Development News

The building that houses the WindUp Space and Cyclops among others in the Station North Arts and Entertainment District will soon be ready for its close up.
 
The façade of the entire North Avenue Market building will undergo a $1 million renovation starting in April, says Carolyn E. Frenkil, co-owner of the space.

Used bookstore Cyclops will renovate to make way for a coffee shop. The market is also poised to add a new tenant within the next two months in a vacant gallery space. Frenkil expects the yet unnamed tenant to plan various events, shows, and exhibits to bring additional visibility to the market.
 
The North Avenue Market building, built in 1928, also houses Liam Flynn's Ale House and Baltimore Print Studios.
 
"You can't tell a book by its cover, but if it doesn't have an interesting cover, who's going to open it?" Frenkil says.
 
Some of the planned renovations include a new paint job, additional lighting for the building, and opening up long-covered exterior windows.

Cyclops' renovations are expected to begin when the façade renovations commence, Frenkil says.
 
The Reinvestment Fund, a Philadelphia-based developer, is working with the owners of the North Avenue Market to finance the renovations.
 
Frenkil hopes the facelift will help to generate business for all of the establishments in the Station North Arts District as part of the resurgence in development of an area has long been affected by crime, vacancies, and urban decay. 
 
"When people drive up Charles and hit North Avenue the lights will be on and people will say 'Something is happening on North Ave'," Frenkil says.
 
Frenkil wants North Avenue to develop organically into a unique destination arts district where customers will find the products of the creative energy of Baltimore's residents.
 
"Why mimic someone when you have an opportunity to create something?  We want to create a destination, not a drive-by. If we do what others do, what makes us different? Why come to North Ave.?" Frenkil says. 

Writer: Allie Wilding
Source: Carolyn Frenkil, North Avenue Market

A Massachusetts firm has acquired the rights to develop the retail and apartment component of Marketplace at Fells Point, a $40 million project that is now slated to break ground April 1.

Drew Dolben, senior vice president for the Dolben Co. Inc., says he has acquired the rights for the massive urban redevelopment plan from South Broadway Properties LLC's Dave Holmes. The Dolben Co. has a regional office in Odenton. 

Holmes says he is still involved with the project and is leading a $5 million renovation of the Broadway Market. The recession made financing more complicated and the company realized it needed a partner to see the project get built, he says. With a partner leading the retail and apartment building, South Broadway Properties can focus on the restoration of the market.

The developers of the Marketplace at Fells Point plan to transform the 600 block of South Broadway Street into a "vibrant gateway to historic Fells Point." The transformation will include shops, restaurants and a pedestrian plaza. Streetscape improvements will be a public-private partnership with the city spearheading the design and planning of a pedestrian space called the Square at Fells Point. Planning for that space is currently underway with construction expected to start later this year, Holmes says. 

The extensive project, in the works for several years, also received some federal stimulus funding. But construction on the project, initially slated for January 2011, has been delayed. The group revised it's original plans that included office space and a parking garage after the recession to simply retail and residential space. These changes lowered the total cost of the project.

The company is waiting on the city to issue building permits for the project at 600 S. Broadway and expects the development to take between 18 to 20 months to complete.
 
The project is expected to include 159 apartment units and over 27,000 square-feet of retail space. The company is working with CBRE Group, Inc. to attract food outlets and boutique retailers to lease space.
 
The apartments will be a mixture of one and two bedroom units, and the rents will be consistent with other prices in the area, Dolben says.
 
"We think the Fells Point neighborhood is one of the best residential addresses in Baltimore and a very vibrant area," Dolben says.
 
By acquiring the Marketplace at Fell's Point project, the company wanted to expand its portfolio in the Washington-Baltimore corridor.
 
The company currently has two projects in construction in Maryland, the Village at Odenton Station and the View at Mill Run in Owings Mills. Between developments in Virginia, Maryland and the New England area, the company maintains 11,000 apartment units, Dolben says.
 
Writer: Allie Wilding
Sources: Drew Dolben, Dolben Co. Inc.; Dave Holmes, South Broadway Properties LLC 

South Baltimore could see a new townhouse development if an area developer's plans get approval from Baltimore's zoning board.
 
A planning consulting firm is working with a local developer who plans to build townhouses near Key Highway in Riverside. The townhouses are expected to carry price tags around $400,000.

Baltimore's AB Associates submitted plans for zoning approval from the city for 14 three-story townhouses with rooftop decks, and most with two-car garages at the intersection of Harvey and Lawrence Streets bordering Locust Point. The site is one block from the Baltimore Museum of Industry. 
 
The plans will go before the city's Board of Municipal and Zoning Appeals Feb. 7.
 
If approved, construction could begin on the townhouses this year, and hit the market early next year, says Al Berry, principal of AB Associates. Berry says he's working on behalf of developer Ray Jackson, who owns the property.
 
Berry believes the location near the proposed townhouses just off Key Highway and close to the exit for I-95 will appeal to many homebuyers. Additionally, Berry expects the price point to suit buyers looking to move into the city.
 
"The neighborhood has always been strong for development and housing value," Barry says. He says he doesn't yet know the development cost. 
 
The land where the proposed townhouses sit belonged to the late Vincent Rallo, owner of Rallo's Restaurant. The planned site served as a parking lot for Rallo's Restaurant.
 
The homes will be designed modern industrial style and will all face onto an extensively landscaped interior court, says Berry.
 
Architectural work for the proposed project is being handled by SETO Architects LLC in Mt. Vernon, Berry sats.
 
Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Source: Al Berry, principal of AB Associates
 

Ernestine Brown is on a mission to help women look their best without having to break the bank.
 
Brown opened Sister Ernie B's Sassy Seconds, a consignment shop in the Belair-Edison neighborhood this month to provide an alternative destination for women who want to look good while on a budget.
 
"It's hard to go out to our favorite stores, Macy's, Nordstrom, so we're being wiser with our spending. But it doesn't change the fact that we like to look good," says Brown.
 
In addition to a consignment shop, Sister Ernie B's Sassy Seconds is a women's handbag and accessory boutique.
 
Brown hopes to woo savvy, working women with her shop at 3428 Belair Rd., in the Belair-Edison Main Street district.
 
"I'm excited because Belair Road is a busy main street in the city and we have a little something for everyone with a price base that everyone can afford," Brown says.
 
The shop is currently seeking consigned items for a period of 90 days. If the clothing sells, the price is split evenly between the consigner and the store. Items that do not sell can be returned or donated to the women's recovery house that Brown runs, Sister to Sister, Heart to Hrt. 
 
Additionally, Brown plans to use the consignment shop as a training opportunity for some of the women involved in the recovery house to reestablish job skills.
 
A Baltimore native, Brown has long shopped at consignment stores around the city, and aspires to educate more people about the value of consignment shops.
 
She sees her business as an extension of her desire to help others change their lives for the better. In time, she also hopes to provide jobs for youth in the neighborhood at the shop in which she invested all of her savings.
 

Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Source: Ernestine Brown, owner of Sister Ernie B's Sassy Seconds

Construction crews broke ground this month on the first phase of a new 39,000-square-foot nursing home at the Bulle Rock development in Havre de Grace.
 
Lorien Health Systems' $9.5 million building will have 78 beds and will eventually include an assisted-living facility. The company expects to open the building for patients in April 2013.
 
The site's location provides a needed resource in an area that is getting more people, says James A. Forsyth, an attorney for Lorien Health Systems.
 
Harford County has gained thousands of new residents thanks to the Pentagon's Base Realignment and Closure and these new residents will likely need services for their aging families, Forsyth says.

Lorien's model of healthcare combines skilled nursing facilities with assisted living under the same roof so that patients can move between facilities if necessary. Individuals with more medically complex cases, from accidents for example, will also be able to receive care at this facility, Forsyth says.
 
Lorien's additional sites are located in Bel Air, Belcamp, Columbia, Ellicott City, Mt. Airy, Taneytown, Timonium, and a 64-bed facility nearing completion in Elkridge.
 
Any new healthcare facility of a certain threshold requires a certificate of need approval which is a permitting process overseen by the Maryland Health Care Commission. The process uses county-by-county demographics to determine how many beds will be needed to serve the elderly population.
 
 
Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Source: James A. Forsyth, council for Lorien Health Systems
 

Capital Studios is expanding its co-working space in Little Italy as it gets more interest from the independent contractor who want someone besides her dog as an office companion.

The company just signed a lease to add another 1,000 square feet of space by May, Partner Michael Morris says. That will bring it up to a total of 3,740 square feet.

With 21 members, it has nearly maxed out of space since opening in June, Morris says. It has enough room for 22 workers on any given day. 

Members pay $25 for a day pass or $300 for a monthly pass. With a copier, fax machine, two conference rooms and a projector, it's a step up from working at a coffee shop.

Its clients include software engineers, real estate brokers, sales reps, writers and entrepreneurs.

Capital Studios joins other co-working spaces, Beehive Baltimore and Sizeable Spaces. 

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Michael Morris, Capital Studios

A framed art work provider and wholesale manufacturer that serves Bed Bath & Beyond and La-Z-Boy has relocated from Linthicum to a 34,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Curtis Bay.
 
Big Fish, acquired by Beyond the Label in 2010, moved into a facility that combines warehouse and office space in the Brandon Woods Business Park this month. The space is the same size as the company’s previous location, but configured differently to allow for more usable manufacturing space. In addition, the company added five manufacturing jobs to its 30-person staff on-site.
 
With the move, owner and CEO, Melissa Van Hise hopes to continue to grow her business, which Van Hise says is the largest framer in Maryland.
 
Van Hise wants to bring more of a local focus to a business that has long served clients across the nation.
 
Van Hise was drawn to the space because it was already used as a manufacturing facility and didn't need additional renovations. The building also has a space that Van Hise uses as a gallery area to meet with clients.
 
“It’s a perfect amount of space, there’s a great labor pool nearby and it’s a great facility for growth,” Van Hise says.
 
Big Fish Inc. specializes in innovative framing techniques and artwork including hand-colored prints, limited editions and posters.
 
In recent years, the company has expanded into publishing, graphic arts and private label manufacturing in addition to framing and manufacturing, Van Hise says.
 
“Graphically, we can make anything, people never believe me when I say that, but we can,” says Van Hise.
 
Big Fish creates and manufactures products for retail stores of all sizes, the hospitality industry, interior design firms as well as companies such as Havertys, La-Z-Boy, Arhaus Furniture, and Bed Bath & Beyond, according to Van Hise.
 
The company has no retail store, but does take orders through its website.
 
Other businesses in the area include Reliable Churchill, a wine distributor and Commerce Corporation, a distributor serving garden centers.
 
Big Fish is located at 7600 Energy Parkway in the Brandon Woods Business Park.
 
Source: Melissa Van Hise, owner and CEO of Big Fish Inc.

A $3 million renovation is planned for the Waverly Branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library, though it still needs approval from Baltimore’s Urban Design and Architecture Review panel.
 
The panel heard renovation plans for the 41-year-old Waverly Library this month from Margaret Martin, chief of design and construction for Baltimore's department of general services, and Stephanie Schaefer, regional manager at Buchart Horn, Inc.
 
The panel was disappointed by the plans and recommended several changes to the architects including the creation of a grand reading room with lots of natural light.
 
Martin and Schaefer were asked by the city's design panel to make changes to their renovation plans before returning to the panel.
 
But despite the panel’s feedback, the Waverly library remains on track for renovations, library spokeswoman Roswell Encina says.
 
She says the library is reviewing comments from the community and the design panel on its plans and will release more details on the renovation soon.
 
The library sits at the intersection of 33rd and Barclay Streets in a neighborhood that the city is targeting for urban renewal projects.
 
The proposed floor plan calls for a multipurpose room, a reading room, and separate adult and child's reading areas. Planned green spaces around the library are intended to encourage the community to plant gardens, Martin say.
 
"We want to get the community to take ownership of the library like with the Waverly Farmer's Market," he says.
 
The Waverly library was last renovated in 1986. Other branches of the Enoch Pratt Free Library that have recently been renovated include Edmondson Avenue, Orleans Street, and the Southeast Anchor Library. The Canton branch is the next to be updated, and is currently closed for renovations. 

Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Sources, Roswell Encina, Waverly Library; Margaret Martin, Baltimore City 

The president of Baltimore-Washington Beer Works is moving ahead with his plans to start a Charles Village brewpub and hopes to start brewing his first barrels in May. Stephen Demczuk says he is also developing a new Edgar Allen Poe series of beers with names such as Pendulum Pilsner, Tell Tale Hearty Ale, and the Cask of Amontillado.

The planned Charm City Brewery will be located in a 50,000-square-foot former bottling company at 401 E. 30th St. in Baltimore's Charles Village neighborhood. The terms of the lease have been agreed upon and lawyers are handling the final details, Charm City Brewery CEO J. Hollis B. Albert III says.

But Demczuk says he has abandoned plans to open a brewpub in the former legendary Haussner's restaurant in Highlandtown because the project would have been too expensive and the building was in poor condition.

Demczuk was working with a local developer to turn the vacant building at Eastern Avenue and Clinton Street into a brewpub for the company known for its "Raven" lager.

For now, Demczuk is focusing on Charm City Brewery, which will be a cooperative of several brewers including Oliver Breweries and a brewer relocating from Chicago called LPB LLC.

While the participating brewers will contribute to the cost of the facility and ingredients, Charm City Brewery will brew beer for the individual brewers using their formulas. This will allow the brewers to focus on marking their products and developing new brands, Demczuk says.

Zoning limits the ability for the brewery to include a restaurant. Instead, the brewery will offer tours and tastings. Additionally, the brewery is considering offering workshops for the public on how to brew, says Albert.

Albert declined to state how much has been invested in the property.

Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Sources: Baltimore-Washington Beer Works president, Stephen Demczuk; J. Hollis B. Albert III,  chief executive officer of Charm City Brewery.

A local transportation firm plans to implement a unique road design to handle additional traffic upon the opening of the Maryland Live Casino at the Arundel Mills Mall this summer.

Casino developer Cordish Cos. has hired White Marsh transportation engineering firm the Traffic Group to analyze and plan what would be Maryland’s first diverging diamond interchange if it receives approval from the state’s highway administration.

The interchange, planned at the intersection of the Baltimore Washington Parkway and Arundel Mills Blvd. should be open in time for the opening of the casino later this year.

This type of interchange can move more vehicles more efficiently, and at a lower cost, Traffic Group President Wes Guckert says. Guckert estimates the cost of the project between $1 million and $2 million.

A diverging diamond interchange works by eliminating competing left turns when coming off a highway.  The interchange allows drivers to make a free left turn as if it were a right turn that creates a diamond-like traffic pattern. The left-turn becomes like a right-turn, which allows more efficiency in movement.

It's the left turn, says Guckert, which often slows down the movement of traffic. Drivers can make twice as many left turns per hour compared to traditional designs with the diverging diamond interchange.

"You create a much safer operating environment for the motoring public, one that is faster and more efficient," Guckert says.

The diverging diamond interchange was first developed and built in France 20 some years ago, but was implemented for the first time in the U.S. in Missouri. Guckert studied the Missouri interchange and decided that it could work in Maryland.

The Traffic Group is now analyzing the possibility of implementing the interchanges at several locations in Maryland.

Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Source: Wes Guckert, the Traffic Group

The owners of Milk & Honey Market will open their second cafe in the former Chesapeake restaurant, furthering their plans to breathe life into a cornerstone neighborhood building that has been empty for decades.

Ernst Valery says Milk & Honey Cafe will open by the fall at 1701 N. Charles St., which is in the Station North Arts and Entertainment District.

Valery says the new restaurant will not sell groceries like the Mount Vernon store and will only function as a coffee shop. The sleekly designed Milk & Honey Market in Mount Vernon sells cheeses, bread, eggs and imported food items. It opened late 2010.

Developing the former Chesapeake restaurant is key to Station North’s ambitions to become a thriving arts and entertainment destination. The neighborhood has gotten several new cafes, bars, theaters, artists’ studios and housing in recent years. But it still houses many vacant buildings and will lose anchor tenant Everyman Theatre when it moves to the west side in the fall.

Valery says the building will house two restaurants. Valery and his Milk and Honey team will open one restaurant while another unnamed Baltimore operator will spearhead the other. Philadelphia restaurant owners Mauro Daigle and Annie Baum-Stein are joining Valery and his wife Dana to open the restaurant.

Valery declined to say any more about either restaurant as details are still being finalized.

All total, the two restaurants and Milk and Honey Café will employ 50.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Ernst Valery, Milk and Honey

Woodberry Kitchen’s Spike and Amy Gjerde will open a coffee shop at Hampden’s Union Mill this spring.

The 1,500-square-foot café will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. Allie Caran, the lead barista at Woodberry Kitchen will manage the store, Spike Gjerde says.

Also still in the works is Half Acre, a fast-casual eatery that the Gjerdes will open at 3801 Falls Rd. in the middle of this year. The 75-seat restaurant will serve lunch and dinner and employ 30, Gjerde says. The restaurant is also opening an office at Union Mill for about half a dozen employees at the cafe and restaurants.

The café will be under construction next month and open in March or April, says Michael Morris, the real estate manager for the Gjerdes’ restaurant ownership group behind Woodberry Kitchen, Artifact and Half Acre.

One of the area’s first farm-to-table restaurants, Woodberry Kitchen is one of the Baltimore area’s most popular restaurants. It earned the accolade of Bon Appetit magazine, which named it one of the Top 10 Best New Restaurants in America in its September 2009 issue.

Writer: Julekha Dash
Sources: Spike Gjerde, Woodberry Kitchen; Michael Morris, real estate manager

The University of Maryland, Baltimore County plans to ask the state for $37.4 million at the 2012 General Assembly session so it can break ground this summer on the second phase of the school’s performing arts and humanities building.

The $165 million facility will be the Catonsville school’s largest building to date.

The building is being designed and constructed in two phases. The first phase will open July 1 and includes performing spaces, scene shops, and academic rooms for the department of theatre and classroom spaces and offices for the English department. It broke ground in 2010.

With the funding UMBC hopes to receive from the General Assembly, the university hopes to break ground of the second phase and complete it by summer of 2014.

UMBC hopes the construction of the building will raise the profile of the arts and humanities programs on campus.

"We do want people to know that we have vibrant arts and humanities programs at UMBC even though we might be better known for our programs in the sciences," says UMBC’s Director of Arts Management Thomas Moore.

The current facilities at UMBC are not up to standards for the arts and also make student-professor interaction difficult in the humanities since certain faculty members have to share offices, Moore says.

Some of the highlights of the building include a 350-seat concert hall, a 275-seat theatre, as well as dance and recording studios.

Many high-tech additions will be made to classrooms to make learning more interactive and to improve the learning environment. The building is also on track for LEED certification, Moore says.

The school enrolled more than 13,000 arts and humanities students in the fall.

Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Source: Thomas Moore, UMBC

The owners of Coal Fire Pizza will open a fourth restaurant at the Village at Waugh Chapel shopping center in May.

Principal Owner Dennis Sharoky was drawn to the new development because of other planned businesses, such as Wegmans, Target and Dick’s Sporting Goods that will hopefully make it a popular destination in the county. The Baltimore County native has invested close to $600,000 in the new 110-seat pizzeria.

The Village at Waugh Chapel is a 71-acre project that combines retail, office, and senior-living units. Existing businesses include LA Fitness, Caribou Coffee, Marshalls and Robert Andrew Day Spa. More businesses within the development are set to open throughout 2012.

Coal Fire Pizza specializes in coal-oven pizzas made with a choice of three sauces and topped with sliced mozzarella that's made daily.

"I just tried a pizza out of a coal oven and I fell in love with it and I thought no one does this around here. I think I can do this," Sharoky says.

The coal fire burns more intensely, creating a bake that leaves the pizza slightly charred. Customer response has been favorable and has allowed the business to expand, says Sharoky.

"It's a unique pizza to this area," says Sharoky adding that people from New York come to have pizza at Coal Fire that tastes similar to what they ate growing up.

Sharoky opened the first Coal Fire Pizza two and a half years ago and has steadily expanded the business that he describes as "upscale casual." Each restaurant has outdoor seating and a bar, but is also family friendly.

Coal Fire Pizza's executive chef, Steve Santos, was looking to move from West Virginia to the Baltimore area and joined the team as the menu was being developed.

While Sharoky says the company is not aggressively expanding, they do hope to open locations in Baltimore City eventually. While Sharoky didn't give any specific locations, he says he's been approached to lease space in Canton.

Coal Fire Pizza's additional locations are in Ellicott City, Gaithersburg, and Frederick.

Writer: Alexandra Wilding
Source: Dennis Sharoky, principal owner of Coal Fire Pizza