How historic buildings are transforming into sleek apartments in Baltimore
By Donald C. Fry, President and CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee
On a winter day in 1929, The Baltimore Trust Company cut the ribbon on a towering Art Deco masterpiece. Every detail was carefully planned. Stone mosaics depicting the city’s maritime roots lined the floors. Classic friezes loomed over marble hallways. Gilded emblems gleamed from vaulted ceilings.
The completion of the building was intended to mark the 25th anniversary of the Great Fire of Baltimore. But it came at a turbulent time — the stock market crash, just two months before the grand opening, decimated the bank. Yet the majestic building became a towering fixture of the downtown Baltimore skyline. Over the decades, it housed the local offices of the Public Works Administration, Maryland National Bank and Bank of America.
The 34-floor building, known today as 10 Light Street, has been reborn once again.
Today, residents ride the ornate brass elevators to sleek modern apartments, a rooftop pool, an Under Armour gym and even an indoor dog park. The new apartment tower is among dozens of recently constructed or converted apartment buildings in Baltimore, many touting luxury amenities.
Like 10 Light, many pay homage to their former incarnations as office buildings. These include:
· The Vault, where safes in each unit and ornate twisting staircases pay tribute to the building’s roots as a bank.
· The Appraisers’ Building, a historic customs house turned into sleek apartments.
· The Lenore, an apartment building named for a poem by Baltimore’s Edgar Allan Poe, which also recently opened in a former bank.
· 36 Calvert, a slim and elegant Art Deco building, long vacant, that is being turned into luxury apartments.
Reversing decades of being overlooked, the heart of downtown Baltimore is now the city’s fastest growing residential neighborhood. More than 35 apartment buildings were recently completed, are under construction or are in the planning phase in the downtown area, representing more than 7,000 units, according to the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore.
Many of these are conversions of historic buildings that preserve unique architectural features. Others are being built from the ground up on the site of outdated or dilapidated office buildings.
Some luxury apartment projects are sprouting in neighborhoods that ring the core downtown area, such as the stylish Anthem House building in Locust Point. The S-shaped building recently opened on the site of an old General Electric service center. Close to Fort McHenry and the Under Armour headquarters, Anthem House boasts two elevated courtyards, an outdoor kitchen with a grill, and a high-tech fitness center.
Toby Bozzuto, President and CEO of The Bozzuto Group, the developers of Anthem House, said Baltimore’s historical roots and bustling real estate market makes it an attractive place to build.
“Baltimore is anchored by our history, diversity, institutions and industries, but we are a city forged from something more challenging and complex than our considerable accomplishments. As real estate developers, we require investors to not only invest in our projects, but to invest a belief in the cities in which we build,” Bozzuto said.
“It is my opinion that Baltimore’s resilience is instrumental in attracting and retaining residents who will create thriving, growing, supportive communities in our neighborhoods,” he said.
The new apartment projects are attracting a cross-section of renters. Millennials, empty nesters, those who walk to work in Baltimore or hop a commuter train to Washington, D.C. are flocking to the downtown area, drawn by the walkability, stunning views and comparatively affordable rents. The new buildings feature amenities new residents seek, including ground-level retail.
For example, 10 Light includes a street-level Starbucks and juice bar, in addition to the Under Armour gym.
“We’ve seen a big trend of people who like the walkability of the neighborhood and all the shuttles,” said Becky Smith, leasing agent for 500 Park Avenue, a luxury apartment building just north of the downtown area.
“You can walk to work, you can walk to entertainment, doctor’s offices, and dentist’s offices,” she said. “You can really do everything right here in the city.”
Another brand new luxury apartment building, 414 Light, directly overlooks the city’s Inner Harbor. The 44-story building, which is rising from the site of the former McCormick spice factory, will feature a seventh floor urban park, skyline pool, state-of-the-art fitness room and yoga studio, when completed later this year.
The city’s apartment boom has been spurred in part by city legislation. In 2014, the city approved a 15-year tax credit for developers who converted underutilized office space into apartments. Developers pay no property taxes during the first two years, with the rate slowly increasing until they pay 20 percent in the final years of the program.
But the flourishing apartment market is also being driven by house hunters looking at Baltimore as offering much in an authentic urban lifestyle at an affordable price point, compared to Washington, D.C. and other major cities along the Interstate-95 corridor.
As a result, these new residents and urban vibe are mixing with the city’s rich architectural history to fuel an attractive and dynamic future.