I found this news on the Baltimore Business Journal website interesting.  

The National Aquarium in Baltimore is curbing its plans to build a new waterfront campus in South Baltimore and has sold 11 of the 19 acres it bought for the new center to local developer Patrick Turner for $1.5 million, a spokeswoman for the aquarium said.

What is interesting is that this land purchase was part of a 3-way deal/swap that included the sale of the Baltimore City Fire repair shop on Key Highway in South Baltimore.  I believe the deal was to sell the repair shop to a developer, in order to generate money that would allow the city/aquarium to purchase land and develop the waterfront campus.  But plans to sell the repair shop were overturned by Mayor Dixon in favor of building a public park.  So by not selling the repair shop property, it forced them to have to sell another piece of property. Ironic.

The Baltimore Middle Branch Planning Initiative Website has a draft Master Plan document posted.  The first photo below shows a nice aerial view, and the 2nd shows where the Middle Branch is in relation to the Inner Harbor.

Through the Middle Branch planning process it is our goal to highlight and capitalize on the unique green character of the Middle Branch estuary to build a model community, based on sustainable principles. These sustainable principles include economic prosperity, environmental improvement and social equity. According to the American Planning Association, planning for sustainability “…promotes responsible development – not-anti-development. It requires a democratic process of planning to achieve the greatest common good for all segments of our population, protect the health of the environment and assure future generations of the resources they will need to survive and progress.”

The Middle Branch’s unique qualities as an environmental oasis, located minutes from downtown and surrounded by challenged communities, create a perfect opportunity to employ these principles.