commercial real estate : Development News

Organic products are sprouting up all over the place � milk, meats, apples, cleaning supplies.

Now the organic trend has hit the beauty industry. Two Baltimore women, Ambra Black and Maryam Dennis, are opening an organic nail salon mid-May in Locust Point.

Juste-B., to be located at 1624 E. Fort Ave., will offer manicures and pedicures and soy-based waxes. The scrubs and other products used on hands and feet will be made with essential oils and natural sugars, Dennis says. Nail polishes are water-based and don't rely on any chemicals.

The partners, who are spending $30,000 of their own money to start the business, will make their own foot scrubs using herbs from their herb garden.

Juste-B will be one of a handful of organic salons in Greater Baltimore. Others include Hampden's Sprout and Insignia in Overlea.

"We should be able to be healthy and beautiful without having to sacrifice the health of the planet," Dennis says.

Juste-B will embrace other green initiatives, including using light sensors and serving organic wine and vodka to guests. A combined manicure and pedicure will cost about $40.  

The business owners chose Locust Point because it's a "new and upcoming neighborhood." With office and retail developments like McHenry Row, to be anchored by a Harris Teeter grocery store, underway, the business owners hope to get in on the area before it really builds up.


Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Maryam Dennis, Juste B

Five Below, the discount chain where everything costs $5 or less, is opening a new Glen Burnie outlet as it launches an aggressive national expansion. The new shop at 6720 Ritchie Hwy., to open this summer, will be Five Below's 20th Maryland store.

Five Below also just opened a store in Catonsville and an expanded store in Severna Park March 25.

The Philadelphia company plans to open a total of 50 stores nationally in 2011 to feed the appetites of bargain-hungry consumers, Five Below Marketing Manager Elizabeth Romaine says.

The company is looking at additional opportunities in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., markets, Romaine says. The company looks for markets with large concentration of families since much of its merchandise is geared toward kids and teens.

Five Below currently operates 141 stores in 13 states.

Each Five Below store employs about 35 and is around 7,500 square feet.

The expanded Severna Park store, at 558 Gov Ritchie Hwy., is now twice its former size, with bigger aisles and a section devoted to party supplies. Five Below stores also sell fashion accessories, toys, video games, candy, and sports and fitness equipment.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Elizabeth Romaine, Five Below

Suds and grub will return to the Fells Point spot that formerly held DuClaw Brewing Co. before it closed in late 2009.

Three restaurant operators will open a 200-seat establishment that serves craft beers and upscale pub food.

Michael Mastellone, John Durkin, and Derek Blazer don't have a name yet for the new restaurant, to open in September. Bond Street Social is the name on the liquor license application, but that name is not set in stone, Mastellone says.

Durkin and Mastellone own Ladder 15, a Philadelphia bar and restaurant located in a former firehouse. Durkin is also owner of Federal Hill's Mad River Bar & Grill.

The partners will spend more than $1 million to revamp the interior of the former DuClaw space, Mastellone says. He's hiring T+Associates Architects, the same designer as Ladder 15, to outfit the new space, and imagines the new space will sport an industrial look, with steel and wood.

The owners hope to draw people in the summer months with the nearly 2,000-square-foot outdoor waterfront dining area. The restaurant's half a dozen fireplaces will hopefully draw diners in the winter months as well, Mastellone says.

The menu will be similar to that of Ladder 15, except with a heavier emphasis on seafood, Mastellone says. Korean tacos, made with pork belly and short rib, oxtail cheesesteak, and truffle fries are some of the menu items at the Philly eatery.

Prices will run about the same as well, with appetizers under $10, sandwiches and burgers $9-$11 and entrees running between $12 and $25.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Michael Mastellone, Ladder 15

Greenberg Gibbons Commercial Corp. will break ground in the fall on a $2.5 million building that will bring eight to 10 new restaurants and service companies to Annapolis Towne Centre.

The 24,000-square-foot building will be located at the intersection of West Street and Summerville Road and be completed by fall 2012, says Greenberg Gibbons Chief Operating Officer Tom Fitzpatrick. The developer hasn't identified any specific tenants yet for that space.

The site will largely contain fast casual restaurants, or restaurants that offer quick service and higher quality ingredients than fast food. That's largely the type of tenant that's going into a separate $2 million building opening in May at Annapolis Towne Centre.

Greenberg Gibbons thought fast casual restaurants would be a good addition to Annapolis Towne Centre since it currently houses mostly full service restaurants. Those include Paladar Latin Kitchen & Rum Bar, Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant and Brio Tuscan Grill.

Tenants opening in May are:

• Flat Top Grill, a create-your-own stir-fry restaurant;
• Fidelity;
• Jimmy Johns Gourmet Sandwich Shop;
• Qdoba Mexican Grill;
• Saladworks;
• Scottrade; and,
• Zoe's Kitchen, which serves kabobs, hummus and other Mediterranean foods.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Tom Fitzpatrick, Greenberg Gibbons

Building an original slice of the Bronx in Baltimore will cost as much as $3 million.

The owners of Aldo's Italian Restaurant in Little Italy are teaming up with Hollywood actor Chazz Palminteri to open a coal-fired pizza restaurant in Harbor East.

Much of that money will go in the restaurant's design, Aldo's Co-owner Alessandro Vitale says. The owners have hired Baltimore's Rita St. Clair, who has put her stamp on the Prime Rib and Aldo's.

"We're trying to capture old-school Bronx" circa 1950, Vitale says. (That's the same era depicted in Palminteri's movie and play "A Bronx Tale.")

You can expect to see a black-and-white checker floor, marble tops, and subway tiles behind the pizza oven. Diners will be able to watch the guys making pizza.

"We're trying to create an immersive experience," Vitale says, adding, "You can't fake it."

Partners in the venture include the Vitales, Palminteri and Kerry Kessel, an investor and friend of the actor.

Palminteri forged a friendship with the Vitale brothers after falling in love with Aldo's marinara sauce.

The 7,000-square-foot restaurant will employ more than 40.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Alessandro Vitale, Aldo's Italian Restaurant, Chazz: A Bronx Original

In less than a month, Baltimore Orioles' fans will hear the crack of the bat at Camden Yards.

In about seven months, more than 100,000 people are expected to visit Charm City for the Baltimore Grand Prix Race. And restaurant owners Justin Dvorkin and Donald Kelly hope their burritos and margaritas will feed and quench the thirst of these sports' enthusiasts � and put some change in their pocket.

The business partners will open Charm City Cantina at 200 W. Pratt St. April 4, just in time for Opening Day. The 220-seat restaurant will be located next door to their other venture, the Pratt Street Ale House.

Since taking over the Pratt Street Ale House two years ago, the owners have gotten steady traffic from sports fans, convention attendees, concert goers at First Mariner Arena, and tourists, Kelly says. When the opportunity came up to take over the restaurant next door, they felt they had to take it.

The pair will spend as much as $400,000 to open the 6,800-square-foot restaurant. Some of that money will be spent to hire a designer to create a look that is a cross between an American pub and a Mexican eatery.

With no other full-service Mexican restaurants downtown, Kelly and Dvorkin say they hope the investment pays off.

But opening a second establishment will be challenging as the price of food and other commodities climb higher, Kelly says.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Justin Dvorkin and Donald Kelly

The owners of Donna's Coffee Bar hope to reopen their Mount Vernon shop by the end of the year following a five-alarm fire that devastated the historic building at 800 N. Charles St.

And when it does reopen, diners can expect tapas and a wine bar on the menu, co-owner Alan Hirsch says.

He expects reconstruction work on the restaurant to begin in October and be completed in three months. With the inside totally gutted, the owners have to redesign the restaurant and go through the permitting process all over again.

"If you go to that corner, it's pretty depressing," since the Dec. 7 fire, Hirsch says. "Part of the community is gone."

Meanwhile, the business owner says he expects renovations on the building to begin as early as June, based on meetings he has had with the building's developer, Dominic Wiker. The former home of Indigma and MyThai restaurants now has no roof and requires extensive electrical and mechanical work, Hirsch says.

Wiker could not be reached for comment.

Hirsch says he does not yet have an estimate on the cost of the renovations.

Serving wine and high-end beer, along with small plates, will help Donna's keep up with current market trends for European-style restaurants, Hirsch says. The restaurant is known for its extensive coffee menu and Mediterranean fare, including a roasted vegetable salad and hummus and pita.

The motive behind the wine bar was not solely money, as the profit margins are higher in coffee drinks, Hirsch says. Rather, the owners felt they needed to refresh the restaurant concept.

"We needed to update Donna's and do more."

It has other locations at the University of Maryland Medical System, the Village of Cross Keys, Charles Village and Columbia.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Alan Hirsch, Donna's

HomeGoods will offer Maryland shoppers another place to buy its discount furniture in May.

The 25,000-square-foot shop will replace a former A.J. Wright store at the Harundale Mall Shopping Center at 7736 Ritchie Hwy.

Last year, parent company TJX Cos. Inc. said it would shutter all A.J. Wright stores nationally. Now the Framingham, Mass., firm is in the process of converting some of them to its other brands, T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods.

HomeGoods opens in markets where shoppers want to buy home d�cor, including designer brands, at a discount, HomeGoods spokesman Philip Tracey says. Its other Maryland stores are located in Columbia, Gambrills, and Owings Mills.

The store will employ 60 full and part-time employees. Former A.J. Wright employees will be given the opportunity to work for the new
HomeGoods and get paid during the interim period when the store is closed for renovations, says TJX spokeswoman Doreen Thompson.

HomeGoods operates more than 330 stores across the country. The shops sell furniture, lighting, rugs, bedding, and bath decor.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Doreen Thompson, Philip Tracey, Robyn Arvedon, TJX Cos. Inc.

A 38-year-old health club in the Washington area wants to muscle its way to more Maryland locations.

After getting an undisclosed sum of cash last year from Capital One, Sport & Health Clubs is ready to expand, says Nancy Terry, the health club's senior vice president of marketing. That money comes on top of the $25 million the McLean, Va., company received from investors in 2009.

Sport & Health will open two to three new sites this year. Each location will be between 40,000 and 50,000 square feet. Terry wouldn't say exactly which towns or counties health club managers are eyeing because the leases have not been signed.

"There's lots of great opportunities throughout the Maryland area and we're exploring all of those options right now," Terry says.

The company is looking at both shopping centers and freestanding locations in high-income areas.

Sport & Health recently opened its 25th location in Frederick in a former Gold's Gym spot.

Describing the industry as somewhat "recession resilient," Sport & Health had a solid financial year last year, Terry says.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Nancy Terry, Sport & Health

Furniture store owner Nicholas Johnson and his wife love going to the beach in Delaware.

And they love going to Charleston, S.C.

So Johnson is looking East and South to expand his furniture store SuCasa.

Johnson will open an 800-square-foot pop-up store on Route 1 in Dewey Beach, Delaware this summer, spending $50,000 on the venture. If the store does well he will open a permanent location selling SuCasa's trademark classic contemporary furniture.

"I've dreamed of opening at the beach," Johnson says. He hopes that SuCasa's style will appeal to folks who aren't just seeking a beach-style look for their home. He can't divulge the exact location yet because the lease hasn't been signed.

The shop comes on the heels of his opening a 4,000-square-foot store at the Shops in Kenilworth. Johnson spent about $100,000 to open the Towson store in October. It replaced eco-friendly furniture store Bluehouse.

SuCasa's 4,800-square-foot flagship shop is located on Thames Street in Fells Point. Johnson owns another SuCasa in Ellicott City and two other furniture stores in Fells Point, Pad and Calligaris.

He is currently revamping the inventory at Pad and Calligaris so it has a broader appeal. The stores opened during the height of the condo market boom and sell modern furniture that is priced higher than the wares at SuCasa. But since the condo market collapsed, Johnson has had to rethink the concept behind these stores and will offer more neutral colors.

So what about Charleston? If he can make the Dewey Beach store work, he plans to open a store down the road in Darius Rucker's hometown now that Southwest Airlines offers direct flights.

"I dream of splitting my time between Baltimore and Charleston," he says.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Nicholas Johnson, SuCasa

A clothing store owner in Baltimore County is expanding her boutique as retail sales and the overall economy improve.

Lori Kilberg will move her store Lori.k to a larger space in Stevenson Village in Greenspring Valley March 3.

The 2,200-square-foot shop is about 50 percent bigger than the current store.

Kilberg says she spent $50,000 on the expansion as sales have grown. She expects sales to grow 20 percent this year. Nationally, retail sales rose .6 percent to $381 billion in December as consumers' confidence in the economy perks up a bit.

Lori.k caters to the 40-to-65-year-old who "doesn't want to look like her daughter," Kilberg says. The shop wants to offer a place where you can buy everything from a $20 T-shirt to a $1500 ball gown.

"Everybody can walk out with something and buy something which I think is incredible," Kilberg says.

Kilberg likes the location because the shopping center is convenient to reach for folks living on either side of the beltway.

Writer:Julekha Dash
Source: Lori Kilberg, Lori.k

Purse hounds, seafood aficionados, and Italian food lovers will soon have another reason to swing by Arundel Mills mall in Hanover.

A Coach factory store, Red Lobster, and Olive Garden are among the dozen or so stores to open at the Anne Arundel County mall in the coming months.

Coach will open in March or April, says Wendy Ellis, Arundel Mills' director of marketing and business development. Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and LongHorn Steakhouse will open later in the spring.

"It's a request we get all the time: Please add more restaurants," Ellis says.

Construction on the restaurants has already begun. Later in the year, construction will begin on a pad site that will hold BB&T and Tower Federal Credit Union.

Other shops to open at the mall include:

- Aerosoles
- Best Buy Mobile
- Hakky Shoe Repair & Alteration
- Surf and skate clothing store Tilly's
- Buffalo Wild Wings

The Coach store will open near Neiman Marcus Last Call. The mall has a large mix of outlet and discount stores, including Kenneth Cole Outlet Store, Nike Factory Store, and T.J. Maxx. These stores account for about 70 percent of the mall's retail offerings, Ellis says.

"Folks really like brand names and love getting value for them."

With 14 million visitors a year, Arundel Mills is one of Maryland's biggest tourist attractions.

Mall owner Simon Property Group operates similar mall properties in Chicago, Dallas, Nashville, and Fort Lauderdale.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Wendy Ellis, Arundel Mills

A store that sells floor and window treatments has doubled its space in Howard County to a more visible location that will hopefully boost business.

The Vertical Connection moved last month to a 13,000-square-foot store in Columbia. The new shop at 8895 McGaw Rd. gets foot traffic from customers who are also shopping at one of several neighboring home goods stores, Vertical Connection Owner Steven Joss says. Those stores include Indoor Furniture, Sofas Etc. and Botanica Home.

Joss says he hopes that Vertical Connection will get more traffic next year when Wegmans Food Markets opens at the intersection of McGaw Road and Snowden River Parkway in Columbia.The business had spent 30 years at an industrial office park at 9510 Rumsey Rd.

"It was time for a really good location," Joss says. The sour commercial real estate market made it possible to get rents for about half of what they were during good economic times.

"If you want to grow this is a good time to do it if you are not in debt," Joss says.

Sales at the store grew 30 percent last year, says Joss, who runs the store along with his wife Kathy and son Adam.

The shop employs eight, though Joss says he may hire several additional workers this year.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Steven Joss, Vertical Connection

A national restaurant franchise is staking out the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., areas to open as many as 20 stores where it can sell its chicken wings, fries, and bourbon baked beans.

Rahim Kurji and Bidjaan Kassam have acquired the franchise rights to open Wingstop stores in the area. They expect to open between six and eight stores in Baltimore this year. With each store costing between $400,000 and $550,000 to build, the franchisees could spend as much as $4.4 million to open new stores this year. The business owners are financing the operation through an SBA loan and their own cash.

The pair are looking for strip mall spaces that are between 1,400 and 1,800 square feet, Kurji says. Population-dense locales near universities and hospitals would be ideal, he says. Hungry students and busy hospital workers could keep the stores busy at night and not just during the day.

Since they haven't finalized any lease deals, the entrepreneurs couldn't identify any specific locations where they will open. Kassam says they will create a Facebook page asking locals where they would like to see a Wingstop.

The wings are made fresh to order and come in nine flavors, including teriyaki, garlic parmesan, lemon pepper, Cajun, and atomic. Kassam says that these sauces and even the blue cheese dressing you dip your celery in will be made in house.

Based in Richardson, Texas, the national franchise has its biggest penetration in California and Texas.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Rahim Kurji and Bidjaan Kassam

Construction on a gourmet grocery shop and a wine bar will soon begin at Patrick Turner's Silo Point condominium tower.

Hospitality consultant Peter Yaffe is cooking up plans for a store where Silo Point residents can pick up a sandwich, coffee, prepared foods and a bottle of wine.

Construction on the 2,200-square-foot business, called FoodLifePoint, should begin in the next month or so. Yaffe describes the style of the design-heavy store as "cozy industrial chic," much like the condo tower itself. He has hired Silo Point's architect, Chris Pfaeffle of Baltimore's Parameter Inc., to design the store.  

FoodLifePoint's features will include wireless Internet access, HD TVs, and seating overlooking the harbor. The store will employ between 60 and 75. If all goes well, Yaffe plans to open more stores like it throughout the U.S., one of which could be built at Patrick Turner's Westport development in South Baltimore.

Yaffe's previous experience includes LFB Enterprises, where he was president of a Maryland hospitality group that included catering, a restaurant, a nightclub, and a gourmet-to-go food operation. He has also run high-volume seafood restaurants in Florida and was director of operations of Capital Restaurant Concepts, the Washington, D.C. restaurant group that includes Paolo's Ristorante and J. Paul's Dining Saloon.

Meanwhile, the folks behind the 13.5% wine bar in Hampden are opening a wine bar at Silo Point. No word yet on the name of the 2,600-square-foot store, expected to open in April at 1200 Steuart St.

Wayne Laing, of 13.5%, declined to comment on his latest wine bar.

"They're both great concepts for the neighborhood," Turner says of FoodLifePoint and the wine bar. "I'm not real big on chain restaurants. Restaurants of this caliber are very site specific and we want that uniqueness for Silo Point."

The condo tower also features Mexican restaurant Miguel's Cocina y Cantina and Priv� Salon and Spa.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Peter Yaffe, FoodLife Point; Patrick Turner, Turner Development Group LLC