development : Development News

A Timonium caterer is moving into bigger digs so it has more space to hold events -- and its owner is dreaming up a concept inspired by the Food Network's "Iron Chef."

Chef's Expressions is taking over 3,500 square feet of space from a former bakery adjacent to its office in the Timonium Commerce Park. The new space at 9524 Deereco Road will give it nearly 10,000 square feet by the end of the summer.
 
The expansion will allow Chef's Expression to host cooking classes, train staff and hold events in its current kitchen. These events would include cocktail parties and tastings for prospective clients.

Chef and owner Jerry Edwards also envisions using the space to hold an "Iron Chef"-style kitchen stadium outfitted with closed-circuit flat-screen televisions that will allow clients to see the chefs at work. The goal is to great a "high-tech fashionably designed catering space," he says.

What does Edwards like about the neighborhood? It's four minutes from his house and just 30 minutes from downtown, making it convenient for clients.

Edwards is also talking to an interior designer about making the Old World Tuscan-style event space look more contemporary. He plans to spend $150,000 on the move and renovation.

The 29-year-old company employs 14 full-time workers and up to 80 part-time workers. Edwards expects to pull in $3.2 million in revenue this year, with about two-thirds of the business coming from weddings and the remainder coming from corporate events.

Source: Jerry Edwards, Chef's Expressions
Writer: Julekha Dash

A furniture store has found a new home in Federal Hill.

Home on the Harbor opened a store at 1414 Key Highway April 3. The 4,400-square-foot space is four times the size of its former store in Mount Washington.

Though the economy has hammered the housing market and sales at some furniture stores, sales at Home on the Harbor have increased 25 percent in the last six months, Owner Karen Graveline says.

Whereas customers were once putting off big purchases, Graveline says she is now seeing stronger sales of sofas, rugs, and lounge chairs. Graveline says her $100,000 investment on the expansion is an "offensive move," that she hopes will help it prepare for an uptick in the economy.

"Now is a good time to get ready for the economy to pick back up," she says.

The move to Federal Hill is a homecoming of sorts. It started out in Federal Hill nearly 8 years ago before packing up for Mount Washington. The waterfront location was the inspiration for the store's name.

Graveline is returning to Baltimore City because it can attract shoppers coming the city for the museums and other waterfront attractions. The spot is also close to Interstate 95, making it a convenient location for shoppers who live in the counties, she says.  She also liked the warehouse space with its big windows and good visibility from the harbor.

The store specializes in mid-20th century-style furniture and its brands include Knoll, Gus Modern Blue Dot and Kartell.

"I feel like I know what the customer wants. I'm not really worried," Graveline says. "I'm confident we will succeed here."

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Karen Graveline, Home on the Harbor

A business owner is taking her sugary confections to Hunt Valley. Kim Rigby of Parfections LLC will open a 2,000-square-foot retail chocolate shop in June at 10768 York Rd.

She is now leasing a commercial kitchen in Columbia and is opening her first retail location where she can hold chocolate tastings, including wine and chocolate tastings.

She hopes the retail location will help her get more event and corporate business by giving her a space where prospective clients can taste her hand-made creations.

"We're really trying to sell the experience with the chocolates," says Rigby, who is investing $50,000 in the 2,000-square-foot space. "I will never be mass producing chocolates," says Rigby, who has run her own business for seven years.

She says the store will have the look and feel of a high-end wine shop. She likes the location because Parfections has a lot of clients in Baltimore County. The location is also convenient to Boordy Vineyards in Hydes and Calvert Wine and Spirits located at Hunt Valley Towne Centre.

Parfections sells more than 30 different truffles and eight kinds of chocolate bark.

Rigby infuses coffee, wine and even beer into her chocolates and relies on local suppliers. These include  High Grounds Coffee Roasters in Baltimore City ,Black Ankle Vineyards in Mount Airy, and Clipper City Brewing Co.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Kim Rigby, Parfections LLC

When Daniel Cherky and Errez Segman bought the building in the 1100 block of West Baltimore Street, the idea was to renovate it and sell it. When the economy took a nose a dive, however, Cherky says their plans changed and Back Alley Jazz was born.

"I figured that I would do something to help the neighborhood. We want to make [this part of] Baltimore live again and bring a little bit of the feel of New Orleans to the city," he explains.

Familiar with Baltimore's illustrious musical history, Cherky and Segman decided to do something to help restore the city's reputation as a major player in the world of jazz.

"I said let's create something like back in the '20s because Baltimore used to be a real swinging place," Cherky says.

Just a few blocks west of University of Maryland's Biopark, Cherky says the neighborhood needs some help. "I have done a lot of the work on the building myself and in the beginning I would put my tools down [and go do something in another part of the building]. Five minutes later, the tools would be gone and ten minutes after that someone would be there selling me back my own tools," he laughingly recalls.

So far, the pair have spent more than $400,000 rehabbing the building, painting the facade, adding a rooftop deck and creating three floors were jazz lovers will enjoy national, regional and local jazz artists as well as amateur acts.

With the backing of the the city, which changed the name of the alley next to the building to Back Alley Jazz, Cherky says the upscale club will take visitors back to the days when speakeasys were the place to be. The clubs entrance will be located at the back of the building that is adjacent to Hollins Street Market. Valets will park guests' cars while security guards will ensure that both remain safe.

The staff will be dressed in 1920's era-style clothing. In addition to a variety of cocktails, the club will offer a light menu of New Orleans-style cuisine that will also include an homage to its Maryland location with some local favorites.

Back Alley Jazz will open around the end of April or beginning of May. The hope, says Segman is that the club will attract guests from Virginia, DC and the Greater Baltimore area. According to Cherky, eventually, the club will host a variety of street festivals on its parking lot.

Sources: Daniel Cherky and Errez Segman, Back Alley Jazz
Writer: Walaika Haskins

When George Dailey, chef and owner of On the Hill Cafe in Bolton Hill, learned that the former home of The Bicycle at 1444 Light Street in Federal Hill was available for lease, he knew it was the opportunity he and his wife had been waiting for to open a second restaurant.

"The Bicycle was a very famous restaurant in Baltimore and a gorgeous spot. When we saw that the place was coming up for rent, we jumped at it. We'd been toying with the idea of opening a second restaurant for a while and couldn't find the right spot. We came, we looked at it and we knew it was the right time," he explains.

And so Centro Tapas Bar was born. The couple settled on a tapas bar, he says, because "we love that way of eating. You have a choice of ordering four or five dishes at a time and then you share. That family-style way of eating, sharing with friends is fun and a different way. Other restaurants that don't have that but have appetizers, we actually go for the appetizers."

And rather than being a potential hindrance, the economy proved to be a boon, according to Dailey. "That's the reason why we're here. The economy is giving people who wanted to do a restaurant or another business the opportunity to do it. In a good economy we wouldn't be able to do this because this place would not be available and [its leasea] would be stronomically priced."

Opening a tapas bar is smart business in the current economic climate says Yvonne Edwardsen, managing partner. "This is the perfect type of thing for people now. They can stop in get a glass of sangria and a few small plates and leave full at a reasonable price."

Dailey and Edwardsen say they've made only a few cosmetic changes to the space. Adding a gray monochrome color scheme that allows the food to take center stage. Other than that the restaurant's three dining rooms, open kitchen and enclosed garden remain pretty much the same with seating for about 100 people.

Centro Tapas serves a variety of tapas and big plate dishes, some classic Spanish dishes and others with a Latin American influence. "The Latin American are kind of a new tapas with things like Mexican dishes, Peruvian dishes and from all over Central and South America. We're trying to do a combination of the New and Old Worlds," Dailey explains.

As the weather becomes warmer, diners will be able to enjoy seating in the enclosed garden and Edwardsen says there are plans to start a Sunday brunch in a few months with traditional breakfast fare as well as some dishes from the tapas menu.

Sources: George Dailey, Yvonne Edwardsen, Centro Tapas Bar
Writer: Walaika Haskins

The Enoch Pratt Free Library unveiled its brand spanking new Mobile Library Monday outside St. Ambrose School in Park Heights. The bright red van is a  new addition to the library's Bookmobile fleet.

This 28-foot state-of-the-art bookmobile is quite literally a mobile library, offering Baltimore residents many of the services they'd find at a brick-and-mortar branch. Visitors will be able to surf the Web using the public access computer and, of course, check out audio visual materials, periodicals, large print materials, and current bestsellers. The bookmobile will also include a number of books available in Russian and Spanish.

The new Mobile Library will visit areas of Baltimore that are not geographically close to a library. It will also regularly service senior centers, schools, Latino Relocation Centers, municipal buildings and the communities along Edmondson Avenue and Reisterstown Road where Pratt branches are closed for renovation.

"The Pratt Library is at the heart of every community in Baltimore and this new Mobile Library will bring valuable resources to our patrons," says Carla Hayden, Pratt Library CEO. "The Mobile Library is a modern and dynamic information center for the 21^st century. Our bookmobile service serves people of all backgrounds, providing access almost every service that patrons find in Pratt branches."

The Enoch Pratt Free Library's bookmobile fleet has a long history of serving and providing free library materials and programming to the citizens of Baltimore. In 1943, the Pratt's horse drawn "Book Cart Service was established to serve areas of the city that were not within walking distance of a Pratt Branch. It was later replaced in 1949 when the first Bookmobile began services to Baltimore City neighborhoods.

The Mobile Services provided by the Pratt Bookmobile are as popular and vital today as it was in its inception. According to a recently released report, nearly one-third of Americans, about 77 million people, used a public library computer or wireless network to access the internet in the past year.

The report, Opportunity for All: How the American Public Benefits from Internet Access at U.S. Libraries, is based on the first, large-scale study examining who uses public computers and Internet access in public libraries, the way library patrons use this free technology service, why they use it, and how it affects their lives. The Enoch Pratt Free Library was part of this national study and Pratt patrons were even interviewed in-person for the report, which was conducted by the University of Washington Information School and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

"We discovered that 30 percent of people in Baltimorehave no access to the Internet. So they rely on the library system and we take that responsibility seriously. The mobile library is like an extension of the library system and now it's evolving like the main library has itself," says Roswell Encino, Enoch Pratt Library spokesperson.

The Mobile Library was funded by contributions of The Rouse Company Foundation and The Jean and Sidney Silber Foundation.

Source: Roswell Encino, Enoch Pratt Free Library
Writer: Walaika Haskins

For Sean Dunworth, owner of the Catonsville Gourmet, popular seafood restaurant and market located on Frederick Rd,  the time just seems right. Two years after he opened the seafood restaurant, Dunworth is ready to launch a new venture, Regions.

"We were thinking about expanding [Catonsville Gourmet], which is about 80 percent seafood, but we wanted to open something smaller that we could use as a banquet facility and would allow us to expand our cuisine," he explains.

Scheduled to open in about a month, Regions will be located at 803-805 Frederick Road in Catonsville. It will feature cuisines from seven  regions around the world including Italian, French, Asian, Cajun, classic Maryland, Southwestern, and a comfort food. Each week the restaurant will feature small (tapas) and big plate selections from each of those regions.

"You can come and get a selection of small plates. And we'll be doing a lot more chicken and beef, not just seafood. The comfort food will be like spaghetti and meatballs or chicken pot pie done in a little more gourmet way," Dunworth says.

The restaurant will seat about 35 people and have a much more intimate feel. "Regions is going to be more contemporary and hip than Catonsville Gourmet. It will have chocolate/burgundy walls with handpainted murals and subdued lighting," he says.

According to Dunworth, Regions will be a good place for a first date or a special occasion. And, unlike Catonsville Gourmet, the diners will need to make reservations for Regions.

A Catonsville native, Dunworth says that something like Regions will be a good addition for the area, providing an alternative to the quick food restuarants selling hamburgers and sandwiches on Frederick Road.

Source: Sean Dunworth, Catonsville Gourmet
Writer: Walaika Haskins

In a move to help promote local sustainability, Anne Arunde County Executive John R. Leopold and Annapolis Mayor Joshua J. Cohen have teamed up to certify and recognize green restaurants that are using locally grown products, improving energy efficiency, conserving water and providing environmental education.
 

Hanover, Md.-based Frank Parsons, Inc., a wholesale office supplier, has opened a Frank Parsons Express plus, the company's next generation of wholesale stores. In addition to the usual inventory of paper, envelopes, and ink, which have been the foundation of the company's existing stores, Frank Parsons Express plus will stock a full line of office supplies as well as an extensive selection of colored and textured papers that are unavailable at most office supply stores.

Patterson Park Public Charter School (PPPCS) broke ground on a new $13,665.000 middle school building on Monday. The new facility was a result of closing on a $13,665,000 bond issue March 16, 2010 by the Maryland Health and Higher Educational Facilities Authority. The issue is the first of its kind for a charter school in Maryland and will allow PPPCS to refinance its existing facility and provide funding for the new middle school building.

As the largest traditional public charter school in Maryland, PPPCS enrolls 560 students in grades K-8 and will add a pre-K in fall 2011. The new building will complete the school's campus, fulfilling the vision that began with the school's opening in fall 2005,  adding six middle school classrooms and will also contain world class science and art facilities. 

The new building's design and construction will follow Baltimore City's Green Building Standards (equivalent to LEEDS silver). It will include solar panels, stormwater irrigation and recycled content materials. 

Principal Charles W. Kramer says the building will prove a major advance in the school's unique interdisciplinary curriculum by enhancing the school's science, art and technology instruction.

"The new facility is an important next step in providing superior education in Baltimore," says Ed  Rutkowski, spokesman, PPPCS. "Our middle schoolers will have the first-class environment they need."

Founded by community members who wanted educational choice, PPPCS offers all students a broad education. Besides reading, math, science and social studies, all students receive instruction in art, music, Spanish, technology and physical education. The curriculum makes extensive use of Patterson Park, the surrounding community and Baltimore City's rich heritage to widen students' perspectives and to emphasize community service.

Source: Ed Rutkowski, Patterson Park Public Charter School
Writer: Walaika Haskins

The Fresh Market, a gourmet grocery market chain, has increased its presence in the Mid-Atlantic region this month with a new store in Annapolis, marking the company's second store in Maryland.

Baltimore City officials closed a deal on March 10, with Recreation Pier Developers, LLC, for the sale of the Fells Point Recreation Pier. The deal marks a significant step in the Fells Point Recreation Pier redevelopment project. The transaction will require pier restoration, which is expected to be an $8.8 million dollar expense. 

When complete, the site will house a 132-room Aloft-brand hotel with a second floor restaurant. The entire project will be valued in excess of $35 million and will ultimately increase the tax base of the City through sales tax, room tax, and real and personal tax revenue. The project will also create a new job base for the City.

"The closing of the sales transaction marks the beginning of the Fells Point Recreation Pier redevelopment project," says Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. "The restoration of this historic pier will stimulate the development of new businesses that will greatly enrich the community."

The next step is for Moran Towing Corporation, the sole remaining pier tenant, to relocate to its new facility on S. Clinton Street in Canton. The move is expected to occur by May 2010, allowing Recreational Pier Developers, LLC, to begin restoration of the site.

Built in 1914, the Fells Point Recreation Pier was once used for social and educational gatherings. A ballroom on the second floor of the Head House was used for weddings and dances, as well as for basketball and soccer games. More recently, the site has been used as a
filming location for the television series "Homicide: Life on the Streets" and two movies, including "Step Up." As part of the pier restoration, the developers will replace many of the piles that are sinking into the water. The project will receive federal and state historic tax credits from the U.S. National Park Service and the Maryland Historical Trust.

"Baltimore Housing recognizes the unique character of Recreation Pier and its historic significance to Fells Point, Baltimore City and the State of Maryland," says Housing Commissioner Paul Graziano. "We have been working for years to identify a viable and appropriate reuse for this legendary landmark. With the recent closing of the sales transaction with the developers, I am pleased that we can now move forward with the project."

Source: Housing Authority of Baltimore City
Writer: Walaika Haskins

The Fells Point Recreation Pier is one of the state's most endangered sites. At least so says Preservation Maryland, the oldest historic-preservation organization in Maryland, and partner MarylandLife magazine, the team behind the annual list of Maryland's 11 most endangered sites, artifacts and groups of people.

The pier, famous for its place in the city's history as the "Ellis Island ofBaltimore" became well-know once again in 1992 as the location for the hit TV show Homicide: Life on the Streets. The show's run ended in 1999 and now the distinctive brick building with the 500-footpier sits neglected, its decrepit structure falling into the waterfront. Saving the slowly disintegrating pier became a rallying point for members of Fells Point Main Street, whose mission is to promote, strengthen, and revitalize Fells Point's commercial and historic districts. The group nominated the site because it has been sitting vacant for a decade. The building and pilings are rapidly deteriorating, and the area is in need of extensive repair.

"We are excited and gratified that Fell's Point Main Street was successful in its nomination of the Recreation Pier to be named as one of the state's most endangered places by Preservation Maryland. We have always thought that the Recreation Pier is an important part of Fell's Point's history and promises to be an important part of its future.Several years ago,Baltimore City officials decided (with the community's approval) that Baltimore developers J. Joseph Clarke and H&S Properties Development Corporation should relocate Moran Towing Corporation, a tugboat company, from the pier and develop a hotel and restaurant," says Jannette Barth, Fells Point Main Street board president.

"The epicenter of Baltimore's renaissance is the harbor, and the architectural jewel in the crown is the Recreation Pier;' says Lori Guess, a longtime Fells Point resident, attorney, and former chair of the Fells Point Task Force Recreation Pier committee, tells MarylandLife. "This beautiful building-one of very few publicly owned waterfront properties-desperately needs preservation to continue the positive momentum of Baltimore development:' Once the second-leading port of entry (after Ellis Island) on the East Coast, Fells Point's pier was declared a public recreation center in 1914. The head house even has a grand ballroom and served as one of the first municipal dance halls in the country."

While work has yet to begin to restore the pier, Baltimore Housing Commissioner Paul Graziano recently indicated that work should begin shortly on the new 132-room hotel that wil be the piers new occupant, according to the announcement. 

Source: Jannette Barth, Fells Point Main Street
Writer: Walaika Haskins

Baltimore's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) First-Time Homebuyer's Program received $300,000 in renewed funding in February. The CDBG's gain is a windfall for 60 first-time homebuyers in Baltimore. With the additional $300,000 in funding, the income-eligible families will receive $5,000 in home buying assistance.

Baltimore Housing's Office of Homeownership established the first-time buyer program in August 2009. At the start of the program, $300,000 was available for down payment and settlement assistance to low-income families. Within two months, those funds were exhausted. 

"We're pleased to offer the Community Development Block Grant First-Time Homebuyer's Program to help make the dream of owning a home possible for income-eligible families in Baltimore," says Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. "We're equally excited to announce that affordable housing stock is still available for purchase in many of Baltimore's 220 neighborhoods."

Homebuyers can use the incentive funds in combination with an $8,000 First-Time Home Buyers Federal Tax Credit for a total of $13,000 in home buying support. In November 2009, the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 extended the tax credit for first time homebuyers purchasing a primary home between January 1, 2009 and April 30, 2010, with settlement by July 1, 2010. Additionally, active City employees may qualify for $3,000 in home buying incentive funds through the Baltimore City Employee Homeownership Program.

"This window of combined opportunities is time sensitive. First-time homebuyers are encouraged to take advantage of available City homeownership incentives while federal help is also being offered," says Baltimore Housing Commissioner Paul Graziano.

Housing counseling from a City- approved housing counseling agency is a requirement for this and all City homeownership programs. Approved housing counseling agencies and income eligibility criteria are listed on the Baltimore Housing website.

Source: Housing Authority of Baltimore City
Writer: Walaika Haskins

Students at Waverly Elementary Middle School in Greater Homewood will have a brand spanking new, state-of-the-art, LEED-certified school building within the next three years, the Greater Homewood Community Corporation announced.

In the works since 2004, the new school building will replace two relics of the last century situated roughly one and a half blocks apart in which students have been housed for the past six years.

"For many, many years, the school was K through 5. Back in 2003 there was a decision made to keep middle schoolers who had been zoned for Roland Park, closer to the community. The school board added grades making Waverly K through 8. They realized quickly though that there wasn't enough room for the middle schoolers and wound up putting them in building that was about a block away from the elementary school. The old Venable vocational special ed building plus a really ancient portable became the middle school for Waverly," explains Karen DeCamp, director Neighborhood Programs at Greater Homewood Community Corporation.

After several years during which the city would submit requests for funds to build a new school for the neighborhood that the state repeatedly rejected, progress finally came in 2007 after Dr. Alonso Gates became head of the Baltimore City Public School System.

With his support and that of local councilwoman Mary Pat Clark, the city was finally able to submit a plan that the state eventually approved in 2008.

A culmination of years of advocacy and community action, this new building will not only move students out of a sub-standard facility, it will bring competitive academic programs to the school and provide Waverly, Oakenshawe, and Ednor Gardens-Lakeside families with a great public school option in their neighborhood, says DeCamp

The new building, designed by Grimm and Parker Architects, will include a green roof of low-growing succulents and other energy efficient technologies. The building will be constructed in two phases. The new building will be constructed on the field adjacent to the current school building. Students will be able to continue to attend classes in their current building with the elementary school demolished and add the remaining classrooms and a gymnasium once the main structure has been completed.

"For us this is a huge victory for the community. The middle-schoolers have toiled away in substandard circumstances that we think affects achievement and this is just a great victory," DeCamp says.

Source: Karen DeCamp, Greater Homewood Community Corporation
Writer: Walaika Haskins