Port Covington Retail:Could It Be Revived?

Disclaimer!!!!! I had roughly composed this post BEFORE Kevin Plank took interest in Port Covington. I had enough Material to publish it as is.

Do you ever drive through the desolate streets of Port Covington and wonder what went wrong? I have googled earthed it many times and wondered the same thing. Finally I made it out there to take pictures and I wondered what went wrong. This was supposed to be a Mecca for Suburban Style Big Box Retail in the City that was previously unknown to City Residents. The Buildings and infrastructure of Downtown's Westside couldn't and wouldn't support this so Port Covington was hand-picked successor of Baltimore's Retail Future. Yet here we are today.

Port Covington is located at the southern edge of the South Baltimore Peninsula. Before the construction of I-95, this once industrial area was integrated to rapidly gentrifying Neighborhoods of South Baltimore north of the I-95 overpasses. Of course these large intrusive overpasses created a barrier between South Baltimore and Port Covington and the continuing decline of industry only increased the bleak future of the area. At this point in time South Baltimore itself was in decline with exception of Federal Hill and Otterbein.

In the early 2000s, it became obvious that the City needed to be home to the same type of suburban big box Retail that City Dwellers were going to in the County for to keep those tax dollars here in the City and lure more Residents in due to the convenience of big box Retail that's in the City. It also became obvious that the Westside of Downtown, Baltimore's historic Retail Mecca doesn't have the parking capacity, infrastructure, or the type of buildings that are required to host these large chain stores.

Meanwhile the Walton Family (owners of Wal-Mart and Sam's Club) have noticed the increase in population surrounding Downtown and they wanted to get in on it. They also noticed the lack of competition as their main competitors K-Mart and Target were nowhere to be found in Downtown Baltimore or anywhere near it. Now all they had to do was find a site, build on it, and they would be ready to roll and smaller suburban chain stores such as Restaurants or medium sized box stores were sure to follow.

The question now became where can a vacant land parcel that's large enough for a big box center AND is very close to Downtown? At the time the best and perhaps only answer was Port Covington. Although there are a few active uses going on in Port Covington, there was also lots of vacant land especially the land directly overlooking the Middle Branch. At this point, the idea of building luxury Apartments along the shores of the Middle Branch was still a-ways away. 

Long story short WalMart and Sams Club built their stores in Port Covington. No other businesses ever followed suit. WalMart is still open but Sams Club(pictured above) had gone out of business years ago. Although it's close to Downtown it's not convenient to I-95 traffic, Cherry Hill, Brooklyn, or any other Neighborhood for that matter. This little island of failed would-be big boxed Retail just exists on mostly in a world of its own. One lesson painful lesson was learned from this little experience; Baltimore just can't support Big Box Retail.

Fast forward to 2013 and another waterfront Community proved the above statement wrong. Canton Crossing (pictured above) opened a big box Shopping Center in (you guessed it) Canton. Canton Crossing comes with a Target, Harris Teeter, Michaels, Old Navy, DSW Shoe Wharehouse, and Five Below. Not to mention a generous selection of Restaurants including Baltimore City's first Chick-Fillet. This time the Center was built in the middle of a densely packed Row House Neighborhood filled with new Apartments, Condos, and Town Homes with many more on the way. In short, Canton Crossing has a critical mass of consumers located within walking distance.

Two lessons were learned from Canton Crossing that could be transferred Port Covington. The first is that Baltimore City CAN in fact support Big Box Retail but that sight must be accessible and on the grid so to speak. The second lesson is that it must be near a critical mass of Residences and Offices who will automatically support these stores. These are both things that Canton Crossing has and Port Covington lacks. 

So, in staying true to the title of this post, how can we revive Port Covington and the Big Box Center that has died before our eyes? To answer that I suggest we would look at the more successful Canton Crossing. Port Covington simply needs a critical mass of Residences and Offices surrounding it. Now what is surrounding the ill-fated Center? Industry. It's no secret that industry is on the decline and has been for quite some time now. It might not be a bad idea to look at the industrial area west of the Center to see full the space is. 

Should this space become available, it would be perfect to redevelop as a mixed waterfront enclave not unlike Inner Harbor East and the soon to be built Harbor Point. Remember this is prime waterfront property granted it's the Middle Branch rather than the Inner Harbor but the Middle Branch is bound to be a magnet for those looking to buy waterfront after the Inner Harbor is built out. There's also the sad truth that the Baltimore Sun may not need a distribution plant as large as the one in Port Covington. If that closes, it can be torn down and redeveloped with Town Homes in a traditional urban grid fashion. 

With Port Covington as a real Neighborhood, the big box center can turn into a community gathering place where Retailers and Restaurants alike can flock to the area and will no longer be off the beaten path.

Edmondson Village Redevelopment II: The Rest of the Neighborhood

The title of this post may seem misleading. I have no intention redeveloping all of Edmondson Village. In fact, I think Edmondson Village has some of Baltimore's most well kept and beautifully designed Row Homes that nobody knows about. Given that Edmondson Village has had run ins with crime and its Shopping Center is going down hill all too quickly (addressed in my previous post) people tend to shy away from this diamond in the rough. But if a few target spots in the Neighborhood were redeveloped or reused along with the population influx from the new Uplands, Edmondson Village can in fact become the safe clean Neighborhood it's always wanted to be.

Edmondson Village started out as a middle class white Neighborhood. In the mid to late 1950s, Inner City social constraints made the Black Neighborhoods just a few miles away burst at the seams and "blockbusting" Real Estate Agents began selling to Middle Class Black Families. This scared away most White Families and by 1965 Edmondson Village was almost 100% Black. Similar to the White Families who abandoned Edmondson Village in the 1950s and '60s, Middle Class Black Families began doing the same in the 1970s as the suburbs became more affordable and welcoming to them. As the Inner City continued to clear out, Edmondson Village went from a Middle Class Neighborhood to a poorer Neighborhood.      

One thing Edmondson Village has retained throughout its entire existence has been its high rate of home ownership. In order to make the Neighborhood more viable, the high rate of home ownership must be preserved. In addition to the high number of privately owned homes, there are only a very small number of vacants. Don't get me wrong, there are some vacants and some rentals. However when compared to many other West Baltimore Neighborhoods the amount of boards on windows is very low. Since the aim of this post is for Edmondson Village to be the best it can be, how about we try to eliminate the number of vacants no matter how few there are.

So how we do that? Well first we have to find them. I've found that they tend to be clusters. The two largest clusters are in the vicinity of W. Franklin St. and Normandy Avenue. The other is in the Hilton/Denison/Edgewood St. area. If these two blocks of Edmondson Village were redeveloped, I believe it would give the Neighborhood a face lift and can in turn entice other single blighted properties throughout the Neighborhood to make improvements. Hopefully private investment in the form of redevelopment in the areas I've selected will help steer some public dollars towards Edmondson Village by way of alley cleanings, new sidewalks, and repaved roads.

Now no discussion about Edmondson Village can be complete without discussing the road that runs right through it; Edmondson Avenue. This is where the vast majority of vacants in Edmondson Village are and at the same time gets by far the most vehicular and foot traffic. I don't think it's a good idea to simply rehab the existing structures due to the fact that one reason their vacancy rate is so high is because there's not enough parking. I would build new town homes that are more set back from the road that have garages in the back allies to ensure adequate parking. The corner stores would not be allowed as these blocks of Edmondson Avenue would be rezoned to purely Residential as would the remainder of corner stores not with Edmondson Avenue frontage.

Another area in Edmondson Village that needs to be addressed is the Fair Foods Market (nee Hilton Supermarket) and surrounding blighted Retail. I would have that whole area rezoned as purely Residential and have it redeveloped as Apartments for low income Seniors similar to the Greens at Irvington Mews just a few blocks south. I would relocate the Fair Foods in a brand new building as well as other Retail uses in the area along Fredrick Avenue so as not to create a food desert. The last area I will address in this post is what is known as Saint Joseph's park. Some maps and master plans list it as a park while others list it as several vacant lots. The Edmondson Village Master Plan goes as far as to create a rendering as the area developed. If this is truly a park I say let it stay as such. If it's truly vacant lots, build the homes as the Master Plan gas laid them out.

Although the Uplands redevelopment has the potential to keep Edmondson Village from falling further, there are still a few aspects of Edmondson Village proper that need to be addressed to make this diamond in the rough shine once again. Hopefully more people will begin to see the potential.

Edmondson Village Redevelopment I: The Shopping Center

Edmondson Village Shopping Center is in shambles. There I said it. This time I don't just mean that the mix of low end tenants doesn't match the wants and needs of the Community it serves although that's part of the problem. What I mean this time is that the Center is in a state of physical decay. Gutters are falling off, bricks are crumbling, pot holes are filling parking lots, trash is strewn about everywhere, and dumpsters and trash cans remain un-emptied, and the sewage remains backed up. To put it lightly, if change doesn't come and doesn't come fast, I fear for the future of not just the Shopping Center but the Greater Edmondson Village Community as a whole.

Edmondson Village wasn't always like it is today. It opened in 1947 as an upscale Shopping Center for the fast growing Edmondson Avenue corridor. It originally boasted tenants such as Hoschild Kohn, Hess Shoes, a Movie Theater, and eventually a Bowling Alley among many others. The Shopping Center was deemed as one of the first suburban Shopping Centers in the region. Even as blockbusting completely change the population from almost all White to almost all black in less than a decade, the Shopping Center still retained a nice mix of tenants.

The biggest blow to the Center was and still is slumlords. One could make the argument that newer Shopping Centers just over the County Line were to blame but Edmondson Village and its surrounding Neighborhoods didn't experience population at nearly as high a rate as many in other parts of the City. There are also Shopping Centers throughout the City that despite losing large amounts of population, spent tens of millions of dollars renovations and modernizing their properties and have enjoyed a new lease on life such as Mondawmin Mall, Reisterstown Road Plaza, and the Rotunda which is currently undergoing redevelopment. There are also areas in the City where brand new suburban style Shopping Centers (more than Edmondson Village) have breathed new life into Neighborhoods with little to no Retail and perhaps may have curtailed further population loss. South-side Marketplace and Greenspring Tower Plaza come to mind.

So while all these other Shopping Centers were either being built or renovated, what happened to Edmondson Village? Very little. Perhaps some minor facade improvements were made over the years but other than that the Center looks almost identical to itself in its heyday. When I say almost I don't take into account the years of neglect it has suffered but how many 60+ year old Shopping Centers are successful today without major renovations or redevelopment? The original neglect of the Center started in the late 1970s when Harry Weinberg owned it. Although he would later become Baltimore Royalty post posthumously due to the generosity of the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, he was actually a slumlord.

Although Edmondson Village changed hands from between the days of Harry Weinberg and the present day, Edmondson Village is once again owned by a slumlord. This time it's Carl Verstandig, owner of America's Realty Corp. Though they're not quite notorious for their lack of upkeep on their properties, they're beginning to make a name for themselves most famously in Columbia when they bought Long Reach Village Center and let it decay so bad that Howard County bought from them and will redevelop it themselves. They also own some low market strip centers in Glen Burnie that are also suffering from lack of upkeep. In addition they want to buy Owings Mills Mall, which if you thought couldn't get any worse, just America's Realty Corp buy it and prove you wrong. In fact, all of the upkeep (or lack there of) problems that are plaguing Edmondson Village are the fault of America's Realty Corp.

Now comes the hard part; actually turning Edmondson Village back into a shopping destination that draws people into the Neighborhood. First thing's first; America's Realty Corp. has to sell Edmondson Village to an experienced Retail Property Management/Leasing Agency that will make long term investments to the Center.In the short term, they must address all of the quality of life issues around the Center such as decaying structures, parking lot, and infrastructure. After that is done, the real planning comes into focus and the burning question will get answered; Is Edmondson Village relevant in its current form?

     

Like I had said before, Edmondson Village remains almost identical in layout to its 1947 self. In Baltimore, all of the successful Shopping Centers are either new construction or have gone through massive renovations that the majority of the original structure(s) have been replaced with new construction. In order for Edmonson Village to survive and thrive, some major changes to the lay out of the Center must happen despite its iconic status as a pioneer in suburban shopping centers.

When talking redevelopment one must look at the trends. In the case of Neighborhood Retail, these trends all point to one thing; mixed use. Recently completed mixed use projects in the City include Jefferson Square at Washington Hill and Twelve 09 N. Charles St. This works very well for the Retail component because the Residences and/or Offices above make for built in patronage for said Retail. On the same token, the Residences and/or Offices above will have the convenience of Retail offerings just a few floors below them. So does this translate into a total tear down for Edmondson Village? It does.

A compete tear down will also address infrastructure problems that are currently plaguing the Center. One of the main draws of the Center in its early days was that it has "acres of parking." which was a clear indicator of the suburban mindset that the original Architects of the Center were in. The mindset of mixed use is to built up not out. The now setback Center will be much closer to Edmondson Avenue. and will be more pedestrian oriented rather than automobile oriented. This will be all the more important with the upcoming construction of the Red Line which will have a stop at Edmondson Village. Speaking of automobiles, where they park if their parking lot is being taken away from them?     

The answer to that is a parking garage. Not just any parking garage, a hidden one. A large portion of mixed use developments build a parking garage in the middle of the building site. The parking garage is also the same height as the building(s) it serves. The parking garage at Edmondson Village will have two different entrances; one for the Retail Tenants and Patrons, the other for Residents of the Apartments and Condos above. The structure(s) will be 4-6 stories high and will feature a courtyard pool and sundeck. It will feature a broad mix of incomes from Market Rate Home Ownership and Rentals to Low/Moderate Income Home Ownership and Rentals.

Now what will the new mix of Retail Tenants be? Well that would be up to the Community. Before and during redevelopment, surveys will be sent out to Residents of the following Communities; Edmondson Village, Rognel Heights, Hunting Ridge, Ten Hills, Westgate, Allendale, and Uplands (new and perspective Residents.) They will be asked what they would like to see at the new Center such as more of this, less of this and what type of safety improvements they would like to see as well and if they actually shop there. Chances are most of the Residents would like to see more sit down Restaurants, Banks, Coffee Shop, and fewer     low end stores. My one suggestion for Edmondson Village would be to get a Farmer's Market for the area. The success of Farmer's Markets throughout Baltimore and the lack of fresh quality produce at affordable prices would prove a big hit anywhere in the City and Edmondson Village is no different.

Although this seems like a pipe dream, Residents and Officials are in fact turning up the heat on America's Realty Corp. the Center's current owners. As the area continues to grow from the construction of Uplands as well as construction of the Red Line, the need for a Neighborhood Shopping Center that safely serves everybody's needs will become all the more crucial. The only way to make that happen however is for Residents to continue to demand the change they deserve. After all as it stands now, Edmondson Village Shopping Center is still in shambles.

Westport Waterfront: An Oasis of Tiny Cottages

Well here's a big surprise, Patrick Turner may be losing the land he fought so hard to keep in his own name. Although there may be a buyer to purchase the loans he has defaulted on, the Judge told him flat out that he's "buying time and waiting for a miracle." Those are harsh words but I'm inclined to agree. Baltimore simply isn't ready for a redeveloped Westport Waterfront.

Although such a project would be a huge boost to the City's economy and tax base as well as further population growth, there are simply too many other well funded large development projects across the City; first there's Inner Harbor East once H&S Bakery vacates its current Southeast Baltimore home, it will re-open several blocks for redevelopment. Harbor Point is moving forward quite nicely as well as are plans to build more Offices in Canton Crossing. Otterbein and Sharp Leadenhall are each receiving large redevelopment projects. There are also parcels slated for development in Harborview. Lets not forget that Downtown is redefining itself as something more than just Office Space. Office Buildings that are losing out to newer buildings are getting a new lease on life as Apartments and Condos. To add even more sting; State Center will probably get built before Westport.

So is Westport a lost cause? In the short term my answer is yes but in the long term, once the City has absorbed all the new development listed above, Westport's redevelopment may finally happen. The problem is, when I say that Westport will eventually happen, how far in the future could that happen? I'm projecting anywhere between 15 and 25 years before interest is renewed. No investor will have the patience to simply sit on that land while paying mortgages and taxes and not getting anything in return. In order to keep investors happy, they must at the very least break even on the land in the short term. The $1 Million or should I say $1 Billion question is; How?

Meanwhile throughout the City, most notably in highly populated areas in and around Downtown, the City has been taking a rough stance on Homeless Encampments. In effort to make these areas more attractive to rich City Dwellers, the Homeless Population of Baltimore especially those camping under the JFX (where the popular Farmers Market is) have had to move along. But where can they go? In the minds of those in City Hall the answer is "Somewhere we can pretend the problem doesn't exist." This has been the "solution" to homelessness nationwide, to sweep it under the rug and not address the underlying causes of homelessness and treat these human beings as anything but.             

Studies have shown that actually addressing homelessness is more cost effective than ignoring it. City and State Budgets have improved in areas where building small cottages for an area's homeless populations have been beneficial to everyone. Granted these cottages aren't anything fancy, they're small kit homes that Residents are afforded a place to sleep and be out of the elements and be safer than on the streets. Homeless Shelters which are already filled to capacity could deliver food to encampments of homeless cottages as can Restaurants who do so with "day old" food. These Cottages became popular after Hurricane Katrina when tens of thousands of New Orleans Residents lost their homes. New Orleans has dubbed them "Katrina Cottages." 

So where would these small Cottages go? Surely throughout Baltimore there's an area where there's empty land that can hold several hundred if not more of these little Cottages Right? Given that the Westport Waterfront is currently completely vacant for the foreseeable future, it's a no brainier that this location would fit the bill perfectly. Although this plan benefits the Homeless population of Baltimore as well as the Taxpayers, how would this benefit current and future investors of the Westport Waterfront? The City, State, and Feds can team up and lease the land from the investors to cover the cost of whatever mortgages and taxes associated with the ownership of that land.

With Homeless population of Baltimore consolidated to one area, the underlying causes of homelessness can be addressed. Social Services can assist those living in the Cottages with services ranging from addiction counseling, physical healthcare, mental healthcare, school enrollment, needle exchange, and vocational training. I liken this to "Hamsterdam" which played out in Season 3 of the wire which saw West Baltimore's drug dealers and users brought to one secluded area and before being shutdown, began to help those in need. Although not every single homeless person in Baltimore can benefit from such services, I do believe that a large percentage of them can all Residents can at the very least be safer. This area will also be heavily Policed to ensure each Resident's safety.

Unfortunately, like all good things, this may come to an end at any time. Demand for Office Space, Retail, and Residences could begin to arise again after the completion of other large projects in and around Downtown and the Harbor even though the're completely built out. It would be at that point that the Westport Waterfront redevelopment will begin to have legs once again. Obviously, the investors in the project will want to get moving so they can see a return on their investment. This could spell disaster for for the Homeless population that has begun to heel. 

Hopefully after 20 some odd years of Homeless intervention, the population of Baltimore's Homeless will have plummeted and fewer and fewer people will qualify as "Homeless." Hopefully there will be more "crisis housing" to stem the problem of homelessness before those most vulnerable are left without a roof over their heads. Hopefully with a short term solution such as the Westport Waterfront, our Elected Officials can think up a viable long term solution when the Westport Waterfront becomes prime real estate once again.

McCulloh Homes: A New Short Term Lease On Life

Development and redevelopment activity is back in full swing around Downtown and most surrounding areas. H&S Bakery will soon be vacating its sprawling factory in the middle of Inner Harbor East to so that new construction can continue, construction on the Central Avenue bridge into Harbor Point is on track which will allow Harbor Point construction to commence in just a few short years, there are numerous Apartment projects coming down the pipeline for Otterbein, Sharp-Leadenhall, and South Baltimore, Canton Crossing is looking to add more Office Space, and Downtown proper has been seeing numerous re-purposing from Office Buildings to Apartments as the demand for Apartments Downtown has sky-rocketed. In short, new construction in Baltimore is all around us. Well almost.

One part of the Greater Downtown Area that hasn't received much attention is State Center. For those who aren't familiar with State Center it's currently an outdated Office Park that houses State Offices that's located on both the Light Rail Line, the Metro, and is just a few blocks from Penn Station. It is also surrounded by numerous hot areas such as Mount Vernon, Bolton Hill, Univeristy of Baltimore, MICA, and Station North. In other words, the location is among the best in the City.In addition to being located near several good areas of the City, it is also located near some not so good areas. Upton and McCulloh Homes are also at State Center's doorstep.    

In the early to mid 2000s, there was a plan to redevelop State Center as 1st class upscale mixed-use TOD haven complete with new State Offices, Apartments, Town Homes, and Retail as well as a Boutique Hotel. This would have been known as the "Eutaw District." Early versions of the plan included redeveloping the aging McCulloh Homes. The plan was re-drafted and scaled back not to include McCulloh Homes after Resident backlash. Although this was a labeled victory for McCulloh Homes Residents, no plan has come forth to address the decaying conditions at McColloh Homes since it was excluded from State Center. 

The plan for State Center with or without McCulloh Homes was met with controversy. With the State act as a Developer, it would have to splash out a serious amount of cash $1 Billion + and that didn't set well for people who thought the State was too cash strapped. Had the State been in better financial shape, there would still be naysayers thinking that a project like this would be a waste of money. Supporters asked us to look at the big picture. Taxes and fees generated once this project had been completed would make the investment more than worth it. In other words, the State would have to spend money to make money. I was and still am of the mindset that State Center needs to be redeveloped. My views on how to accomplish that have changed drastically over the years however.

First I was on board with the State investing the money to pay for redeveloping State Center knowing that the area needs that shot in the arm as well as the return on its initial investment. As the economy tanked I was still a champion of the redevelopment effort but I preferred waiting until the economy stabilized. As time wore on it became clear that this project wouldn't happen anytime soon if at all. I still supported it. This project not being funded mean the need for the State to get new Offices was being unmet. 

It was at this time that Downtown's Office Vacancy Rate was hitting 20% even though projects rich in Office Space like Harbor Point and Inner Harbor East. With this news, my support of State Center's redevelopment remained in place however, I wanted the State to remove itself from the project and sell off the land to a private developer that they would "bank" until the Market was ready to absorb it. The State Offices would lease space Downtown in an effort to reduce the vacancy rate. I wrote a post on this matter called "Taking the State out of Center."

After the State Center Buildings were vacated I left their short term fate in the hands of the Developer who now owned them. They could demolish them and bank the land until the climate is right for redevelopment, or they could simply mothball them. I came up with a different plan for the short term. Remember earlier in the post when I said nothing was being done to help McColloh Homes? I was hoping you did because it's a pivotal part of this plan. I know think the best option for the State Center Buildings in the short term would be to house McCulloh Homes Residents. After being converted into Apartments, the City would lease the Buildings from the Developer after selling the land McCulloh Homes sits on. The Developer would then demolish McCulloh Homes to make them part of the eventual State Center redevelopment. 

Once development in and around Downtown reaches build out and the demand for development returns (once new projects are fully leased and/or purchased) The State Center Buildings now housing McCulloh Homes would be demolished and the entire site (McCulloh Homes and State Center) would be redeveloped as an upscale mixed-use TOD haven that the Planners envisioned all those years ago.

Old West Baltimore: Your Cries Are Being Heard...........Slowly

One of my very first posts on this blog was entitled "Old West Baltimore: Crying For Intervention." It was true then and it remains true now. However, there are some signs of hope in Old West Baltimore that if the City and Developers were to take advantage of, Old West Baltimore would improve greatly. Please keep in mind that as you read this post, I'm not looking to gentrify Old West Baltimore. I'm simply trying to provide safe, well built affordable housing and services for working Families and Seniors.

It's no secret that Old West Baltimore has been struggling long before World War II. During the Great Migration, tens of thousands of Black Southerners made Baltimore their home. What didn't change were the boundaries of Baltimore's Black Neighborhoods. What resulted was over-crowding, and decaying and substandard living conditions. As the Black Neighborhood Boundaries went west of Fulton Avenue, those who could afford it headed west to "second hand Suburbs" like Edmondson Village where Whites were fleeing to the newly built suburbs. Those who were forced to stay in Old West Baltimore were still left in slums albeit less crowded but slums non the less. 

The great solution to the slum like conditions was not great at all. It was barely a solution. Said solution was to build new public housing high rises that were charged with ridding the City of its slums. The new high rises, funded largely by the Federal Government soon became a haven for crime and drug dealing. Residents were scared to leave their homes and soon the surrounding Neighborhoods saw the same crime that the high rises had. Even worse, the Feds who providing funding to build these high rises, didn't fund their maintenance, which the City could not afford. Before long, the same slum conditions that the high rises were meant to eliminate had come back.

Needless to say, this crime and subsequent decay left Residents fleeing for homes for safety. This caused some of Baltimore's most concentrated population loss. In Old West Baltimore, it's not uncommon to see block after block of vacant row houses without a single Human residing in them. I say Humans because there are Rodents and Roaches residing in them. Once the Murphy Homes high rises were torn down and replaced with the lower density town home development of Heritage Crossing, it was thought that Old West Baltimore would be on the upswing again.

Heritage Crossing and similar projects have been great. Sadly they haven't been able to spread their greatness to neighboring blocks. Although Heritage Crossing is the most well known successful redevelopment project in Old West Baltimore, there are others that made some improvements in their immediate area.

First off, in the early 1990s, Penn North and Sandtown had modular Town Homes built for affordable Home ownership. They sold like hot cakes. It seemed that in the 1990s there was a pent up demand for affordable new construction housing for purchase in old West Baltimore. As part of the redevelopment in Sandtown, some existing row homes were preserved if they were in good enough condition. 

Throughout the remainder of the 1990s and 2000s, very little development occurred in Old West Baltimore. That pent up demand for affordable new construction in Old West Baltimore was a fluke. Sure Heritage Crossing sold well but wasn't that mostly Residents who had lived in Murphy Homes? Nope, most of the homes in Heritage Crossing are owner occupied but developers had set their attention on the Harbor and had no intention of diverting their attention.

Meanwhile in Druid Heights, Residents and Community Activists were sick of waiting for narrow minded Developers to turn their attention to Old West Baltimore. With a plethora of vacant row homes and lots, they formed the Druid Heights Community Development Corporation and and have slowly but surely been buying up vacant row homes and lots and building new affordable town homes for working Families. Examples of these new homes can be seen along the west side of Pennsylvania Avenue and Gold St. Newer homes are beginning to pop up along Baker St. as well. Since the Druid Heights Community Development Corporation isn't a large National Developer, the pace at which new homes can be constructed may seem slow but they're making great strides in giving Druid Heights a rebirth.

Now that we've established that Old West Baltimore has a pent up demand for affordable new construction for home ownership, I have but one burning question; Is there the same demand for Rentals? The answer is yes. Just take a look at the recently completed Penn Square Apartments in Penn North. They became fully leased in no time. The same developer who developed Penn Square built a similar project along North Avenue in Walbrook Junction which has a waiting list. When referencing that project he said that he could 100 similar projects in Baltimore and they would be fully leased in no time. So to answer that question, there is a pent up demand for affordable new construction rentals as well.

Now that we have discovered these islands of hope in Old West Baltimore, one might wonder what's next. Given the state of the housing in much of the area, redevelopment may be the only alternative. There may be the occasional row of homes that are in good enough shape to rehab and then rent and sell. Upton's Marble Hill District is one of these places. Madison Park which separates Upton and Bolton Hill is beginning to emerge as a great place to rehab a row home at a non inflated price. Reservoir Hill's row house mansions that were once used as multi-family dwellings are being restored to their single family grandeur.  

Most of Old West Baltimore however is not Upton's Marble Hill District and Madison Park. If that were the case, Old West Baltimore would be seeing a surge of reinvestment that rivals the Harbor. The sad truth is, as is evidenced by past successes, the only clear solution is redevelopment. Now we can't redevelop all of Old West Baltimore although it may ultimately come to that. I have come up with three areas of highly blighted land that would help give the area a much needed face lift and perhaps start a small building boom.      

First there's Penn North. As I had indicated before, there are two success stores here; first there are the Town Homes built in the 1990s and secondly there are the recently completed Penn Square Apartments. The redevelopment I'm proposing is the land that separates the two. That land is still very blighted filled with empty lots and boarded up row homes. The land that front Pennsylvania Avenue would be higher density similar to Penn Square while Residential blocks will contain Town Homes. Whether these new homes are rent or purchase their prices will affordable to Working Families.

Next there's Gilmor Homes. Gilmor Homes is a sprawling public housing complex that sits in the middle of Sandtown. Although the Southeastern portion of Sandtown has benefited quite nicely from reinvestment and redevelopment, the same can not be said about the rest of the Neighborhood. Gilmor Homes has been hot bed for crime and drug activity for decades now and if redeveloped, it will serve as a catalyst for further investment and development in Sandtown. The Gilmor Homes redevelopment are will not only include the complex itself but the surrounding blocks that are all but vacant. In its place will be a mixed income Community primarily of Town Homes with a few Apartments with a mixture of rentals and privately owned homes. There will also by a public housing Senior Building that will be no taller than five stories. There will also be amenities such as a Daycare Center, A Community Center, Urban Gardens, as well as a small Retail area close to the Senior Building.       

The last redevelopment area is in Upton. It creates a triangle bounded by Pennsylvania Avenue to east, Mosher St. to the north, Fremont Avenue to the west, and the Heritage Crossing Development to the south. This area features a very large concentration of vacant row homes and lots that can only be fixed by a massive redevelopment effort. Fortunately, this area is large enough to change the image of the Upton Community and may create a synergy to begin attracting more Residents outside the area. Similar to Penn North, buildings along Pennsylvania Avenue will be Apartments while the more residential blocks will consist of Town Homes. A public housing Senior Building will also be featured here not unlike the one I have purposed for the redeveloped Gilmor Homes. 

If these three initiatives were put forth, coupled with the existing synergy, Old West Baltimore's cries for intervention will be heard and the area successful. Still more work would have to be done, most specifically in Harlem Park and McColloh Homes and hopefully attracting better Retail to Pennsylvania Avenue. Perhaps one day Old West Baltimore will be a sought after address. That would a ways off but right at the very least the cries for intervention are slowly being heard. And that's more than I could have said seven years ago.