Sagamore Development: What Else Can you Do?

By now we've all seen the wonderful Master Plan Kevin Plank's Development Wing known as Sagamore Development has come up with to revitalize Port Covington. Now that the Wal-Mart has closed, it has become that much easier to bring this plan to fruition. As we speak, the finishing touches are being made on the IT and Accounting Center for Under Armour in the building that housed once housed a Sam's Club.

Given how much of a lost cause Port Covington had been and now all of the excitement that is being stirred up by its eventual status as the "Gateway to the City" or a "Greener Inner Harbor" or the "return of manufacturing Jobs to the City", it makes think what else Sagamore Development can do. There are several beleaguered and stalled developments in part of the City that by all rights, should have improved many times over. In some cases, the biggest obstacle these areas face is the lack of staying power on the part of the developers. Given the tremendous growth of Under Armour and the coming growth that redeveloping Port Covington will generate, Sagamore can and should begin looking elsewhere in the City to make a mark. But Where?

The first place is quite obvious; The Super Block. Where else in Downtown have there been more false starts and forks in the road? Originally, this was supposed to be a complete tear down and rebuild from scratch. Then Historic Preservationists saw the beautiful architecture in these decaying buildings and opted to safe them. That created another problem. Very few Retailers want to sign a lease in an old space not designed for their needs. Indeed, the super block spaces are long and narrow for the most part and the required investment to modernize these old buildings staggering to say the least.

Over the years, the super block has seen many developers and investors show interest in it. Each time however, something has forced them to pull out (whether it be lack of finances or their plans not meeting the City's expectations for historic preservationists) thereby leaving the buildings to further decay and rot. This is why I want Sagamore Development to take the financing portion at the very least. This project needs deep pockets to hold on to the land while plans are being finalized as well as to take on the roll of demolishing the back of these buildings and stripping them down only to their front facades to keep their historical integrity intact. This will also allow the insides of the buildings to be built straight to the specifications of Retailers who could then be lured into leasing space at Super Block.

Now we come to Lexington Market. Although Lexington Market itself is receiving a $2 Million renovation, its surroundings could use a shot in the arm. The paring garage across Paca St. from Lexington Market was supposed to be redeveloped as a Apartment and Condo high rises with a few town homes as well. The parking garage and therefore the project, was to be located between Paca St, Greene St. Lexington St., and Saratoga St. The bold project, known as "The Residences at Lexington Market" despite having my support, was not meant to be. Like many other redevelopment projects was shelved due to the recession and never heard from again. 

What Lexington Market suffers from is a lack of Residences near by. To create a true Downtown Neighborhood, there must be a certain mix between Residential, Retail, and Commercial. Ironically a few blocks east on Howard St., it suffers from lack of Retail and a plethora of Residences. I think Sagamore Development can be a big help in redeveloping that same parking garage (the plans can be modified) as well a block south of the Market; between Lexington St., Eutaw St., Paca St., and Fayette St. This will be a similar to mid to high rise Apartment/Condo building that will help introduce a Residential component to Lexington Market which should help the area turn a corner which is something that the area has been trying to do.     

Given that David S. Brown Enterprises has taken on the redevelopment of the vacant Social Security headquarters, that gives Sagamore Development on less job to take on. But worry not, I still have one more project that's perfect for Sagamore; State Center. Given the fact that the State of Maryland has all but walked a away from massive redevelopment project and is original partner, Streuver Brothers, Eccles, and Rouse went bankrupt, this project needs fresh capital in order to jump start it.

I think the next logical step for Sagamore Development is to revive State Center. First off they need to renovate and/or rebuild the decaying State Offices that are sitting on a portion of the site. Then, they need to wait and see what the market dictates their next step is. I think a big blow for this project was when it was scaled back not to include McCulloh Homes. The decaying public housing project is just next door to State Center and suffers from crime, drugs, and increasingly poor living conditions. A high end project such as State Center would prefer not to have that as their Neighbors. 

So in addition to the current parcels of land, State Center should once again include McCulloh Homes. The Market might not be ready right away for such a huge influx of new mixed use coming down the pipeline. As a result, Sagamore needs to treat this as a long term investment. The problem with long term investments is that paying large taxes on vacant land can quite easily bankrupt a company. This is why we need a development firm such as Sagamore Development that's making money on Port Covington in the meantime to help finance the land of State Center until the market readies itself for redevelopment.    

Given Sagamore Development's big splash onto the scene by redeveloping Port Covington, it begs the question by struggling areas of the City; What Else Can you Do?

Poppleton: Public Housing Disperse!

My previous article was supposed to address Poppleton's public housing and poverty concentration more, but it went in a different direction and I'm fine with that. However, I still want to address public housing and how such a large concentration of it can derail all the redevelopment plans elsewhere throughout Poppleton. What follows is a plan to de-concentrate Poppleton's public housing through redevelopment and re-purposing by while adding more public housing for Seniors.

There are currently two public housing developments located in Poppleton. First is the aging Poe Homes while the other is the Townes at the Terraces or simply "Terraces" This deep concentration of poverty will no doubt be an obstacle to redeveloping the rest of Poppleton and luring employees of the Biotech Park to spend more time there such as patronizing businesses and taking walks around the Community during lunch.

Now "Terraces" is technically a mixed income development. However, the vast majority of the homes there are still public housing. Couple that with Poe Homes, it becomes clear that the mix of income in not only these two developments needs to bee broadened, but Poppleton as a whole does too. Luckily the developers who are redeveloping the rest of Poppleton share that vision and are providing affordable housing as well as Market Rate.

Due to its age, Poe Homes will have to be torn down and redeveloped. Although other cities have rehabbed and reused public housing buildings once they've closed, most of Baltimore's public housing developments look the same and I don't think it would be wise to spend all that money getting the buildings up to modern standards when there's no guarantee that these buildings are sell-able. Also the Senior component would require a lot of modifications for ADA compliance. 

So with that, Poe Homes should be redeveloped and replaced with new construction with a mix of incomes and housing types so it can fit in seamlessly with the rest of Poppleton. The redeveloped Poe Homes which will not be named Poe Homes, will feature Apartments, Condos, and Town Homes (with and without garages) and will be Public Housing, Public Housing for Seniors, Subsidized Home Ownership, Market Rate Rentals, and Market Rate Home Ownership all overlooking a new Community Park.   

Example of Market Rate Rentals

 

The Market Rate Rentals will be on the western edge of Poe Homes on Amity St. (the Poe House will be spared) Amity St. will be the back of both Metro West and the new Poe Homes as the fronts will face Schroeder St. and the new Center Courtyard respectively. 

 The northern edge of the new Poe Homes will be on Saratoga St featurong Subsidized Home Ownership Town Homes. These will be two rows deep with frontage on Saratoga St. along with the Courtyard while sharing a common alley driveway to access the two car garage that comes standard with each home. 

Between the Church on Saratoga St. and its intersection with Fremont Avenue, there will be a row of public housing town homes. These will not have garages as they will have 4-5 bedrooms to accommodate large families. Along Fremont Avenue will be a mid-rise public housing Senior Building whose facade matches the one across the street at the Terraces development. 

Example of Market Rate Condos

Then finally along the southern edge of Poe Homes on Lexington St. will be a Condo Building that's market rate home ownership. Then finally the piece de resistance; the Courtyard. It will feature a playground, multi-use field, and an outdoor pool with a volley pit and a barbecue pit for Community cook outs.

Next we come to the Terraces. Although they are newer, lots of repairs and upgrades will have to be made before the uses of them are diversified. Like the new Poe Homes, the re-purposed Terraces will feature the same mixes of income although the Terraces won't feature any Condos and Apartments will be Seniors only. The re-purposed Terraces will be renovated inside and out to keep them looking brand new and attract new Residents. 

The lay out and the housing options of the Terraces will be as follows. The southeastern corner bordered by Fremont Avenue, Lexington St, MLK Boulevard, and Fayette St. will be Market Rate Home Ownership. This will help the Biotech Park and the newly rehabbed/rebuilt Poppleton Place Apartments nearby have a broader mix of housing bordering it. The largest block of the Terraces will be Market Rate Rentals bordered by MLK Boulevard, Lexington St., Fremont Avenue and Saratoga St. The Senior Building in this block will remain so and will remian public housing as well. The swath of vacant land in this block will play host to a second public housing Senior Building with Lexington St. Frontage. The remainder of this land will be a Community Park not unlike that I have proposed for the new Poe Homes.

In the northwestern corner of The Terraces bordered by Poppleton St, Mulberry St., Fremont Avenue, and Saratoga St. will be subsidized Home Ownership. Across the street on Saratoga St., the section of the new Poe Homes will also be subsidized Home Ownership. I want to create a "Home Ownership Opportunity Zone" along Saratoga St. to stabilize this section of Poppleton and Residents new and old recognize the dream of Home Ownership. Finally, the northeastern section of the Terraces bordered by Fremont Avenue, Mulberry St. MLK Boulevard, and Saratoga St. will remain Public Housing. This section of the Neighborhood is located the closest to vital services such as the Rite Aid Pharmacy and the Office Building containing Doctors Offices and a Credit Union within a very short walk of the public housing units.

I'm not against Public Housing, but I do know that throughout history, the concentration of poverty that too many public housing units create tends to be responsible for a lot of the crime, drugs, and urban decay that strangles the life from these Neighborhoods. If you're looking at a Neighborhood like Poppleton, a Neighborhood that is desperately trying for a rebirth, it's time to disperse the large concentration of public housing.

Poppleton Redevelopment Moving Forward at Last

Poppleton is the text book definition of what happens to a City Neighborhood plagued by urban decay, population loss, high unemployment, an eroding tax base, and a high concentration of poverty. At the same time, Poppleton is very close to Downtown and its numerous institutions and Employment Centers, the biggest being University of Maryland Baltimore and University of Maryland Medical Center. For that reason, Poppleton has been on the radar of City Planners and Developers to massively overhaul the Neighborhood and transform it into a thriving mixed use mixed income urban haven. Unfortunately, despite numerous attempts and numerous projects to do so, nothing has really gotten off the ground. Until now. Redevelopment appears to finally be moving forward at last.

The downfall of Poppleton can be traced back to failed "urban renewal" efforts. These attempts at urban renewal and slum removal involved dividing Neighborhoods with highways and demolishing what very well could have been historic housing stock in favor of high rise public housing. In the case of Poppleton that means the infamous "Road to Nowhere" and the equally infamous Lexington Terrace Housing Projects. Lexington Terrace was built next to the pre-existing Poe Homes Public Housing Development. Although Poe Homes is a low rise Community, it still created a high concentration of poverty when coupled with Lexington Terrace.

Middle Class Residents of Poppleton left the Neighborhood in search of newer safer housing. Given how outnumbered they were and the escalating crime and decay that came with Lexington Terrace, it's hard to blame them for doing so especially as segregation in Neighborhoods such as Edmondson Village had been lifted. This left Poppleton in shambles. To make matters worse, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard was completed in 1982 though not an interstate, cuts off the Neighborhood from Downtown.

As the 20th Century drew to a close, Planners wanted to capitalize on Poppleton's proximity to Downtown, more importantly UMB. To expand the success of the growing University into Poppleton, but first the biggest source of urban decay had to go; Lexington Terrace. With funds from the HOPE VI program, Lexington Terrace was demolished and redeveloped with the "Townes at the Terraces" a town home development with a low rise Apartment Building for Seniors, a Rite Aid Pharmacy, and a small Office Building. About 1/3 of the town homes were market rate units for sale while the remainder of the development is public housing.

Although it's been said that Lexington Terrace's successor doesn't have a broad enough income mix or crime is still prevalent in Poppleton, I would argue that despite these shortcomings, Townes at the Terraces has been successful at reducing crime in Poppleton, especially when comparing it to the days of Lexington Terrace. With Lexington Terrace a thing of the past, now Poppleton can begin its renaissance. 

For any part of the City to revitalize, it must first be a draw to new Residents. One way to do that is to put a large Employment Center in close proximity. As these discussions about how to revitalize Poppleton were going on, so too were discussions regarding UMB building a Biotech Park. With the land owned by UMB east of MLK Boulevard reaching build out, it became clear that in order to build the Biotech Park, UMB would have to venture west of MLK. There's your new draw for Poppleton.

Baltimore St. has always acted as a Main Street for Poppleton and surrounding areas so it would make sense that is where the new Biotech Park would be located. The blocks containing the Park also had lots of vacants so it would be relatively easy to buy up those properties for demolition. Construction of the Biotech Park started in the mid 2000s and its progress was halted due to the economy crashing in 2008. Slowly but surely more and more buildings are going up and more and more space is being leased.

On the Residential side, there has been some redevelopment along Fayette St. and little else But finally, land has been amassed and cleared for major residential redevelopment the likes of which haven't been seen since the construction (and subsequent demolition of) Lexington Terrace. The southeastern edge of this redevelopment parcel borders on the northeastern edge of the Biotech Park. The goal of connecting the two developments will create live work area in Poppleton and Biotech employees who don't live in Poppleton will feel safe walking around the Neighborhood. This can also be achieved by revitalizing Baltimore St. west of the Biotech into a Main St. for the Community. Although most buildings here are dilapidated, I would still like to see their facades preserved (similar to marketplace at Fells Point.)

The land poised for residential redevelopment is located in the blocks north, west, and east of Excel Academy at Francis M. Wood High School. So far one developer has submitted plans for a redeveloped Poppleton. Their plans, located along Schroeder St. between Fairmount Ave. and Lexington St. includes a large mixed income Apartment building that mimics the recently completed "FItzgerald" at the edge of Mount Vernon and Bolton Hill (pictured below). Centerwest's upscale styling shows that the redevelopment efforts in Poppleton are going for an upscale look and are looking a greater mix of incomes for future Poppleton Residents as well as developments.

Centerwest is just one development in an are marked for large full scale redevelopment but what it symbolizes is much greater. It shows that redevelopment in Poppleton is finally moving forward. Hopefully with the case of Centerwest, the mantra of "If you Build it They Will Come" will ring true, both with new Residents and new developments.

H&S Bakery: The Final Piece of the Puzzle

The early to mid 2000s provided a boom for mixed use development in Inner Harbor East. Inner Harbor East is a new glitzy waterfront neighborhood built on industrial wasteland and long closed shipping channels. Before the buildings were constructed, the once industrial waterfront properties were turned into surface parking lots for the already redeveloped parts of the Inner Harbor. Inner Harbor East may appear to be finished seeing as Harbor Point, between Inner Harbor East and Fells Point has begun construction but there's still one piece of the puzzle left for Inner Harbor East; H&S Bakery.

H&S Bakery isn't just the final piece of industry in the middle of the gentrified neighborhoods of Inner Harbor East, Fells Point, and Little Italy. It holds a special place in the hearts and minds of those who designed and developed Inner Harbor East. In fact, had it not been for H&S Bakery, Inner Harbor East may not have come to fruition as we know it today.

While other industries in what is now Inner Harbor East either went belly up, move to the suburbs or out of Country, H&S remained in place as it enjoyed the prestigious status of baking rolls and buns for McDonalds Restaurants as well as a long list of other clients. The owner of H&S Bakery, John Paterakis did quite well for himself financially running a super successful industrial sized Bakery that like many successful Businessmen, he chose to invest his profits.

Unlike them chose an investment whose returns wouldn't generate any returns for a long time. Even then it wasn't a sure thing. The year was 1984 and the success of Harbor Place was proving to be a big boost for the area. The notion that if you had waterfront property, you were sitting on a huge payday was just beginning to gain traction. That early in the game there wasn't much development on the waterfront that wasn't industrial wasteland. Paterakis had the vision that one day the land surrounding his plant would be very valuable and that glitzy high end mixed use waterfront would be in demand. So he bought up the land that would one day become Inner Harbor East.

Critics thought that Paterakis had lost his mind. They either thought that he would lose his shirt or that any returns on his investment would be years if not decades into the future. Petarakis however, was in this for the long haul. As new developments began popping up around the Harbor and gentrification overtook nearby neighborhoods such as Fells Point, Canton and Federal Hill, the time had come to start planning and constructing on Paterakis's land. 

It showed that there was an intense need for high Apartments, Condos, Retail, Office Space, and Hotels around the Harbor, more so than what was already there. With that value piece of information, building began and high end Retail such as Whole Foods flocked to the area as did Hotels and Residences such as the Four Seasons and the offices of Legg Mason relocated its headquarters to Inner Harbor East from Pratt St. The moving of Legg Mason from Pratt St to Inner Harbor East is just part of a trend of Downtown Offices moving closer to the Harbor.

The collapsing of the economy and therefore the Real Estate Market across the Country actually had a minimal effect on Inner Harbor East. Sure some Retail leases fell through and the Residential part of the new Four Seasons is only now being built while the Hotel portion was completed years ago but considering all of the development plans throughout the region that were delayed, greatly modified, or scrapped all together, Inner Harbor East remained relatively stable.     

 Now here we are in 2016. To the naked eye it may appear that Inner Harbor East has been completed. In fact, Harbor Point has begun construction which may be a signal that this is in fact the case. However, there's still one piece of the puzzle left; HS Bakery.

Although H&S Bakery watched the downfall of industry around the Harbor and was the lone standout when the area was all but vacant and has initially stuck around as the glitzy sky scrapers went up and the row houses were gentrified, wasn't supposed to stick around forever. In fact, a new site has been purchased in Hollander Ridge east of Armistead Gardens that will be the new home of H&S Bakery.

In Hollander Ridge, the land is much cheaper and is much easier to house an industrial warehouse. John Paterakis stands to make a lot of money by selling off the land that his current Bakery sits on which more than pays for his move to Hollander Ridge. As the Bakery grew, it began taking up more and more City blocks which short of breaking up the urban grid, made it impossible to add on to existing buildings so other City blocks were acquired to build more and more buildings.

With H&S Bakery in Hollander Ridge, all of the sudden six City blocks will now become vacant. Given that H&S's buildings aren't glitzy mixed use high rises or gentrified historic row homes, it's quite obvious that these buildings will be torn down. There's a 7th out of place city block in the midst of Inner Harbor Harbor East that's a surface lot where plans to a large sky scraper have surfaced. Anchoring this new building will be a new larger Whole Foods given that the current one has out grown that location. There are no plans for what will go in place of H&S Bakery once torn down.

With the construction of Harbor Point commencing and almost all blocks of Inner Harbor East developed, one would that think that Inner Harbor East would already be complete. As it turns out, H&S Bakery will vacate its longtime head quarters showing that there is still a final piece of the puzzle left in Inner Harbor East. It's a mighty big piece at that.

The Rotunda: Redevelopment at Last

 In Baltimore there are several development and redevelopment projects that are awaiting redevelopment. In a City where funds are limited to help developers move forward as well as current economic climate, it's no surprise that come projects remain in the pipeline. After more than a decade of planning and pitfalls, one redevelopment project is finally coming to fruition; The Rotunda.

During the mass exodus to the suburbs, Baltimore tried very hard to bring some of the suburban amenities to neighborhoods that weren't experiencing the same levels of urban decay as those closer to Downtown. It was decided that the Rotunda (then housing an insurance company) would become one of these suburban style Shopping Centers albeit as an enclosed Mall complete with a Grocery Store, Drug Store, Food Court, and a Movie Theater as well as smaller shops and boutiques with Offices above complete with a full parking lot. Parking (or lack thereof) was a huge hurdle luring quality Retailers into the City and also why at the same time they preferred the up & coming suburbs.

The Rotunda helped keep the Hampden/Roland Park area from decaying as badly as inner city neighborhoods did. Much of that had to do with the insulated location on the outskirts that provided a buffer for them as well so much so that Residents in nearby felt it safe to walk to and from the Rotunda which gave an element of a Community Center as well as a Retail and Office Complex. This safety was that was severely lacking during the 1970s and '80s when the Rotunda was in its heyday.

In the 1990s, Hampden began to experience a rebirth. 36th st. nicknamed "The Avenue" became something of a Main St. and tourist trap with new shops popping up in Retail spaces that had long since been vacant. At Christmas time on 34th St. every house on the street began decorating their homes with over the top lighting displays. This became yet another tourist trap and the once desolate streets of Hampden had become a shopping destination for City dwellers and visitors alike and eventually Residential growth followed.

This new life that was pumped into Hampden was not helpful to the Rotunda. In fact, the opening of the Greenspring Tower Shopping Center just a few blocks west of the Rotunda sent it into a downward spiral. Featuring a modern Super Fresh along with open concept Retail, the dingy old Giant and its enclosed layout really began to show its age. In the early 2000s however, the age and condition of the Rotunda could no longer be ignored.

It was around this time that the owners began consulting developers on how to breathe new life into the aging center. Many question were raised during this time such as; Will Giant stay? Will the Cinema stay? Will the original building stay? Will the entire project be Retail? The list goes on. Finally in around 2007, plans surfaced for a redeveloped Rotunda which included a brand new Giant that's the size of a modern Grocery Store, Multi Screen Cinemas and roughly 1000 Apartments and Condos and a Hotel with additional Retail space in an open concept style. 

These plans could not have been released at a more turbulent time. The economy crashed in 2008 making development and redevelopment projects across the Country some to a grinding halt. The Rotunda was no exception. While many redevelopment plans were ditched completely, the owners and developers of the Rotunda kept insisting that when the market stabilized, they would move forward with redevelopment. Giant also agreed to stay in for the long haul and continue to anchor the shopping center in its brand new store once redeveloped. They even agreed they wouldn't close their old dated store in the mean time. 

Well plans change and so does the Retail scene. Just a few blocks down 40th St., the Super Fresh chain went belly up leaving a 40,000 square foot hole in the Greenspring Tower Shopping Center. Although Fresh & Greens attempted to fill that hole, it was not a hit with Residents and left almost as quickly as it came. It was at this time that Giant had gotten sick of waiting for a new larger store. They left the Rotunda high and dry in 2012 in favor of the vacated space in Greenspring Tower.

Owners and developers of the Rotunda continued to insist that redevelopment will still happen. They scrapped the plan for a full sized Grocer in favor of a Boutique Grocer concept like Trader Joes. That worked out well because MOM, The Fresh Market, and Graul's all put in bids to anchor the redeveloped Shopping Center. MOM won the bid and with it several companies signed on to be part of the redeveloped Rotunda inlcuding Floyds 99 Barbershop and Massage Envy. Rite Aid will continue to stay on but the Cinema has since closed. Luckily that was part of the plan. A new Cinema is being built that caters to the growing trend of "Dinner and a Movie." This new Cinema is called "Cinebistro."

The securing of MOM as the Grocer Anchor of the Rotunda made the developers go back to the drawing board. They realized that some other components were a tad too ambitious and grandiose. They scaled back the number of Residences to 379 (down from close to 1,000) and scraped the Hotel. The Apartments (named the Icon) are now a mid rise versus the high rises that would have been required to fit that many Apartments and Condos on that small a site. 

Once given the green light, the demolition of the old Giant began. By that point, Giant's exodus had taken its toll and hardly anything was left in the beleaguered Center. Tenants like Hair Cuttery, Radio Shack, and Casa Mia Pizza had moved to Greenspring Tower just like Giant did. The original building would retain its character but will be in more of an I shape instead of the square that it had been with exterior entrances to shops. A brand new building building will house a parking garage, the Icon Apartments, the Cinebistro, and more Retail. This new building is currently being constructed on the southern end of the site on what was once a surface level parking lot.

It's been a long and winding road to get the Rotunda to where it is today: A mixed use development currently under construction. It was a road filled with bumps, twists and turns and what many thought were false dead ends. Now everyone can breathe a sigh of relief because the road ahead is on the fast track to redevelopment at last.