Baltimore Grows

Despite the economy, there still seems to be a flurry of development news concerning the Station North area of Baltimore.  The Station North Area was designated an “Arts and Entertainment” district by the city and the neighborhood is roughly bounded by 20th St on the North, Howard on the West, Greenmount on the East, and Penn Station/train tracks on the south.

Here’s a bit of recent news:

1. The Baltimore Development Corporation recently issued a Request for Proposals for the former Parkway Theatre and adjacent properties that sit at the crucial corner of Charles Street and North Ave.  The Parkway Theatre is currently vacant (anyone looking for a fixer upper?) and the adjacent property is occupied by “New York Fried Chicken”.  The chicken joint can go “bye bye”, but as part of the proposal, the theatre must remain and be used as some kind of live performance venue. 

Click Here to view the RFP

2. Amtrak recently inked a deal with a Bethesda based developer to develop the top three floors of Baltimore’s Penn Station into a boutique hotel.  Work is expected to start by the end of the year for completion in 2010.  Click Here to read the article.  Ultimately, the plan is for Amtrak to expand the concourse north across the tracks to the parking lot along Lanvale Street.  Amtrak has retained consulting firm WRT to make recommendations for the 1.5 acre site by this fall.  Early plans have called for this area to be an open concourse with a mixed hotel/retail components.  Follow the link to the Station North Master Plan at the bottom of this post for more info.

3. Also in the works is a planned $15million development of artist housing on a vacant parcel of land at the corner of Greenmount Ave and Oliver St.  The development will be a mix of affordable apartments and townhomes.  Click Here to Read the Article.

Click Here to View the Full Station North Master Plan

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

Brewer’s Art, right here in Baltimore, topped the recently released list of Best Bars in America by Esquire Magazine.  http://www.esquire.com/bestbars/ 

When you tire of inebriating yourself with tallboys and “Natty Boh,” you head for the Brewer’s Art, housed in an old mansion. Belgian-style home brews are always on tap.

My favorite thing about Brewers Art (www.thebrewersart.com - 1106 N Charles St) is throwing on a blazer and hanging out in the front room upstairs.  With the stately old fireplace and a giant chandelier in the converted mansion, it makes me feel like a millionaire having a party with a group of friends.  The downstairs bar has a bit more casual and trendy atmosphere.  The dining room is classy, and the food is delicious.  The best part is the beer….brewed in house…their Resurrection Ale cant be beat.  Perhaps Brewer’s Art will be in contention for Best Beer in America next?

According to Esquire, the rankings can change based on user feedback, so make sure you visit the site and vote. http://www.esquire.com/bestbars/bb-BrewersArt

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

We’re happy to have another guest post today courtesy of Urban Discoveries Living Blog. Check out all their great content.

The State Center was supposed to be one of those far-sighted projects that would help transform Baltimore into the vibrant, accessible city of the future. Though it wasn’t scheduled to be completed until 2018, even just the vision had a lot of people excited. The idea:  to redevelop and reshape the 28 acres around the current State Center, an area that currently includes huge city offices, a light rail stop, and… a lot of parking lots and chain-link fences. The State Center development was supposed to change all that, reconnecting neighborhoods and creating a vibrant livable community. But problems have cropped up—new legislation, worrisome language in the state budget—that have some people worried that Baltimore is just going to end up with more of the same.

Why spend so much time and money on the area anyway?  Well, there are plenty of assets not being taken advantage of here, is the thinking—not only does the area already boast a much-used transit hub (both the light rail and the subway stop here), and it’s here that vibrant neighborhoods (Mt. Vernon, Seton Hill, Bolton Hill) would come together, if there was anything there worth coming together for. So the stuff is there, for the most part; it’s just not connected well at all. Continue Reading »

Fortunately this one won’t require a trip to Vietnam, this Vietnamese Restaurant is right here in Baltimore.  Mekong Delta Cafe, which recently opened up at 105 W Saratoga St just West of Mt. Vernon has been serving up some delicious food and making some very big waves with local foodies.

The Cafe itself is very small and simple and the decor and furnishings are modest.  It’s obvious that it is a family owned establishment.  There is no liquor license, so BYOB.  Because of the small size it’s probably not a good place to bring a large group.  Because it’s family operated, the service is friendly and gracious, but somewhat slow, so don’t come if you’re in a hurry.

The food, however, is unbelievable. I started with a summer roll that came with some type of peanut sauce.  The vegetables in the summer roll were incredibly fresh and the shrimp were plump and perfectly cooked.  The presentation was simple but beautiful.  As an entree, I had the crab and shrimp fried rice.  It had a real nice flavor and spice to it…not overpowering….delicious.  I think I ate every last kernel of rice on the plate.  My fellow diner had the Pho which was also reported to be delicious and fresh.  Best of all, the place is very affordable.  The bill came to $20.85 for two people, and for what you get, Mekong Delta offers a great bang for the buck.  Don’t forget to bring cash…credit cards are not accepted.

Mekong Delta Cafe

105 W Saratoga St
Baltimore, MD 21201
(410) 244-8677

Click Here to Read the Review in the Baltimore Sun

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

Film crews have swarmed Baltimore’s Mt. Vernon neighborhood recently, working on a pilot for a new prime time drama on Fox.  While there is no guarantee that the show would be picked for Fox’s new lineup, the general thought is that it has a pretty good chance. 

The show, called “The Reincarnationist” is based on a novel by M.J. Rose and is about a group of investigators that solve present-day mysteries based on past life experiences.  It’s unclear why Baltimore was chosen or whether Baltimore will play itself or be a stand-in for Washington D.C. or New York as it often does for movies on the Silver Screen. 

The filming will likely build excitement for those who like seeing the buzz of film crews around, but will also cause headaches and traffic jams for some that are trying to get around quickly.  Undoubtedly, if the show is picked up, it would be a plus for Baltimore and a boon to the economy.  Baltimore hasn’t seen a film crew since “He’s Just Not That Into You” (which was based in Baltimore) filmed a few scenes here.  No television show has been filmed in Baltimore since HBO’s “The Wire”, but hopefully “The Reincarnationist” will show Baltimore in a better light.

To learn more, follow the link below:

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/zontv/2009/03/reincarnation_pilot_fox_baltim.html

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

University of Baltimore officials have awarded a winning design in a competition for a new law school building that brought competitors from across the globe.  The winners were German firm Behnisch Architekten in a joint venture with Baltimore-based Ayers, Saint, Gross Inc.

The prominent building site sits at the corner of Charles St. and Mt. Royal Ave, fully visible from the Jones Falls Expressway.  Undoubtedly, UB is going for an iconic design for the new 100 million dollar plus building. The design is decidedly modern in contrast to mainly historic and contemporary buildings in the area, although not unlike the MICA Brown Center and the new MICA Gateway Building further up Mt. Royal Ave. 

Since the preliminary design is the result of a competition that lasted a few months, one would expect the design to change through the process of full design.  But from the looks of it, the new design will be bold, daring, and will hopefully add to the character of growing midtown Baltimore on what has been a sad empty parking lot. 

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

It’s not really Theory #23. It’s theory #1, I suppose. It’s been my theory at least since 1999, when I purchased a house in Baltimore City for myself and my family. The theory is simple and goes like this: Oil is a finite resource. Sooner or later, we’ll run out. There’s no viable alternative to gasoline, and even if there were, there’s already too many cars out there to replace. As gasoline prices rise, houses in the suburbs will drop in value. There will be a corresponding rise in the value of city real estate. Suburbia is predicated on cheap gasoline, whereas cities are from a time before gasoline. Cheap gas is a temporary phenomena. Buy city real estate and sell suburban real estate.

After eight years, it’s safe to say, “I told you so”. Now my theory has been borne out. However in 1999 I was the only one saying it. When I moved from DC to Baltimore in 1999, a real estate investor in the DC ‘burbs told me, “Don’t buy real estate in Baltimore City. It’ll never appreciate”! At the time, buying real estate in the city was risky. In the city you had to deal with crime, drugs, racial issues, bad schools, abandoned buildings, Mayor O’Malley, high taxes, etc etc. As recently as three years ago I posted to another blog about buying in the city and was jumped on by suburbanites. Within the past couple of years two of my neighbors bailed out* and moved to the ‘burbs. This was before $4 gas.

The neighborhood that I bought into has come back big-time since I bought in 1999. I don’t know if I could afford to buy my house if I had to buy it again now. However, there’s still “bad” neighborhoods in Baltimore City. They’re “bad” neighborhoods to some people. I’d say that one man’s “bad” neighborhood is this man’s sweet deal!

http://www.joshuaberlow.com/real2.htm

*In both cases, the houses sold immediately. The only house in the neighborhood that hasn’t sold immediately after being put on the market is one guy who’s holding out for $100K more than any of the others has sold for. Maybe he knows something…

The Baltimore Sun reported today that the City Board of Estimates cleared the way for a 20 year, $12 million dollar tax break that will allow the $75? million dollar Fitzgerald project to move forward.? The Fitzgerald Project, near University of Baltimore will consist of more than 200 luxury apartments, 40,000 sf of retail, and a parking garage. Plans posted on the developer’s website (Bozzuto) also show a supermarket.? The project is bounded by the Mt. Royal Ave, W. Oliver St., Maryland Ave, I-83, and the Light Rail tracks.? Construction will begin this summer.

Click here to view the site plan
?

Joss Sushi Bar, the highly acclaimed sushi restaurant on Annapolis’ Main Street, has recently announced that they will be opening their second location in Baltimore this Spring.? The new location will be at 413 N. Charles St. in the Downtown Baltimore? area just? south of Mt. Vernon.? Joss Sushi Bar in Annapolis is Zagat rated and is considered by many to have the best sushi in Annapolis, if not all of Maryland.?

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

Baltimore Business Journal article

Seems to be a lot going on up there…

A former senior center in Mount Vernon is now the focus of a $62 million project that will add a new center and residential and retail development in the community.

The Baltimore Development Corp. and the Baltimore City Commission on Aging and Retirement Education announced plans Tuesday to work with MtV2, a group of local developers, to rebuild the Waxter Center.

The developer will construct a new 40,000 square foot center on the site at a cost of $8 million. At least $2 million has already been raised for the project, officials said.

On the remaining portion of the site, the developer will build a $54 million residential and retail component featuring 600 apartments and condos, 20,000 square feet of retail space and more than 200 parking spaces.

“This is a niche market that’s never really been tapped,” said Howard Chambers, a developer with MtV2 Development, which is working on the project, aimed at attracting young professionals and graduate students.

Estimated prices on the condos — expected to range in size from 375 square feet to 425 square feet — are to be around $150,000. But the spaces will be available to be leased as apartments for $850 a month.