

During the fourth quarter of 2006, Avalon Bay bought the 215-unit Southgate Crossing community in Columbia for about $35.9 million. Through its Avalon Bay Value Added Fund LP, the company also acquired the 156-unit Cedar Valley community, also in Columbia, for $20.7 million.

Representatives from Bank of America could not immediately be reached for comment.

[Ktulured55]

Originally Posted by StevenW

The new 300 East Pratt Street design as seen on Design Collective website.





It looks to be in the mid 500 ft. height range.
The design is ok. IMO.

50 stories and only mid 500 range? I hope the model isn't exact. I thought this one would hit 600 ft.

Wada, nice to see you join us and speak of our great city!!! Welcome over here!! All of the development is great. Since my department moved downtown in August and I work in the city, I kind of wish I lived in the city too. Maybe I can move down there sometime. I would love to have that 'walking' commute to work. I hope 10 IH gets moving soon. All of these new projects our awesome, but a new tallest as we shall get will get our city more noticed nationally. Very exciting. If I get enough money from now, I would not mind trying to get one of the condos in 10IH. I shall wait and see.



All of the pics and info is great guys!!!

[jason111]

If 10 IH and 300 Pratt St. both go up then 300 Pratt will be second tallest building in Baltmore right? If this is true then Legg Mason will quickly go from being the tallest to the third tallest.

[StevenW]

Here's an e-mail I got a few days ago I thought I'd share:

Steve, in response to your inquiry – here are some brief updates:



300 E Pratt Street – Development team is is still in the exploratory stages of the plan, but it would be a mixed use tower at approximately 600 feet, 50+ stories. It would entail ground floor retail, garage parking, a hotel and condo tower. They hope to advance this project to the design review stage in the coming months.



One Light Street – Still searching for a deal, but interest is certainly heating up. No plan on the table as of now.



CityScape – Developer was granted an extension to advance the project. Still a mixed use tower with apartments, parking and retail. No news on the size.



Cordish tower - ???



10 Inner Harbor – again, a planned mixed use tower at somewhere in the 700’ vicinity, 60+ stories. Developer is analyzing an office component in addition to the hotel, retail, parking and condo components.



4 Seasons – Considering an office component addition. Design could change depending on the outcome. Stay tuned…



Naing’s Projects – he has gone through a design competition and is process of selecting an architect to advance the project. Look for prelims in the summer. Project not likely to start until 08 or 09.



Bob Aydukovic
Vice President - Economic Development

Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, Inc.

T 410-244-1030

D 410-528-7718

F 410-234-2733

baydukovic@dpob.org

GoDowntownBaltimore.com

[MasonsInquiries]

Originally Posted by pfd103

Last June the Maryland Board of Public Works approved a $7.4 million grant to offset the costs the city incurred during the acquisition of the west side properties, which the city sold to Bank of America in June 2002 for $1 million. Centerpoint's completion marked $1 billion in completed revitalization projects on the city's west side area, which has included:
The 2003 reopening of the Hippodrome Theatre, at a cost of $33 million, which officials estimate has spurred $750 million in private investment in the area;
More than $10 million in renovations to the Lexington Market;
An infusion of new stores and restaurants such as Maggie Moore's Irish Pub & Restaurant.
The University of Maryland, Baltimore and the University of Maryland Medical Center have also launched new building projects over the past several years, including new law and dental school buildings, and both have significant new projects in the planning stages. The medical center is planning to build a $328 million outpatient care building in the area, and the university is working o a plan to build a $27 million headquarters for its administrators.

Earlier this week, the BDC said it is seeking proposals for several parcels surround St. James Place, the site of a $7.5 million redevelopment project being launched by Renaissance Place LLC. Construction has begun at the site, where developers Wendy Blair and Derrick McDaniels are planning to create 25 market-rate rental units, 1,910 square feet of retail space and 44 parking spaces.

wow, the atmosphere downtown is really going to change significantly in the next 2-3 years. i can't wait!

[StevenW]

BCCC ponders sale of campus
College seeks 'bang for buck' as it examines selling its downtown site
By Jill Rosen
Sun reporter
Originally published February 11, 2007
In a move that could remake a key leg of downtown, Baltimore City Community College is considering putting its Inner Harbor campus on the market.

Faced with cramped, aging buildings, a desire to expand and a shortage of money, the school's leaders are investigating whether the answer to those problems lies in selling the valuable Lombard Street site. They've convened a real estate task force and hope to soon hire a consultant to help them realize the property's "fullest commercial potential."

"We're trying to figure out how to get the biggest bang for the buck, quite frankly," said Garland O. Williamson, chairman of BCCC's board of trustees. "We know we need to be creative."

BCCC's tiny Inner Harbor campus is little more than a building and a lawn. But development experts can't say enough about its possible value - sitting right on Lombard Street only a block from the water and steps from some of downtown's top attractions.

"If they weren't there, it would be an interesting piece of real estate," Baltimore Development Corp. President M.J. "Jay" Brodie said. "But that's a decision they have to come to themselves."

This is not the first time BCCC has weighed the benefits of its downtown location - an ideal site for the school's work force training mission - against the property's market value.

A decade ago, the General Assembly allowed the school to shop its Lockwood Building site on Pratt Street. The college ended up leasing the prominent property to developers who built Lockwood Place, a shopping center that only now is taking off with tenants, including Best Buy, Filene's Basement and some chain restaurants.

The arrangement brings the college more than $1 million a year in rent - money that helps pay for programs and faculty.

BCCC's top officials, including new President Carolane Williams and Williamson, say that as the school celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, it's time to ask some tough questions - primarily how the school can improve itself.

"If we want to become a world-class institution, we have to have a world-class facility," Williamson said. "We don't have that right now, but we have lots of potential."

With the success of Lockwood Place on their minds, the officials suspect a similar deal could help the school get closer to its goal. Specifically, such an arrangement could finance the construction of new class buildings either downtown or elsewhere in Baltimore.

"We want to think about a project that can produce the same kind of benefit [as Lockwood Place] and maybe even more," Williamson said.

The college, its administrators say, is bursting at the seams. Its main campus in Liberty Heights is built out. And the downtown branch is a problem-laden building that sits smack in the middle of one of the city's most desirable areas.

The harbor campus' main feature is the Bard Building, a forgettable dark-brick structure built in 1977 that's afflicted by mold, water damage, an unpredictable elevator system and, as Williamson puts it, "not the most efficient design to provide educational services."

Beyond the $10 million in needed repairs, the Bard is also, many point out, something less than attractive.

In 2005 while touring Baltimore, urban design critic James Howard Kunstler had nothing good to say about either the Bard Building or the Holocaust Memorial next door - a site the college also owns and leases to the Baltimore Jewish Council.

The memorial he deemed "ugly and brutal." And that was complimentary compared to his view of the Bard: A "truly revolting" building, a "monstrosity."

"This is the most baleful, despotic building I've ever seen in my life," Kunstler concluded.

Downtown Partnership President Kirby Fowler politely says that Bard's design has "significant drawbacks, particularly from a street-level perspective." Though he doesn't relish the idea of the college's leaving the city center, like other downtown boosters, Fowler thinks the city can make better use of the site.

Though the college has agreed to a long-term lease for the grassy memorial site, Williamson said that if a development opportunity came along for it, he'd want to sit down with the Jewish Council and try to work out a deal.

"We want to ensure that BCCC stays downtown because it brings a lot of students as well as energy," Fowler said. "Whether BCCC needs to be on its current site or not is another question."

The college's leaders say they've made no decision about staying downtown.


"Our mission is very flexible," says Katrina R. Riddick, a trustee who's overseeing the real estate task force.

Williamson adds: "It's not a matter of being over here or over there - we can be anywhere in the city."

Though the college values being downtown, with its public transportation options for commuter students and variety of hands-on job-training opportunities, its leaders like the idea of moving to a struggling part of town to help revitalize it. The college has approached city officials to ask about vacant, city-owned sites, particularly schools.

Douglas McCoach, the city's new planning director, said the college is in a position to choose from any number of "very exciting opportunities." He thinks the Lombard Street site could be right for anything from an entertainment venue - to blend in with the Power Plant Live venues next door - to something residential, joining the condominiums rising just behind it on Water Street.

Maybe, he said, the school could even stay and share the site with something new.

"It's not surprising that this is looking like a development potential," McCoach said. "They're sitting on a very valuable piece of property."

Development consultant Al Barry, who said he's not competing for the job to advise the college, suggests that the college think about a project that would include a number of uses - a popular building trend that city officials favor.

To make the most money, Barry said, the school would have to leave the site.

Baltimore developer David Cordish, who developed the Power Plant and bid unsuccessfully for BCCC's Lockwood site, has an obvious interest in the school's real estate plans.

"Clearly the Baltimore City Community College would benefit from a different location, and the city would benefit from a more intense development of the community college building," he said. "The building is functionally and physically obsolete and will take a fortune to rehabilitate. ... The money would be better spent on a new facility."

David H. Hillman, who has developed a number of downtown apartment buildings, said he thinks the college should find someone to develop a high-rise on its site and then negotiate to use a number of floors in the new building for the college.

As for the rest of the building, he thinks an office or a hotel would blend well with the area.

"My bet would be a hotel. You might struggle for a little while, but with the office development on that end of town, and being so close to Power Plant Live, I think a moderate-priced hotel would be the right thing," he said. "And the college could work out some deal for conference facilities and things like that."

BCCC officials say they are going to spend the next few months studying possibilities and making some serious decisions. Do they move? If so, where? And if they do, what exactly would wring the most value from the downtown site?

"We haven't made up our mind about anything," Williamson said. "We haven't taken anything off the table, and we haven't put anything on the table."

jill.rosen@baltsun.com

[PeterSmith]

^^ Definitely an interesting article. It seems plans for that site have been moving quickly.

With all the articles that have been posted recently, it almost feels like we're at the beginning of a real estate boom rather than in a cooling market.

[StevenW]

Originally Posted by PeterSmith

^^ Definitely an interesting article. It seems plans for that site have been moving quickly.

With all the articles that have been posted recently, it almost feels like we're at the beginning of a real estate boom rather than in a cooling market.

Exactly.

BTW, what's going on with skyscrapercity lately?
I can't get to the site.

[PeterSmith]

^^ Me neither. It's been down for almost a full day, and it's been having problems almost daily. We finally get a Baltimore forum, but not we can't get to it

[StevenW]

Baltimore City Community College's Lombard Street campus is in the middle of increasingly valuable real estate, which along with unsuitable building conditions, is making officials consider a sale.
(Sun photo by Amy Davis)
Feb 6, 2007

[StevenW]

Builder craves city's action
Baltimore Business Journal - February 9, 2007by Daniel J. SernovitzStaff


Turner Construction Co. wants to get closer to the action, so it's planning to relocate its regional offices from Columbia to Baltimore City, company spokeswoman Karen Sweeney said.

"I think that it's certainly a hub of activity, and having all the amenities and services that are right there in Baltimore is certainly attractive," she said.

[StevenW]

H&S Properties buys land for Harbor Point
Baltimore Business Journal - February 9, 2007by Daniel J. SernovitzStaff


H&S Properties Development Corp. has paid $7.3 million for a sliver of the former Allied Signal chrome plant along Baltimore's Inner Harbor, signaling the developer is ready to begin construction of the long-awaited, $750 million project.

While H&S Properties and partner Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse Inc. are prepared to proceed with offices, condominiums, parking garages and a hotel that are expected to comprise Harbor Point, complicated environmental problems could hinder the pace and cost of development.