Development : Development News

St. John Properties Inc. is on the hunt for retail and office tenants for a $25 million project in Carroll County.

The Baltimore developer completed construction this year on three buildings totaling 100,000 square feet as part of Liberty Exchange.

Its first tenant, Orthopaedic Associates of Central Maryland, will move into the Eldersburg property within the next 45 days, says Jerry Wit, St. John's senior vice president of marketing. The 11-physician practice has signed a lease for 12,240 square feet of space.

St. John Properties' first product in Carroll County, Liberty Exchange will eventually house 9 buildings totaling 225,000 square feet. The company will start construction on more buildings once the three existing ones are half leased, Wit says.

He's not sure when that will be as getting financing these days is tough, bringing many developments to a "screeching halt." Nonetheless, St. John executives are hopeful that they can attract office tenants who want to upgrade their suites to a shiny new business park as a lot of the buildings in the area are older.

"The Eldersburg market is tight. There's not a lot of space," Wit says.

St. John also hopes to sign up food and services, including a dry cleaner, day spa, convenience store and restaurants. Wit says he is talking to one local Carroll County resident who is interested in opening a wine bar. An Italian eatery, sandwich shop, and Chinese restaurant would also be ideal tenants.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Al Cunniff, Jerry Wit, St. John Properties

Get out the chopsticks. Manchurian Rice Co. will open in the former Harbor News spot this August at 1010 Aliceanna St.

The 75-seat restaurant will serve Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, and Chinese cuisine, including made-to-order stir-fry, fried rice, pad Thai, soup, Kung Pao chicken, and traditional desserts. That is according to an investor in the Harbor East restaurant who wanted to remain anonymous.

Fast-casual Asian concepts are hot nowadays, with the expansion of P.F. Chang's China Bistro's Pei Wei Diner and Chipotle's announcement this year that it is launching an Asian concept called ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen, the first of which will open in Washington, D.C., this summer.

The investor says he and his partners will spend at least $500,000 to open the new restaurant. That's the amount of investment Baltimore City requires of restaurant owners gunning for a new Class B liquor license.

Some of that money will go toward outfitting the second mezzanine that will house the seating in the 1,600-square-foot restaurant.
Most dishes will cost between $6 and $8.

Harbor East is home to numerous restaurants and shops, including Charleston, Cinghiale, Arhaus Furniture, and White House|Black Market, which opened this month.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Manchurian Rice Co. investor

The Better Business Bureau of Greater Maryland is giving an A+ rating to the Federal Reserve Bank Building in Otterbein.

The agency moved into its new office last month at 502 S. Sharp St. after eights years at 1414 Key Hwy. in Federal Hill. The 4,300-square-foot space is slightly larger than its old one.

The bureau's lease was up and picked the bank building because it offers free parking, a cafeteria, and meeting space for its educational programs, BBB spokeswoman Jody Thomas says.

"We're getting all that we could for our monthly investment," she says. The building's rent costs about $18 per square foot.

BBB's 15-person staff like the location because it offers easy access to Interstate 95 and is easy to find as it is across the street from Camden Yards.

Terri Harrington, of MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate Services LLC, brokered the deal.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Jody Thomas, BBB of Greater Maryland

The food options keep growing for residents of the Hamilton/Lauraville neighborhood.

Clementine Owner Winston Blick is opening grocery store and caf� Green Onion at 5500 Harford Rd. in July. Rich Marsiglia, owner of Hamilton Vacuum & Janitorial Supply, and Baltimore Tattoo Museum's Bill Stevenson are Blick's partners on the new business. Located one block from Clementine, the store is a cross between Atwater's and Milk and Honey Market, Blick says.

Blick says a grocery store will hopefully bring more families to the area and make it a better place to live. He also wants to introduce shoppers to local farms that will supply the produce, meats, and cheeses. Sauces, charcuterie, dressings, and soups from Clementine will be sold at the store.

Green Onion is the latest food venture for the area. Hamilton Bakery opened at the end of April. The area is also home to top-rated restaurants Chameleon Caf�, Hamilton Tavern, and, of course, Clementine.

The store will sell 30 types of cheeses, along with olives, soups and sandwiches, and bulk laundry detergent supplied by local business Healing Fields Whole Body Care LLC. The grocer will focus more on fruits and vegetables rather than dry goods.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Winston Blick, Green Onion and Clementine

A Howard County developer will break ground next month on a green retail and apartment building along the Route 40 corridor in Ellicott City.

Built by Waverly Real Estate Group LLC, Forest Green will take between 12 and 18 months to complete, says Waverly's Donald Reuwer.

The site consists of three buildings totaling 85,000 square feet, with nearly two-thirds retail and one-third residential, with 38 apartments. A small portion, 1,500 square feet, will house offices, according to the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning.

"It's one of the first of its kind on Route 40," says Jill Manion-Farrar, of Howard County planning. "It's a fairly new concept to bring retail and residential on the same site," in that area.

Forest Green will hopefully achieve a LEED Silver certification.

Reuwer wouldn't say how much it will cost to develop the project or what tenants it may get.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Jill Manion-Farrar, Howard County; Donald Reuwer, Waverly Real Estate Group

The University of Baltimore broke ground this month on an 11-story student apartment building to open by the fall 2012 semester.

The $24 million apartment at Maryland and West Biddle Street has been dubbed the Varsity, the same name that developer Potomac Holdings of Bethesda is using for a student-housing complex at College Park.

Potomac will own and operate the 124,000-square-foot housing unit. Apartments will be available to students at the Maryland Institute College of Art and other area schools.

The 323-bed building will house a green roof jointly designed by Baltimore's Floura Teeter Landscape Architects, Inc. and Colbert Matz Rosenfelt, Inc., a civil engineering, land planning, and surveying firm. Potomac was to include 5,000 square feet of retail space, but has backed away from that, says Principal Donnie Gross. The developer thought the space would be better used for amenities such as a gym and study area.

"The amenities are more important than having a Quiznos," Gross says.

Apartments like the Varsity will get people to live closer to campus at a school historically known as a commuter college, UB spokesman Chris Hart says.

"People are moving back into Midtown. It's becoming easier to live within steps of the school."


Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Chris Hart, University of Baltimore; Floura Teeter; Donnie Gross, Potomac Holdings

Before a girl paints the town red, she needs to pick the right shade of red, according to makeup artist Tiffany Jeffers.

Jeffers is opening a Federal Hill store in August where clients can get custom-blended eye shadow, foundation, lipstick, and skin care.

Sylk Cosmetics at 1049 S. Charles St. replaces kids clothing store Ladybugs and Fireflies, which closed in April.

Currently, Jeffers is offering makeup applications and hosting photo shoots in the space but will open the retail store in the summer.

Jeffers, who is doing the makeup for Baltimore Fashion Week, will spend about $100,000 on the store, which includes buying the inventory for the custom-blended makeup and skin care products.

Clients will pay $30 for an initial makeup consultation, and anywhere from $10 to $18 on lipstick and eye shadow and about $30 for foundation. Jeffers can add SPF protection or wrinkle-fighting serum to the blend.

The business owner says she chose Federal Hill because it is a "fun, hip, and eclectic area."


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Tiffany Jeffers, Sylk Cosmetics

A 29-year-old barbecue restaurant in Ellicott City is staking its claim in Federal Hill.

The Canopy, whose specialty is made-to-order pit beef, will open at 1134 S. Charles St. in July. Owner Kevin Cooney is hoping the restaurant's takeout pit beef and chicken barbecue sandwiches will appeal to folks craving comfort food after some late-night partying.

"Our restaurant goes perfect with the party atmosphere," Cooney says.

He also hopes to attract people coming into the city for a baseball game or one of the neighborhood's many festivals.

After a few months, he'll expand the business to include 1132 St. Charles St., which will give it the space to hold a few tables and another 600 square feet to a total of 1,600. 

Cooney says he and business partner Fern Kreis expect to spend about $200,000 in the restaurant. Kreis' stepson, Adam Kreis, will operate Federal Hill's Canopy.

Sandwiches cost between $6 and $9, while a slab of ribs costs $18. Customers can decide how they want their pit beef -- rare, medium, or well done. The restaurant doesn't sell alcohol.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Kevin Cooney, the Canopy

Infrastructure work has begun on Turf Valley Town Square, a retail and restaurant complex in Ellicott City anchored by a Harris Teeter grocery store to open next spring.

Developed by Greenberg Gibbons Commercial Corp., the open-air shopping center will contain features similar to the developer's Hunt Valley Towne Centre, with a "Main Street," landscaped gardens, piped-in music, and an outdoor fireplace.

Located near Route 70 and Marriottsville Road, the 150,000-square-foot shopping center is near Turf Valley resort and Turf Valley Overlook homes.

"We are absolutely looking forward to it being an important part of the Turf Valley community," says Gina Ellrich, a spokeswoman for Turf Valley owners Mangione Enterprises LLC. "It's an extension of what's there."

The grading and sewer installation has been completed and construction will begin in the fall, Ellrich says.

Turf Valley Town Square will contain a number of smaller specialty shops. Neither Ellrich nor Tom Fitzpatrick of Greenberg Gibbons would name other shops slated for the development.

Anchored by a Wegmans, Hunt Valley Towne Centre's shops include California Pizza Kitchen, Best Buy, Carraba's Italian Grill, White House/Black Market, and Ann Taylor Loft.

The Turf Valley site will also include a separate office complex, 160,000 square feet of office space and 150 townhomes and 192 condominiums built by the Keelty Co. of Stevenson.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Gina Ellrich, Ellrich Communications

Yerman Witman Gaines and Conklin Realty LLC is opening its eighth office in Severn, and plans to expand its presence in Bel Air, as company leaders hope to cash in on the residential growth expected from the Base Realignment and Closure.

Located at the Severn Square Shopping Center, the office will open May 18 with 12 agents staffing the firm, says William Yerman, CEO of parent company the Strata Group. The 3,000-square-foot office will employ 50 realtors within a year.

The office is across from Fort George G. Meade, where the federal government is transferring nearly 6,000 jobs from Fort Monmouth, N.J. by 2015.

"It's an underserved area in an important time," Yerman says of the Severn market.

Growth from BRAC is also the reason why the company wants to expand its 1,500-square-foot Bel Air office. By the end of summer, the company will open a satellite location in Fells Point or Canton to replace the Canton office whose lease expired earlier this month.

The real estate firm recently opened an office at McHenry Row, a residential, shopping and office complex in Baltimore City's Locust Point neighborhood.

Headquartered in Baltimore, the Strata group has offices in Baltimore, Carroll, Harford and Anne Arundel Counties. Its businesses include a mortgage firm, a title company and a financial services firm. It was founded in 2007.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: William Yerman, the Strata Group

Howard County now has its own Jack Black.

Columbia residents Tim and Cassie France-Kelly have started a new music instruction school that will hopefully inspire kids to form their own rock bands and keep playing their instruments longer.

The Kellys spent $100,000 to open Let There Be Rock School at 9051 Red Branch Rd. in Columbia. Half a dozen music instructors offer
lessons in bass, guitar, keyboards, drums, audio recording, and being a DJ. The weekly lessons include teaching kids how to play with a group.

The couple learned that playing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star," wouldn't keep their son Mason, 10, interested in his guitar lessons, Tim France-Kelly says. Rather, the only way Mason would stick with it is if he found other students he could play with and if the music was more along the lines of, say, Green Day.  

So the couple took Mason to a sister Let There Be Rock School in Frederick and found that performing in a band made him eager to practice because he didn't want to disappoint his bandmates, France-Kelly says. A third school is located in Folsom, Pa. The Central Howard County location will hopefully be a draw for parents, France-Kelly says.

"There are talented kids who get bored with music lessons," France-Kelly says. We want to give them a fun place to play music."

With 10 students so far, the owners hope to sign up 60 by summer's end and 150 by the end of the year.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Tim and Cassie France-Kelly

A Harbor East jewelry store is taking its gold earrings and ruby necklaces to a larger space.

Amaryllis, which moved from Harborpalce and the Gallery two years ago to East Baltimore, is moving into the Kashmir Imports' spot next month. At 1,028 square feet, the space at 830 Aliceanna St. is twice as big as its space on Exeter St., says co-owner Allie Wolf.

The owners of the 26-year-old jewelry store like the Harbor East neighborhood, but thought Aliceanna was a better spot because it's the shopping street, Wolf says. The street is home to Arhaus Furniture, South Moon Under, and Urban Chic.

"Aliceanna has established itself as the shopping street," Wolf says. "I feel like as a boutique we should be on Aliceanna Street. The shopping is better."

The larger store will allow it to expand its jewelry selection and sell purses, scarves and other gifts.

"There are so many other artists we want to carry that we don't have the space for," Wolf said. "We want to be the destination jewelry spot" downtown.

The move will come with a makeover, courtesy of Nouveau Contemporary Goods' Co-owner Steve Appel.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Allie Wolf, Amaryllis

A new frozen yogurt shop is sweetening things up in Howard County.

Matthew Park and his wife Diana spent about $300,000 to open Iceberry in Ellicott City, hoping to get a lick at the $8.1 billion frozen yogurt market. The 40-seat store at 9150 Baltimore National Pike reopened last month after a three-month renovation that allowed the owner to add four more flavors, to a total of 10.

The shop sells smoothies and frozen yogurt in taro, green tea, orange, honeydew, and other flavors. The yogurt, along with nuts, fruit, candy, and other toppings, is sold by weight.

The frozen yogurt chain started in Korea 20 years ago and now has eight US locations in Maryland, Virginia, California and Florida. Pinkberry, Red Mango, and Tasti-D-Lite's expansion in recent years have whetted consumers appetite's for FroYo. Unlike the frozen yogurt chains that sprouted in the 90s, the newer frozen yogurt stores sell more tart flavors, making its taste similar to that of regular store-bought yogurt. The chains tout the yogurt's health benefits because it contains probiotics, said to boost the body's immune system.

But the competition is stiff, Park acknowledges. Along Route 40 in Ellicott City alone, Tutti Frutti and Yogi Castle both operate. But given the popularity of the cold stuff in the warm months, he hopes some customers will like Iceberry for its flavor and because it uses only natural ingredients.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Matthew Park, Iceberry

Harborplace and the Gallery may draw more folks who crave clothing and candy.

H&M, the Swedish clothing store that sells trendy, discounted clothes, will open its first Baltimore City store May 19 at Harborplace. And candy shop It's Sugar will open a 3,000-square-foot store on the first floor of the Pratt Street pavilion.

The 20,000-square-foot store will open at noon, next to Urban Outfitters in the mall's Light Street building. The first 200 shoppers in line will get a T-shirt and gift cards valued between $10 and $300.

It will be the chain's 10th Maryland store. Others in Greater Baltimore are in Hanover, White Marsh, Towson, and Columbia. The Swedish clothing company has expanded aggressively in recent years and now has 2,000 stores worldwide. Mall officials hope the store will help it attract local residents and not just tourists.

In addition to gummy bears, Swedish fish, and Nerds, It's Sugar will sell clothing, pillows and other candy-themed novelty items. These include backpacks with gumballs painted on them and T-shirts that say "Nerds Gone Wild."

The Boca Raton, Fla., chain has 33 stores in the U.S., England, and the Middle East.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources; H&M, Harborplace

The smell of sweet-and-savory scones and fresh-baked bread is now wafting through the northeast Baltimore neighborhood of Hamilton.

Ruben Hernandez opened Hamilton Bakery April 29, adding another venue to the Hamilton/Lauraville area that has become a foodie destination with top-rated restaurants Chameleon Caf�, Hamilton Tavern, and Clementine.

The 1,800-square-foot bakery is tapping into local farmers to supply its fruits and vegetables and even its wheat. Other menu items include muffins, danishes, croissants, quiches, pies, and tarts. It's also got its own version of red velvet cake. It's called a Hamilton velvet cake but since the bakery only uses natural dyes the cake isn't exactly red.

Relying on antique-looking furniture and neutral colors, Hernandez is going for an industrial, homey look with the d�cor at the 10-seat bakery.
Having worked spent his entire life in the hospitality industry -- largely chain hotels in Calfornia -- Hernandez was eager to open a bakery.

The entrepreneur thought the Hamilton/Lauraville neighborhood, where his wife Kristin runs a dance studio, would be a good spot. The area is fast becoming a food mecca, but until now had not contained a bakery, Hernandez says.

Source: Ruben Hernandez, Hamilton Bakery
Writer: Julekha Dash