The Collaspe of the State Center project??!! (Baltimore, Annapolis: 2013, apartments)

[Infinite_heights77]

*Interesting... Let's build on this! Why Barney Rubble, I mean Gov. Logan?!! Lol! Why?!!!

https://soundcloud.com/baltsun/what-...ct-episode-199

Roughly Speaking podcast: What happened to the State Center project? (episode 199) - Baltimore Sun



In this podcast:


It happened just a few days before Christmas: Maryland’s governor, comptroller and treasure — the state’s Board of Public Works — voted to cancel the $1.5 billion State Center redevelopment plan on mid-town Baltimore’s west side, a project 10 years in the making. Gov. Larry Hogan claimed the plan made no economic sense. What’s more, the state filed a lawsuit against State Center’s developer, seeking to break the leases for office space that underpin the financing of the project. Then, state comptroller Peter Franchot suggested that a whole new plan be developed to include a sports arena for an NBA or NHL team. And just like that, Hogan agreed to have the Maryland Stadium Authority fast-track a study of how to redevelop the property, including whether an arena would be feasible. So, in a very short period of time, a huge, well-vetted redevelopment project was killed, a new one proposed, and the state went to war with the developer. Merry Christmas! What happened? Dan goes over the story with Caroline Moore, CEO of Ekistics, the Baltimore development firm and leader developer of State Center.

[Woodlands]

Good Riddance.. build a new arena a decent grocery store with some other service retail *period*. If you want to build a few apartments there for downtown workers.. that's fine too but likely the market is nearing saturation so that may have to wait. There is rumor that the State may be looking at the Metro West Complex for their offices.. I that happens....

[pwduvall]

Originally Posted by Woodlands

Good Riddance.. build a new arena a decent grocery store with some other service retail *period*. If you want to build a few apartments there for downtown workers.. that's fine too but likely the market is nearing saturation so that may have to wait. There is rumor that the State may be looking at the Metro West Complex for their offices.. I that happens....

At this point it looks like the best outcome is for the office workers to relocate to Metro West and the older state buildings to be demolished ASAP. After all that is done, the land could be offered for $1 to any developer that has all of its financing lined up and agrees to ask for no subsidies (other than the low land price.) The RFP could demand a neighborhood retail component but would be allow a range of possibilities.

I agree that there will be a period of oversaturation with multi-family but space could be left for the future. The looming oversupply of multi-family might well amount to a full year's absorption, but that can be worked off over a couple of years. If I were reviewing the eventual RFPs, I would be looking for some strong transit oriented development within a block of the Metro station. Other than that, I would be open to just about anything.

The drawback of the arena idea is the tendency to want either surface parking nearby or to spend way to much on structured parking. I doubt that anyone could finance a plan that is dense enough that it could use large amounts of structured parking most of the time. In a way, that was one of the problems with the plan that the governor rejected.

[Infinite_heights77]

I don't understand your thinking?! How is not a good idea?!

Originally Posted by Woodlands

Good Riddance.. build a new arena a decent grocery store with some other service retail *period*. If you want to build a few apartments there for downtown workers.. that's fine too but likely the market is nearing saturation so that may have to wait. There is rumor that the State may be looking at the Metro West Complex for their offices.. I that happens....

[james777]

Originally Posted by pwduvall

At this point it looks like the best outcome is for the office workers to relocate to Metro West and the older state buildings to be demolished ASAP. After all that is done, the land could be offered for $1 to any developer that has all of its financing lined up and agrees to ask for no subsidies (other than the low land price.) The RFP could demand a neighborhood retail component but would be allow a range of possibilities.

I agree that there will be a period of oversaturation with multi-family but space could be left for the future. The looming oversupply of multi-family might well amount to a full year's absorption, but that can be worked off over a couple of years. If I were reviewing the eventual RFPs, I would be looking for some strong transit oriented development within a block of the Metro station. Other than that, I would be open to just about anything.

The drawback of the arena idea is the tendency to want either surface parking nearby or to spend way to much on structured parking. I doubt that anyone could finance a plan that is dense enough that it could use large amounts of structured parking most of the time. In a way, that was one of the problems with the plan that the governor rejected.

What?? I can't believe what I am reading!! Demolish the state office buildings at the state office complex, just south of Bolton Hill? Why?

I believe there are only three buildings in the complex (correct me if I am wrong), the original State Office Building in International style and completed in 1959, the ugly brutalist addition to the complex that sits adjacent to that building and was completed in the 1970s, and the Maryland Unemployment office building in the same style and completed at about the same time as the State Office Building and located on the opposite side of Eutaw Place. Are you saying that these buildings are outdated, or aren't good enough for the state employees?

Instead, they need to build more buildings at that location for the state employees, so the state will not have to rent space in other parts of the Baltimore area for their workers as they are doing now, the state offices will be consolidated in one central complex, and the workers will have easy access to work via the Metro.

[Woodlands]

Originally Posted by Infinite_heights77

I don't understand your thinking?! How is not a good idea?!

The City blew its wad on Port Covington and Harbor East. We don't have the capacity for anymore "game changing" high dollar tax abating mixed use developments. Let the ones that are already approved move forward.. there is no need for the State to .. pardon the Bmo slogan 'Get in on it"


There are also several highrises proposed for downtown.. one is under construction on Light and Conway Street. The State can negotiate and fill any of these office buildings or better yet go to Metro West which would likely be vacant for decades if it not for a tenant like the State. Every site in the City doesn't need to be redeveloped all at once. If we had the growth rate of DC.. then I would say go for it.. but that is not the case. The Superblock is a prime example of city and government lead development and it is finally being sold off into smaller projects after sitting for decades. The City and State should master plan the site and RFP it off in phases or all at once.. while scaling it back overall....

[pwduvall]

Originally Posted by james777

What?? I can't believe what I am reading!! Demolish the state office buildings at the state office complex, just south of Bolton Hill? Why?

I believe there are only three buildings in the complex (correct me if I am wrong), the original State Office Building in International style and completed in 1959, the ugly brutalist addition to the complex that sits adjacent to that building and was completed in the 1970s, and the Maryland Unemployment office building in the same style and completed at about the same time as the State Office Building and located on the opposite side of Eutaw Place. Are you saying that these buildings are outdated, or aren't good enough for the state employees?

Instead, they need to build more buildings at that location for the state employees, so the state will not have to rent space in other parts of the Baltimore area for their workers as they are doing now, the state offices will be consolidated in one central complex, and the workers will have easy access to work via the Metro.

I don't believe that the Governor will allow any money to be spent at State Center as long as he is around. My biggest fear is that we will move the employees elsewhere, give the land to the city, and then force the city to come up with the demolition funds. Since coming up with the money could take quite a while, the city would get high rise urban blight like in Detroit. If the city refused the land, the situation would be even worse.

Also, if the city refused to play ball, the governor could move the state employees all over the state. That would go over very well with the 90% of voters that don't live in Baltimore. Face it, screwing with Baltimore is just plain good politics.

[Woodlands]

Originally Posted by pwduvall

I don't believe that the Governor will allow any money to be spent at State Center as long as he is around. My biggest fear is that we will move the employees elsewhere, give the land to the city, and then force the city to come up with the demolition funds. Since coming up with the money could take quite a while, the city would get high rise urban blight like in Detroit. If the city refused the land, the situation would be even worse.

Also, if the city refused to play ball, the governor could move the state employees all over the state. That would go over very well with the 90% of voters that don't live in Baltimore. Face it, screwing with Baltimore is just plain good politics.

He and SRB had a poor relationship.. It appears he an Mayor Pugh have a better one. Since she has worked in Annapolis as a Senator.. She should be able to understand the politics of a GOP gov.. since she was around when Earl was in office