commercial real estate : Development News

A Howard County restaurant owner has taken over the former Donna’s space in Columbia with his second Mexican eatery in the county.

Xitomate Mexican Restaurant opened this month at 5850 Waterloo Road, at the intersection of Route 108 and Snowden River Parkway. The 100-seat restaurant had a soft opening Jan. 16 with a limited menu of about 40 items, General Manager Octavio Moreno says. By early next month, it will offer about 100 menu items.

Moreno estimates that owner Julio Soto, who also owns Azul 17, spent about $500,000 to open Xitomate. Moreno says the new restaurant is similar to Azul 17, except “more fun, more colorful.”

Xitomate serves fresh-made guacamole, tacos, enchiladas, fajitas and ceviche. The word Xitomate means tomato in Aztec and reflects the restaurant’s commitment to fresh tomatoes and other fresh produce on the menu.

Margaritas are made from premium blue agave tequila. Moreno says the daring should try Margarita La Diable, made with tequila infused with Serrano peppers and mango.

“We are authentic Mexican cuisine,” Moreno says.  

All the decorations were brought from Mexico, and include Day of the Dead motifs and a display of 25 Mexican wrestling masks.

“We decided to do something more family oriented.”

Xitomate employs 28 and will hire four more to work in the patio when it opens in the spring. Patio seating will let it accommodate another 40 diners, Moreno says. 

Writer: Amy Landsman
Source: Octavio Moreno, Xitomate 

A local entrepreneur is bringing fried chicken and fish to diners in Greater Baltimore with his new fast-food concept.
 
Munir Qreini is opening three Freestyle Fish n' Chicken restaurants in Maryland by the end of the year and could spend as much as $200,000 on each of the new restaurants. Qreini says he is in negotiations to open two spots in Baltimore City by the end of April. One is in a former Quiznos in Dundalk and the other in the 2000 block of North Howard Street in midtown Baltimore, just north of the Station North Arts and Entertainment District. He is still scouting sites for the third location.
 
Qreini already has two other Freestyle Fish n’ Chicken stores. In July, he opened a 2,100-square-foot restaurant in a former KFC at 100 N. Howard St. And earlier this month he opened a store in Bowie.  
 
Freestyle serves salads, fried tilapia and catfish, Philly cheese steaks, chicken tenders and tacos. Qreini has devised his own Mambo sauce, a spin on honey mustard, that’s served with chicken, fish and fries. The business owner gets his fish from Jessup’s Reliant Fish Co.
 
Qreini’s 15 years in the restaurant business, including opening three Jack’s Famous Wings in Chicago, helped him devise the menu and concept. He considers his first Baltimore eatery on the west side a good area because it’s near the Hippodrome and new location for the Everyman Theatre. The restaurant also has a 1,000-square-foot space for private meetings that can hold up to 50.
 
Qreini currently has five employees for his west side location and plans to hire more as business expands.
 
Sources: Munir Qreini, Owner of Freestyle Fish n’ Chicken; Janine Nickel, Marketing Consultant, Maisel Development Co.
Writer: Jolene Carr

Amorini Panini, a Washington, D.C., restaurant that serves sandwiches and salads, is franchising its business starting in New York, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Matt Gray, the sandwich shop’s co-founder, says he has filed franchise registration forms and plans to start offering Amorini Panini franchises by early spring.

"The hardest part is building the template and making sure that template works," Gray says.

For the past six months, Gray says he has worked with ifranchise, a consulting firm based outside Chicago, to help him create a manual that instructs future franchisees how to choose a location; handle permitting, construction, and hiring; and run the business.

Gray says his goal for 2013 is selling just five franchises, but his five-year plan includes expanding to 100 franchise-owned restaurants in the Northeast.

Gray, who opened the first Amorini Panini with his business partner Rich Twiley in D.C.'s Penn Quarter in 2010, says that a second location will open its doors by the third week of January. The new restaurant is located at 801 18th St. NW, and will hire 10 employees.

"We’re actually documenting the process so that when we start selling franchises, the franchise dealer will have all this information.

"Today we’re selling paninis, and tomorrow we’re selling systems," he says.

Its menu features breakfast paninis, including a strawberry nutella sandwich; a Montana buffalo chicken panini; and an Italian salad.
 
Writer: Luis Velarde
Source: Matt Gray, Amorini Panini

Luis Velard is development news editor for Elevation DC, a sister publication. 

The owners of popular Canton eatery Fork & Wrench are opening their second restaurant and a market inside the swanky new Fells Point apartment complex Union Wharf this spring.
 
About one-third of the 4,350-square-foot space will be dedicated to a market selling produce, meat and prepared foods, Co-owner Andy Gruver says. Work on the 140-seat restaurant and market will begin in a few weeks, once the owners get the necessary permits.
 
Gruver estimates that the investment in the new business will total $600,000 to $800,000. The restaurant will employ around 30.

Gruver and partner Jason Sanchez are building the restaurant themselves and relying on recycled materials, like its sister property on Boston Street. The new restaurant will serve locally sourced food, but other details, including the chef and menu, are still being worked out. Fork & Wrench is known for its farm-to-table menu, hand-crafted cocktails and an interior that evokes the working classes of the 1920s, 30s and 40s. 
 
Fork and Wrench owners had been looking for spot for a second restaurant for some time. The owners decided that the space at the 281-unit at Union Wharf presented the best opportunity since potential diners live right in the building and in several other apartment buildings nearby.
 
The first phase of the apartment building is fully leased and residents will soon begin moving into the building’s second phase, which includes the units that jut out into the water. That’s according to Jeff Kayce, vice president of Bozzuto Group, the building’s developer. The average monthly rent at Union Wharf is $2,350.
 
The building’s amenities include a fitness center, conference room and an infinity pool. The developers were going for a South Beach, Miami vibe with the property.

The restaurant's Executive Chef Cyrus Keefer will create his Charm City Common Dinner at the James Beard House Monday Feb. 24. The restaurant will offer a sneak peek of the James Beard dinner in Baltimore on January 28. Call the restaurant for tickets. 

Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Andy Gruver, Fork & Wrench; Jeff Kayce, Bozzuto Group

After being closed for nearly three years, renovation is underway at a revamped David’s Restaurant and Deli in Hampden.

Restaurant owner David D. Morgan has submitted an application to the Baltimore City liquor board for permission to house a full bar and hold live music.

In October, the Hampden Village Merchants Association gave Morgan a conditional letter of support. The conditions being that the restaurant open within three months, and the ownership doesn’t immediately transfer to somebody else.

Community leaders say they are looking forward to seeing the vacant property at 3626A Falls Road put to use.

“This has been sitting vacant for several years,” says Benn Ray, president of the Hampden Village Merchants Association. Ray is also owner of Atomic Books, located next to David’s Restaurant. The block could use a viable restaurant, he says.

“Having that amount of real estate right next door being inoperable is not at all helpful.”

Ray says the space is essentially two properties: the former David’s and an old toy train store. He says construction is underway and it appears it’s to be shaping up as a sports bar and restaurant.

Morgan could not be reached for comment and Hampden community leaders say they do not know what kind of food the restaurant will serve. The old David’s Restaurant featured breakfast, burgers, and sandwiches.

The Hampden Community Council also voted support of the new restaurant’s new liquor license application.

The Baltimore City liquor board will hear Morgan’s request on or after Jan. 31. 

Writer: Amy Landsman
Sources: Benn Ray, President Hampden Village Merchants Association; George Peters, Chairman Hampden Zoning Committee

A new business on the Avenue in Hampden allows visitors to try holistic healing on a budget.
 
Mend Acupuncture opened last month at 1008 W. 36 St. above Hampden Junque. Owner Sarah O’Leary offers $25 acupuncture sessions to clients in her 600-square-foot studio.
 
Mends houses six reclining chairs but O’Leary may be purchasing two more. She currently works with ten independently contracted acupuncturists. The Mends acupuncture procedure is a more modest version than your average, O'Leary says. It  focuses on areas from the elbows down and knees down and sometimes the ears and head.
 
O’Leary also owns Seeds Center for Whole Health and decided to open a separate drop-in acupuncture studio after noticing a growing interest in the healing technique. Acupuncture is commonly used to treat back pain, infertility and digestive difficulties while enhancing overall well-being.
 
“The acupuncture aspect really expanded, there was a two month waiting list at Seeds,” O’Leary says. “More and more insurance companies are covering it, but people who don’t have insurance can’t afford it.”
 
O’Leary says the low price is bringing a lot of newbies to acupuncture, many of whom are graduate students, artists and people who work in the hospitality business. Mend stayed open late along with other businesses on the Avenue for First Fridays during the holidays and administered 200 acupuncture treatments by the end of December.
 
O’Leary rented the space above Cafe Hon to open Seeds in 2007. Seeds offers services like reiki, massages and organic waxing. O’Leary enjoys being a business owner in Hampden, where it’s affordable and where there are fellow moms who own their own business. 

Writer: Jolene Carr
Source: Sarah O'Leary, Seeds

The duo known for their Reuben and brisket sandwiches will bring pizza fit for Ravens’ fans to downtown Baltimore next month.
 
Owners of Beef Brothers Deli Brad and Mark Quint will open Purple Pizza in the Center Plaza Food Court at 222 N. Charles St. Located next to their deli, the eatery will sell pizza by the slice with the option of getting the dough in the Baltimore Ravens’ team color.
 
The restaurant will also sell subs and other Italian dishes and offer delivery and catering, Brad Quint says. The food court holds seating for about 200 indoors and 50 outdoors.
 
The Quint brothers started out three years ago after investing about $6,000 in a hotdog cart that they still operate seasonally and then opened their deli the same year. They decided to open a business that sells pizza by the slice after they felt something was missing for downtown employees during lunch hour.
 
The brothers named their new eatery in honor of the Ravens — now heading to Massachusetts for the NFL Championship game against the New England Patriots. It’s also the name of a favorite hangout of the brothers in College Park that has since closed.  The owners hope Purple Pizza will serve as a friendly spot for people to converse about sports, partake in sports trivia and eat pizza. They also might try adding patterns and designs in their pizza for special occasions, Brad Quint says.
 
Writer: Jolene Carr
Contact: Brad Quint, co-owner of Beef Brother’s Deli and Purple Pizza

Things may soon be looking up for Towson’s popular Greene Turtle Sports Bar and Grille.

The 26-year-old restaurant hopes to double its space with a 3,000-square-foot expansion in the form of a rooftop deck.

With the Towson Circle III movie theater, restaurant and retail project now under construction, the rooftop expansion could help it attract customers who will soon have more entertainment choices.

Greene Turtle Co-owner Jill Packo says the deck would feature a bar, small kitchen, and table seating. The additional space would accommodate more than 100. Based in Egdewater, the franchise sports bar is rapidly expanding and plans to open 16 to 20 restaurants in the Northeast by the end of 2014. 

The Baltimore County Board of Liquor License Commissioners approved the Greene Turtle’s request for an expansion on Monday. But the restaurant still needs to sign a new lease and complete a geological survey before completing any work at 408 York Road.

“We need to make sure the building can support the rooftop,” Packo says. The restaurant will double its staff if the project goes through.

She says that Baltimore County officials have been very supportive of the idea. Nancy Hafford, the executive director of the Towson Chamber of Commerce, says the Greene Turtle’s expansion will help it get more customers to the east side of York Road.

As for possible noise from a rooftop deck, Hafford says the owners have always been “very responsible” neighbors and she expects that would continue in the future.
 
Writer: Amy Landsman
Sources: Jill Packo, co-owner, Towson Greene Turtle; Nancy Hafford, executive director, Towson Chamber of Commerce

Developer Patrick Grace is building an apartment complex with 11 units in a former condominium and office building in Mount Vernon.
 
Construction on the $1.5 million market-rate apartments at 505 Park Ave. will begin in the spring and wrap up in the fall, says AB Associates’ Nate Pretl, a land use consultant working in conjunction with Grace’s Trademark Properties. The developer handles commercial and multi-family properties in the mid-Atlantic. Baltimore’s Harbor Development LLC is the project's general contractor.
 
The building is just down the street from one of the biggest apartment projects currently under development. The Time Group of Owings Mills is building 171 market-rate apartments at 520 Park Ave., to be completed spring 2014. The neighborhood is attracting more interest from retailers and developers with the expansions of the University of Baltimore and the Maryland Institute College of Art.
 
Apartments at 505 Park will rent for between $900 and $2,000 a month for one, two and three-bedroom units. The apartments will be between 550 to 1,150 square feet, Pretl says.
 
The east side of the property contains a four-story carriage house, which the developer will renovate and subdivide as a separate unit, Pretl says. The carriage house will at some point go on sale as a single-family residence. 
 
The apartments will be marketed to graduate students and young professionals who want to be close to neighboring universities, the central business district and the cultural attractions in Mount Vernon, Pretl says. 

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Nate Pretl, AB Associates

Portuguese, Italian and Mexican restaurants will join Cinemark Theatres at the $85 million Towson Square project, expected to generate more than 1,500 jobs.

Plans for the theater have also been revised, with 15 screens instead of the original 16, county officials and developers said at a news conference Tuesday. The theater will be one of two in the country to feature a VIP seating section with private bar access and premium food. Work on the 850-space parking garage will finish in the fall and the entire Towson Square project will open in 2014.

Nando’s Peri-Peri, La Tagliatella and On the Border Mexican Grill and Cantina will open at the development, along with five other eateries that have yet to be unveiled. A South African-based franchise that sells flame-grilled Portuguese-style chicken, Nando's has restaurants in Annapolis, Gambrills, National Harbor, Silver Spring and Gaithersburg. La Tagliatella is a European chain that is owned by AmRest Holding SE, which bills itself as the largest independent restaurant operator in Central and Eastern Europe. This would be the first La Tagliatella in Maryland and the fourth in the US.

The development may include some retail, but the center will be predominantly entertainment focused, said Cordish Cos. Vice President Blake Cordish. 

Branding Towson as an area that can attract folks outside the county was a major theme at the news conference.

"We’ve put together a collection of amenities that would be a regional draw,” Cordish said.

Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz engaged in a little light-hearted rivalry with Bethesda, saying he’s tired of hearing about Bethesda’s wonderful amenities and strong business community.

“Guess what folks? We’re certainly a livable and loveable jurisdiction. We are going to make Towson a regional destination.”

Writer: Amy Landsman
Sources: Blake Cordish, Cordish Cos; Kevin Kamenetz, Baltimore County Executive 

Construction will begin this summer on a $25 million building with market-rate apartments, a 247-car garage and retail.

Developer Chesapeake Realty Partners expects the project to be completed in the spring of 2014. The Owings Mills company also spearheaded the apartment complex across the street at 1901 Patapsco St.

Plans for the as-yet unnamed project at 2 East Wells St. call for 153 apartments, including 96 efficiencies and 57 one-and-two bedroom units. Renters can expect to pay, on average, about $1,800 per month. 

Currently, there are warehouses and offices on the lot, which also includes 1800 and 1802 Patapsco Streets. Mayers says he believes this is an opportunity to “create a new version of an existing neighborhood,” with good walkability and easy highway access.

The project also calls for 6,000 square feet of retail, says Chesapeake Realty President Jonathan Mayers. Facing East Wells Street, future retail tenants will serve the local community, and could include a bagel and coffee shop, nail salon, or a small local grocery, Mayers says.

“There’s really few commercial or industrial buildings left, and everything else in the neighborhood is more or less rowhomes or new apartment buildings,” Mayer says.

Demand for apartments remains strong throughout the city as many apartment complexes report nearly 100 percent occupancy rates. 

“We feel there’s a dearth of housing options in the south Baltimore market,” says Josh Fidler, Chesapeake’s chief operating officer. He says the area holds a number of assets, including Riverside Park, the headquarters for the National Federation of the Blind and the former Pabst brewery that is set to reopen this summer.

Mayers says the garage will be large enough to offer secure parking for tenants and visitors, with additional spaces available for lease. Plans also call for widening the alleys around the new building, making parking and access easier for the existing rowhomes on South Charles, Barney and Patapsco Streets.
 
Sources: Jonathan Mayers and Josh Fidler; Chesapeake Realty Partners
Writer: Amy Landsman
 
 
 
 
 

New owners are set to open a new nightclub this month in the former Sonar space in downtown Baltimore.
 
Co-owner Anil Prashar says he’ll debut Paparazzi nightclub at 407 E. Saratoga St. with an International Night-themed soft opening. From then on, the nightclub will be open Thursdays and Saturdays. Prashar and three business partners spent about $500,000 to refurbish Sonar as a Las Vegas-style lounge, bar and dance floor that can hold up to 1,000. The dance floor will be located in a former parking garage that the Prashar and his business partners are taking over.
 
Live music venue Sonar opened in 2001 and closed last year. Former Sonar owner Daniel McIntosh was convicted in November for his role in a marijuana and money-laundering scheme. The popular club featured electronica, rock and indie acts over the years, as well events like the Maryland Deathfest.
 
Prashar says believes Baltimore needs another nightclub. “It’s been missing for a long time. We’ve had Mosaic, but that’s it.”
 
The co-owner, who has a marketing background and helped promote former local clubs like Mist, says he was inspired by places like Vegas hotspots that incorporate luxurious style with leather cushions, hardwood floors and rich, colored fabrics. DJs will spin Top 40 songs and house dance music. Prashar says he anticipates having celebrity guest hosts while eventually opening the venue to charity events, holiday parties and live entertainment and eventually adding a kitchen.
 
Prashar chose the name Paparazzi based on everyone’s inner desire for fame. “The day and age we live in, a lot of what goes on with Facebook is about pictures and being seen. The biggest thing on top of customer service is social relevancy, and we want to show that everyone has social relevancy,” Prashar says.
 
The nightclub will employ 30 and rely on another 40 to 50 for promotions. 

Writer: Jolene Carr
Source: Anil Prashar, Paparazzi

A South Baltimore entrepreneur is brewing up plans to revive the former Pabst Brewing Co. building at the corner of Wells and South Charles Streets.

Former Austin Grill General Manager Spike Owen and a team of investors are spending more than $1.3 million to renovate the historic vacant building for the yet-to-be named project, expected to wrap up by fall. Baltimore's Green Door Properties LLC is the developer. 

Owen says he hopes to open a brewery that produces European and American-style ales and lagers and a taproom that seats 65 to 80 with a limited food menu. He says he is partnering with a veteran brewer with 25 years of experience but declined to name him as the brewer is employed elsewhere in town.

He’s the latest in the recent spate of hopeful entrepreneurs who have tapped into Baltimore residents’ thirst for locally made brews and beer-themed restaurants. Other recent entries include Union Craft Brewing in Woodberry and Heavy Seas Alehouse in Little Italy.

The idea of renovating a historic building that dates from Baltimore’s brewing heyday appeals to Owen. Beer manufacturing thrived from the late-1800s to the mid-1900s, thanks to the city's German immigrants.

“We like the sense of history,” he says. “We’re trying to bring [the building] back to what its original use was. When you have something like this, it helps with the branding.”

Owen says he’ll spend the next few months getting permits, ordering brewing equipment and modernizing the building’s infrastructure. The idea is to retain the historic features, including brick walls, wood beams and high ceilings.

The property is down the street from the National Federation of the Blind and a new apartment complex set to open spring of 2014. 

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Spike Owen 

A new gift shop and café called Matcha Time is making its home in downtown Ellicott City.

Owner Hatsumi Watanabe-Smith grew up outside Tokyo, and later traveled the world. Now she and her family are settled in Ellicott City, where she’s decided to open shop, named for the Japanese green tea known as matcha. The gift shop opened this month at the 1,000-square-foot space at 8381 Merryman St. The café will open in the coming months once it gets county approval.

Though Ellicott City is home to a tea room, Tea on the Tiber, Matcha Time will offer sushi, Japanese baked goods and, hopefully, a traditional Japanese tea ceremony.

Watanabe-Smith and her husband Derek Smith invested about $70,000 in the store, whose entrance faces a parking lot. The space was previously home to the Hackers Inc. Mancave, which moved last spring to a larger location in Ellicott City. Smith says the search for a suitable space took months, as good locations in Ellicott City tend to get snapped up fast.

The space is divided between a retail section, and the teashop and café. The retail side features Japanese crafts, origami, and handbags and clutches fashioned from vintage kimonos.
 
Writer: Amy Landsman  [email protected]
Sources: Hatsumi Watanabe-Smith, Derek Smith, owners, Matcha Time
 

The Jewish Community Center of Baltimore is branching out to downtown Baltimore, opening a Federal Hill branch just for parents and kids. Opening Jan. 14, the center fills the void for city families who have long been frustrated by the lack of children’s gyms and other fun places for preschoolers’ downtown.

The JCC has leased 2,000 square-feet at 1118 Light St., between West and Cross Streets. The former office space will feature a drop-in playroom, a play area, a nursing room and a room that parents can rent for birthday parties.

 “We’ll have age appropriate toys and a clean, comfortable space that parents can come and have their kids play,” says JCC Family Program Coordinator Kim Jacobsohn. “Our goal is to create communities for families to connect with each other,” Jacobson says. “I’m very excited to finally be giving birth to this new project.”

The downtown branch joins the JCC’s two existing campuses in Park Heights and Owings Mills, both of which feature full-service fitness facilities and programing for all ages.

For the past five years or so, the JCC has been offering family programming in borrowed locations in Fells Point, Canton, and Federal Hill, and has long wanted a permanent place to call home.

“We decided to go to Federal Hill because we realized in Federal Hill there’s more likely to be a stay-at-home parent, or a parent who’s working from home, than other neighborhoods in downtown,” Jacobsohn says.

The first floor space is stroller accessible and members can park in a lot behind the building. Jacobsohn and a part-time program facilitator will staff the new facility.

The drop-in rate is $5 per child up to three times, after that, families are asked to join the Downtown JCC. The introductory membership rate is $50 a year.

The JCC is an educational, cultural and recreational agency. You do not have to be Jewish to become a member or sign up for a class.

The JCC will continue to offer its Hello Baby class for parents of newborns, and Infant Massage, in Fells Point and Canton. Other parent-child classes for babies and toddlers will move to the new location in Federal Hill.
 
Source: Kim Jacobsohn, JCC Family Program Coordinator
Reporter: Amy Landsman, [email protected]