Downtown : Development News

Workers in Hunt Valley will soon have another place to grab some grub.
 
Nalley Fresh, a fast-casual restaurant that serves salads, wraps, rice bowls, and burritos at its downtown location, plans to expand to Hunt Valley and additional locations in the area, says owner Greg Nalley.
 
The 3,000-sqaure-foot, 60-seat restaurant will open Sept. 1 in the Schilling Green II complex currently under construction at 225 Schilling Circle near the Hunt Valley Towne Centre. Nalley will employ at least nine employees at the new location.
 
Nalley says he believes that Hunt Valley is becoming a hot commodity for businesses planning to open and relocate and he hopes to serve the growing community of workers in the area.
 
The restaurant's first location on the ground floor of the Sun Trust building on East Baltimore Street downtown opened last March. The response to the location has been overwhelming, Nalley says.
 
In addition to the Hunt Valley expansion, Nalley says there is room to expand his business and he is currently considering several sites for additional locations.
 
Prior to starting Nalley Fresh, Nalley worked as the Executive Chef for the Maryland Jockey Club for close to 10 years. In 2002, he opened Harvest Table in Locust Point. He sold the business and later opened Nalley Fresh.
 
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, [email protected]
Source: Greg Nalley, owner of Nalley Fresh

Baltimore’s Intercontinental Harbor Court Hotel will be changing flags to Royal Sonesta later this month.
 
Starting May 31, the hotel at 550 Light St. will be known as the Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore, according to hotel owner Hospitality Properties Trust.
 
The Newton, Mass., real estate investment trust has identified 40 hotels in its portfolio that it wants to either sell or rebrand under the Royal Sonesta flag, says Ken Bonang, the company’s vice president of investor relations. He couldn’t say whether some of those hotels will include other properties in Maryland.

Boston's Sonesta International Hotels Corp. is taking over management of the downtown Baltimore property. Hospitality Properties Trust has no plans to sell the 196-room hotel, which Bonang says will remain an upscale property. 
 
Hospitality Properties Trust bought the Harbor Court Hotel in 2006 for $78 million and gave it a $4 million facelift. It was Baltimore’s only five-star property until the Four Seasons Hotel Baltimore opened last year. 

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Ken Bonang, Hospitality Properties Trust 

Shoppers in the Inner Harbor will soon be able to satisfy their sweet tooth with treats like old school candy and chocolate shaped like crabs.
 
The Best of Luck Candy & Gifts, a specialty nostalgia candy and gift shop, will relocate May 1 from Harbor East to a larger location at 601 E. Pratt St. in the Power Plant entertainment complex, says owner Alexis "Lucky" Thompson.
 
In the new, approximately 900-square-foot location, the business will have double the space and plans to add a coffee bar in addition to new candies, gifts, custom gift baskets, and additional room for events such as birthday parties. Thompson also plans to offer more Baltimore-themed candy and gifts.
 
Thompson expects the new location will receive great visibility from both foot and car traffic.
 
Raised in Baltimore, Thompson says she always dreamed of owning a candy shop. She recently moved back to Baltimore with her husband after working in marketing in New York. The store opened at its previous location on 612 S. Exeter St. last October.
 
The store underwent a month of remodeling as part of a relaunching of the store's brand.
 
While the company has no plans for further expansion in the near future, they do plan to do more events such as bachelorette parties and showers. The company also recently added four new employees for the new shop, Thompson says.
 
Source: Alexis "Lucky" Thompson, owner of The Best of Luck Candy & Gifts
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, [email protected]
 
 

Just in time for baseball season, Pratt Street Ale House is ready to unveil its three-story expansion.
 
A new addition to Pratt Street Ale House will open this week leading into the Baltimore Oriole's season opener April 6. The ale house is located downtown, across the street from the convention center.
 
After three months of renovations, Pratt Street Ale House will open two new full-service bars adjoining their existing location. The 5,800-square-foot addition also allows the company to reserve space for private parties and events without sacrificing floor space for walk-up customers, says Co-owner Justin Dvorkin.
 
The renovations were timed to coincide with the opening of the Orioles season and are a key part of the company's future growth, Dvorkin says.
 
The new space will serve as an extension of Pratt Street Ale House and will offer the same menu. A banquet menu will be offered for private parties who book the location in advance, Dvorkin says.
 
Additionally, the ale house has been actively hiring and training 15 new employees for its opening.
 
Oliver Breweries, which brews beer onsite for Pratt Street Ale House, opened at the restaurant location in 1993 with the aim to create authentic English ales.
 
Earlier this year, Oliver Breweries was involved with a local brewing cooperative that plans to open a large-scale brewery in Waverly. The company is no longer involved with the project however, and plans to continue expanding brewing with their own onsite equipment, Dvorkin says.
 
Pratt Street Ale House is located at 206 W. Pratt St. 
 
Source: Justin Dvorkin, co-owner of Pratt Street Ale House
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, [email protected]
 

David and Dad's, a breakfast and lunch cafe and carryout, plans to add a new downtown location in May.
 
Located at 100 E. Pratt St., the new 2,100-square-foot location, Cafe Express, will feature a similar concept to David & Dad's.  The cafe hopes to provide fast-food speed and prices, with restaurant quality food and service, says owner David Cangialosi.
 
The space will undergo a renovation upwards of $200,000 to be paid for by the landlord, Cangialosi says.
 
The location was previously occupied by an Italian deli that closed and the landlord needed the space filled as quickly as possible, Cangialosi says.
 
Cangialosi says hopes to keep his customer base and thinks the restaurant will be successful in the new location. He plans to have between six and eight people running the cafe.
 
The cafe offers a revolving menu of sandwiches, salads, paninis and other lunch specials.

The company currently has a main location at 334 N. Charles, a smaller express cafe at 1 N. Charles, and a coffee shop inside the Southeast Anchor Branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library.
 
Cangialosi always wanted his own business. He bought his first cafe more than 18 years ago after working for Mrs. Field's Cookies. When Cangialosi decided to expand, his father invested in the business, and Cangialosi named the cafe in part to thank to his father. 

Source: David Cangialosi, owner of David and Dad's
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, [email protected]

 Roane’s Earth Wellness  -- a one-stop shop for herbs, vitamins, supplements and yoga studio -- is coming to downtown Baltimore.

The official opening is Saturday May 5 at 333 North Charles Street, in the Women’s Industrial Exchange Building.
 
Owner NeAnna Roane McLean is a fourth generation herbalist, having learned the field from her father. When he retired, McLean says she “inherited” his clients. “People kept calling me at all hours about their migraines and other health concerns,” she says.
 
McLean advertises the shop as providing “wellness experiences.” In keeping with that mission, she will offer consultations on holistic nutrition.
 
All products in the shop are organic. Vitamins and supplements are vegan-certified. Cosmetics have no parabens or sulfates and have not been tested on animals. Candles, spices and household cleaners are also offered.
 
McLean is a certified yoga instructor who is chair of the yoga program for the Owings Mills Recreation and Parks Council. She specializes in restorative yoga, and expects to hire additional yoga instructors depending on the type of yoga they teach and class demand. Besides yoga, the shop may have somatic therapy-pain management and reflexology.
 
McLean is hiring people to work in the shop area. She declined to provide financial information.
 
Source: NeAnna Roane McLean, owner of Roane’s Earth Wellness
Writer: Barbara Pash

Satisfying your caffeine craving in Baltimore's downtown is about to get a little easier.
 
While an exact date has not been announced, a company spokesperson says that Starbucks plans to open a location at 100 E. Pratt St. location sometime later this month. The address is also the corporate headquarters of T. Rowe Price Group Inc. and Italian restaurant Brio Tuscan Grille, which opened this month.

It will be the second standalone Starbucks in downtown. There's another Starbucks on the west side at 1 E. Eutaw St. On the other side of the city, there's a Starbucks in Harbor East next to Landmark Theatres and one in Canton's Can Company. 

Starbucks' Ellicott City location on Baltimore National Pike, has just been remodeled and given an expanded cafe menu, says a spokesperson. The renovations include new chairs, floors and coffee counter. 
 
The expansion is a marked shift for the Seattle coffee giant, which closed 600 stores around the country several years ago during the recession, including two downtown locations on Charles Street and at Harborplace. It also closed a store in Belvedere Square. 
 
In all, Starbucks currently has more than 50 stores in the Baltimore area including stores in Charles Village and Mount Washington.

Source: Starbucks spokesperson
Writer: Alexandra Wilding

Baltimore's neighborhoods will have a staring role in next month's National Main Streets Conference, as Charm City becomes the first city to host the conference twice. The yearly conference was last held in Baltimore in 2005.
 
Conference organizers hope to send a message to attendees that small businesses and main streets across the country are thriving and local development is on the rise. The conference, titled "Rediscover Main Street,” will be held April 1-4 at the Baltimore Hilton.
 
Baltimore's small-scale development, from urban gardens to craft brewing, will be featured throughout the conference. Organizers plan to use the city as a "living laboratory" for what makes successful neighborhoods, says Mary de la Fe, program manager for conferences at the National Trust Main Street Center.
 
Baltimore has been successful in creating and sustaining innovative practices within neighborhood economic development and the hope of the conference is to highlight some of the success that Baltimore has had, de la Fe says.
 
"We really try to make sure we're showcasing the city, the preservation efforts and the uniqueness of the city," de la Fe says.
 
The conference, an initiative of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, will be co-hosted by Baltimore Main Streets, part of the Baltimore Development Corporation.  Currently, 10 main streets exist within Baltimore including the Fells Point and Hamilton-Lauraville Main Streets.
 
The main street model was developed in the 1980s as an approach to economic revitalization and has since been implemented in over 1500 communities across the nation. The approach focuses a combination of historic preservation, supporting and recruiting businesses, organizing a volunteer base, and neighborhood promotion.
 
Around 1,300 professionals who work in local economic development are expected to attend the conference that will provide educational tours and workshops to help managers of main street programs maintain or create vibrant, sustainable downtowns.
 
Amy Cortese, journalist and author of "Locavesting: The Revolution in Local Investing and How to Profit from It," will provide the keynote address.
 
While the majority of the conference is open to registered participants only, a free overview of the main street approach will be held Sunday, April 1, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m at the Baltimore Hilton and is open to the public. 

Source: Mary de la Fe, program manager for conferences at the National Trust Main Street Center.
Writer: Alexandra Wilding

A pair of local entrepreneurs hopes a planned cultural arts center will bring new economic vitality to the Howard Street corridor.
 
Renwick Bass and his business partner, Dr. Larry Gaston, plan to open a 13,500-square-foot cultural center and banquet hall in a former bank building at the intersection of Howard and W. Mulberry Streets near downtown Baltimore. And three more could open in other parts of the city. 
 
The pair plans to invest around $750,000 to turn the former Liberty Savings and Loan into a youth development and cultural arts center offering classes in the performing and fine arts. The pair also hope to partner with local theater groups, musicians, and dancers to host performances at the space. Shows will be accompanied by gourmet food catered by local businesses as well as the culinary arts program at Stratford University, the former Baltimore International College. Art classes for seniors are also in the works, Bass says. 

The pair plan to finance the center without outside funds, but are planning to fundraise and possibly partner with businesses to cover operating costs until the centers become profitable, Bass says. 

The Downtown Cultural Arts Center is one of four cultural centers planned for Baltimore. Other center locations will be based on interest and need in the local community and locations have not yet been established, but Bass hopes to open additional centers in  West, East, and Southeast Baltimore.  
 
Renovations on the property are currently underway with a planned completion date in the next two weeks, but the property still needs approval from the city's zoning appeals board before opening.
 
Some of the renovations to the building include general cosmetic and electrical work, adding a dance floor and a stage, and installing a music production studio. Hiring for the center is currently underway, as Bass plays to hire 15 instructors to teach creative and performing arts classes.
 
A Baltimore native, Bass has honed his skills mentoring youth over the past 25 years. In 2006, Bass, along with two partners, founded a mentoring program, Blueprints for Youth, Inc. that has operated within the Baltimore City Public Schools.
 
While not an artist himself, Bass encouraged his daughter to participate in the arts and saw an increased sense of focus. He became convinced that youth have a better chance of being successful if they participate in the arts.
 
Additionally, Bass observed a disparity in communities where families don't have the resources to send their children to expensive arts programs. One of the goals of the center is to make classes affordable for parents to send their children to get arts enrichment, Bass says.
 
Bass hopes that The Downtown Arts and Cultural Center is just the first part of major renovations and an influx of new businesses to Howard Street and in a section of the city that struggles with vacancy.
 
Bass and Gaston also own and operate The Shops at Charles and North a retail location at 23 E. North Ave.
 
Bass believes that their business made a positive contribution to businesses along North Avenue, helping to attract additional business and contribute to the area’s revitalization. He hopes that now he can be part of a transformation of North Howard Street.
 
“The history of the arts and dance is in downtown Baltimore, and soon the whole of Howard Street will be revitalized,” Bass says.
 
The zoning appeal for the property will be held April 3. Bass hopes to open the center immediately following the hearing, if approved. 

Source: Renwick Bass
Writer: Alexandra Wilding

Camden Yards is hoping for a home run off the field this season. 

The stadium is building on the winning combination of beer and baseball by creating a brewpub and on-site brewery inside Camden Yards. 

The new restaurant planned for Oriole Park at Camden Yards will be a family-friendly brewpub with a sports focus and will open around opening day this spring, says Delaware North Cos.' Food and Beverage Director Adrian Sedano. Delaware North Cos. provides food, beverage and retail merchandise services at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
 
While the name and menu of the restaurant is still being determined, the brewpub plans to brew its own beer on-site and offer a traditional brewpub menu including burgers and sandwiches. Sedano says he can't yet disclose the number of seats or square footage. 

Oriole Park at Camden Yards hopes to become a year-round destination by creating concession areas that overlook the baseball field. In late December, the Stadium Authority requested $1.8 million from the state's Board of Public Works to renovate picnic-areas and create a year-round "park-like destination."  
 
Delaware North Companies Cos., a hospitality and food service company headquartered in Buffalo, is receiving consulting on the restaurant from Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises Inc. a corporation in Chicago that owns restaurants in Illinois, Nevada, Washington, D.C, Minneapolis and Arizona. It owns Bethesda French bistro Mon Ami Gabi. 
 
The restaurant has started the hiring process and expects to employ between 30 and 50 employees at its location at 333 W. Pratt St.
 
Sedano says he thinks the future brewpub will be a place where families can come to enjoy a great sports atmosphere, in-house brewing, and a view of Camden Yards.
 
The brewpub concept with on-site brewing is the first of its kind for Delaware North Cos., Sedano ays.

Source: Adrian Sedano, food and beverage director for Delaware North Companies
Writer: Alexandra Wilding

The Maryland Biotechnology Development Center is accepting applications at their website for grant awards of up to $200,000 through Feb. 15th. These awards are available in two categories, biotechnology commercialization and translational research.

Biotechnology commercialization is focused on supporting projects that are in late-stage development and are poised to enter the market and begin generating revenue within three years. The translational research category is designed to help start ups that are bridging the gap between research institutions and private companies in Maryland, with the goal of taking promising research down a commercial path.

This is the third year for these awards, which have provided nearly $3.1 million in funding to 13 life sciences companies and three university research projects in Maryland.

Writer: Amy McNeal
Source: Maryland Biotechnology Development Center

Phillips Seafood is opening an express location at the $500 million Maryland Live Casino near Arundel Mills next year.

Phillips’ Director of Marketing Michelle Torres compares it to the Phillips Seafood Express it operates in the Maryland House Welcome Center in Aberdeen. She says the company has yet to determine the exact square footage and menu of the new spot, but expects it will serve salads, wraps, crab cakes and possibly dim sum.

Opening in the summer, the casino spot will be located in a food court and offer counter service. It will be the local restaurant and seafood company’s second Cordish Co. location. It opened its new Inner Harbor restaurant at Cordish’s Power Plant this month, after 31 years at Harborplace.

It will be Phillips' sixth express location. The others are located at Boston's Logan International Airport, Atlantic City and FedEx Field. The average express location is between 600 and 1,000 square feet and employs five to 10.

Asked whether Phillips will open other spots in Cordish locations, Torres says she is “very hopeful.”

“We see [Cordish] as a long-term partner.”

The casino is slated to include a restaurant operate by Bobby Flay, a Cheesecake Factory and Ruth’s Chris Steak House.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Michelle Torres, Phillips

An upscale Italian chain is saying "ciao" to Baltimore's Inner Harbor this spring.

Brio Tuscan Grille will open a 230-seat restaurant and bar at 100 E. Pratt St. by early April, says Saed Mohseni. The CEO of Bravo Brio Restaurant Group Inc. says the company spends between $2 million and $3.5 million to open each new restaurant.

The Columbus, Ohio, firm operates 93 restaurants under the Brio Tuscan Grille, Bravo Cucina Italiana and Bon Vie Bistro flags. The location — the former site Legal Sea Foods — will hopefully attract tourists, business travelers and office workers given its central downtown location, Mohseni says.

The 8,000-square-foot restaurant will contain an open-air kitchen with stainless steel and stone to create a "Tuscan villa" sort of look.

Menu items will cost between $8 and $22.

Pratt Street will hold the third Brio in Maryland. One is located at the Annapolis Towne Centre while another spot will open in Bethesda Feb. 7.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Saed Mohseni, Bravo Brio Restaurant Group

The Charm City Circulator, Baltimore's free bus service, launched a new route on November 1, 2011. The new Green Route will allow Circulator riders greater access to popular points downtown. The new route includes stops at City Hall, the Maritime Park connection to the Water Taxi and the Johns Hopkins Medical Campus.
 
The Green Route also increases access to the Fell's Point area including Harbor East. Popular attractions for both tourists and locals, including the Reginald F. Lewis Museum, Broadway Market, are features of  the new route. The new Green Line interconnects with the orange Line at Harbor East, but does not have a connection to the Purple Line. It  also allows riders to connect with Metro trains at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and Shot Tower/Market Place stations.
 
The launch of the Green Route also coincides with the addition of a new bus type to the Charm City Circulator fleet. The Orion VII BRT Hybrid bus will go into service as part of the Circulator fleet. The new model of  hybrid bus will be used throughout the Circulator's routes.
 
Financed by Baltimore's parking tax revenue, The Charm City Circulator has carried approximately 3 million riders since its initial launch. The Circulator is slated to expand service to include a new line running from the Inner Harbor area to Fort McHenry in the spring of 2012.
 
Writer: Amy McNeal
Sources: Downtown Partnership, Charm City Circulator
 
http://www.charmcitycirculator.com/route/green-route

The National Pinball Museum is coming to Baltimore. Fans of pinball and classic game machines will soon have the chance to explore the museum's offerings at the Inner Harbor.
 
First opened in a retail center location in DC's Georgetown, the National Pinball Museum has opted to move into a new, larger space at Power Plant Live. The National Pinball Museum's new location in a sprawling 12,000 square foot space will offer owner David Silverman the opportunity to fully develop his concept for the facility.
 
The museum will display snippets of Silverman's collection of  more than 900 pinball machines. Displays ranging from historic French bagatelle style games to more modern games based on popular pop culture properties will allow games enthusiasts to explore the history of the classic game. The new National Pinball Museum will feature two floors of action, including playable “pay to play” machines of many varieties, party rooms and educational programs.
 
Tiffani Huskey, Director of Operations, adds, “The welcome we’ve received from Baltimore has been overwhelming. We are honored to become part of a community that values the art, history, and pastime of pinball. We’re looking forward to building partnerships with local organizations and businesses to launch our Education and Community Outreach Program as soon as possible.”
 
The original Georgetown location of the National Pinball Museum opened in 2010 and cost approximately $300,000. The new museum location is expected to be significantly more expensive. The National Pinball museum drew more than 6,000 visitors in its 9 months of operation, a number that the museum hopes to exceed in Baltimore.

Writer: Amy McNeal
Source: Tiffani Huskey,  National Pinball Museum