Pre-development study for State Center’s future can be seen online
Three years since the state government announced plans to give up on State Center redevelopment and move thousands of office workers into empty downtown buildings, consultants to the city’s planning department have developed an interesting scene-setter Power Point to guide new renovation and development scenarios for the 28-acre site on Bolton Hill’s south border.
This $300,000 market and pre-development conceptual study does not point to a specific direction for repurposing the property. Rather, it reviews all options and hints at which are likely more feasible. The city has not yet taken possession of the to-be-abandoned site, but it is likely that will happen in the next year or two.
What happens from there depends heavily on the state of the city and state economies and the willingness of developers to step forward with big ideas for constructing a major new project or set of projects to make use of the soon-to-be empty central city parcel. The previous redevelopment plan from 2008, blessed over time by governors from both parties, was killed by Gov. Larry Hogan (R), along with his abandonment of the approved light rail Red Line and other Baltimore projects.
The original site development called for major retail development, including a grocery, and lots of new housing for owners and renters. That plan’s site included the current armory building which the state, at this point, has not ceded to the city. BHCA likely will host a discussion of the conceptual study findings at a meeting in the fall.
Red Cross blood drive set for June 25
Beth Am Synagogue in Reservoir Hill is hosting a Red Cross blood drive on Tuesday, June 25 from 1 to 6 p.m. One need not be affiliated with the religion or the facility to participate. Beth Am is located at 2501 Eutaw Place. For further information contact David Scher.
WNADA to explain 15-year development plan for North Avenue corridor
The West North Avenue Development Association will hold the last of its three public information sessions to share the details of its first-ever plan for comprehensive revitalization of the West North Avenue corridor stretch west from Bolton Hill to Coppin State University. The presentation will take place July 13 from 10 a.m. – noon at Unity Hall, 1505 Eutaw Pl.
The plan proposes to invest $3 billion in state and private funds over 15 years to breathe new life into the mostly decrepit commercial and residential stretch of road and 250-yard buffer zone that runs through or touches five state legislative districts. Its greatest impact is on District 40, which includes Bolton Hill and 15 other communities. WNADA was authorized three years ago by the General Assembly at the behest of Sen. Antonio Hayes (D), the senator for District 40.
The plan sketches out goals for new and renovated housing, economic development, transportation, green space improvement and countering depopulation. Highlights of the plan can be accessed here.
Help plan Baltimore’s future
The city’s planning department is hosting four public meetings between June 17 and 24 to enable residents to comment on its new 300-page, 15-year plan for the city’s development.
The nearest location for Bolton Hill residents is Touchpoint at Mondawmin Mall, 2401 Liberty Heights Ave. on June 24 from 6 to 8 p.m. Others are June 17, Bon Secours Community Health Center; June 20 at Henderson-Hopkins School; and June 27 at Medstar Harbor Hospital.
Bolton Hill’s Charlie Duff, a planner, developer and historian, has agreed to read the plan and report on it in the September Bulletin.
Look for a new, improved (maybe) water billing system from DPW
DPW, infamous for decades of utility billing miscues, is redesigning its water bill for city customers, “with your convenience and transparency in mind.”
Starting soon, water and sewer bills will be presenting water usage and charges in what the agency calls “a straightforward manner.” It will make it easier to figure out, perhaps, why a bill that was consistent to the penny for months suddenly doubled. The new system offers “personalized insights into your water consumption habits” to encourage conservation and cost savings.
DPW says a new portal on its website will be user-friendly, enabling online payments as DPW works to reduce paper billings. Like QR codes? You’re in luck. The square on your paper bill will take you to the payment portal. All of these improvements take effect June 17. More information is on DPW’s website.
About The Bulletin….
We’re taking a vacation. The Bolton Hill Bulletin is published monthly except for July and August. It is designed by Elizabeth Peters. We invite others to help write, edit, provide photos or work on the business side. Send suggestions and comments to bulletin@boltonhillmd.org. Thanks to new contributors Ellen Molino, Jo-elle Johnson and Rob Kasper, as well as to Kimberley Canale, Lisa Summers and Lisa Savage. Paula Jackson is our proofreader, but errors and omissions are the responsibility of the editor, Bill Hamilton.
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