BALTIMORE | Projects: proposed, under construction or approved

[MasonsInquiries]

here is, perhaps, the most modified version of the state center development that we've seen....

[MasonsInquiries]

Baltimore biotech parks grow despite recession
Some setbacks, but existing lab buildings in Hopkins and UM campuses are filling up

By Frank D. Roylance, The Baltimore Sun
7:32 p.m. EST, November 28, 2010

While some sectors of Maryland's economy struggle to shake free of the Great Recession, the biotechnology parks adjacent to Baltimore's two top teaching hospitals stubbornly continue to add laboratories, offices and — most importantly for the city — jobs.

The gains have been both large and small, and not always along the path or at the pace envisioned when the parks were created. But the growth is unmistakable, fueled by the critical mass of expertise, resources and discoveries at both the Johns Hopkins and University of Maryland Baltimore medical campuses.

Among the most recent arrivals is Frank Diehl, chief scientific officer at Inostics, a German company seeking to perfect a new diagnostic tool for cancer patients. He hopes to have a small lab running next year on the city's east side, at the Science + Technology Park at Johns Hopkins.

The technology was invented at Hopkins, and Diehl says it was always in the cards to bring it back to Baltimore as it matured. "You want to interact with the brightest people," Diehl said by phone from Hamburg. "In oncology, the brightest people are in Baltimore."

Across town, Marco Chacon, CEO at Paragon Bioservices, signed a new lease this fall for 45,000 square feet on two floors at the University of Maryland BioPark, more than doubling his space just a year and a half after locating there.

By late next year he expects to expand his work force to 75 people from 50, doing contract research and preclinical drug production work for clients in Baltimore and beyond.

The region, he said, is a good location for biotech companies because of its "wonderful universities" and the proximity to agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration, National Institutes of Health and Department of Defense. "The future bodes well," he said.

Together, the biotech parks have attracted nearly three dozen tenants, with more than 900 employees. But it hasn't all been easy.

"The drug business is a very risky business," said Dr. David Block, president and CEO of the drug discovery startup Gliknik, at the UM BioPark. People who invest in new jet planes or nuclear power plants know it will be expensive, with delays and cost overruns. "But you also know at the end of the process you're going to have your jet or nuclear power plant."

"What makes drug discovery so challenging is that it's equally expensive, equally as time-consuming, but at the end of the project 90 percent of the projects fail," he said. Getting a successful new drug discovery to market can take 10 to 15 years, and cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

Entrepreneurs seeking their fortunes in the bioparks say they've been able to attract millions in investments in spite of the recession, in part because of state and federal biotech tax credits offered to investors.

But the recession has tightened construction financing. There is a big hole in the ground on West Baltimore Street where UM BioPark developer Wexford Science + Technology was preparing to build a third lab building without first signing an anchor tenant. The 2008 financial collapse halted the excavation. Bankers now want most of the space pre-leased before they'll put up the money.

Tighter money has left both bioparks near capacity in their existing buildings, with developers at pains to assemble the new tenants the banks demand before they can build again.

Christian S. Johansson, Maryland's secretary of business and economic development, sees the glass half-full. "If you look at what the overall economy has been through over the last few years, the fact that you have buildings nearing space limitations, I would call that a pretty encouraging sign."

Maryland's biotech industry got its initial footing elsewhere, especially on Montgomery County's Interstate 270 corridor, closer to the FDA and NIH. "Where we really had untapped assets in this state was in the research institutions in Baltimore," Johansson said. And that's where the growth has finally come.

Both bioparks have had to grapple with community issues. The developers at Hopkins' park spent years relocating, compensating and providing other assistance to people who lived in the park's footprint. They are still wrestling with what kind of housing and amenities to build on the cleared land beyond the labs.

To address some of the needs of its own West Baltimore neighborhood, the UM BioPark last year invited Baltimore City Community College to establish a Life Sciences Institute, which is now training an estimated 500 students for laboratory jobs or careers in biotechnology.

Unexpected path

Hopkins' biopark, just north of the university's medical campus, is part of the larger redevelopment project being run by the nonprofit East Baltimore Development Inc. The park's developer is the Forest City-New East Baltimore Partnership.

So far, only the Rangos lab-and-office building — 281,000 square feet of a planned 900,000 square feet of lab and office space — has been built, said Scott Levitan, Forest City's senior vice president. And space there is tight.

[MasonsInquiries]

http://25thstreetstation.com/

[Busy Bee]

Why is it SOOOOO hard to push the building envelope to the streetwall. Why are we STILL pitching suburban style shopping centers in urban locations?

Can someone please answer this question for me? Is the zoning structure still sabotaging progressive thinking and good intentions?

[MasonsInquiries]

Constellation document outlines solar parking lot plan in Federal Hill
Oliver Hulland January 19, 2011 at 3:52 pm
Baltimore Brew


Here are still more details regarding Constellation Energy’s proposed solar parking lot system at the Maryland Science Center, including a picture they say identifies the potential changes to the harbor view.

Benjamin Levy, one of Constellation’s engineers working on the project, supplied The Brew with a PDF (a version of which was handed out at last night’s Federal Hill meeting) that outlines in greater detail how the site will look on completion.

That document can be found at this link: Solar Parking Lot Plans for Maryland Science Center.[/QUOTE]

[MasonsInquiries]

Supermarket planned for Howard Park if mayor OKs land sale
Baltimore Sun
10:21 p.m. EST, January 27, 2011

Baltimore's Howard Park neighborhood could get a full-service Klein's ShopRite supermarket by late 2012 if Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake accepts a recommendation to sell city-owned land for the project.

The Baltimore Development Corporation's directors voted in closed session Thursday to recommend that the city approve a land sale agreement with a Maryland group that wants to build the supermarket. The land is on Liberty Heights Avenue near Gwynn Oak Avenue. The development team selected after responding to a city-issued request for proposals is headed by Leonard Weinberg II of Vanguard Equities and businessman Roland Campbell.

According to the BDC's president, M.J. "Jay" Brodie, the project is consistent with an initiative to bring full-service grocery stores to city neighborhoods that need them. If the mayor concurs with the recommendation to sell land for the Klein's ShopRite project, Brodie said, construction could begin by the end of this year and be complete in about nine months.

[MasonsInquiries]

Under Armour to buy entire Tide Point complex
Will convert former Procter & Gamble plant to a corporate campus
By Andrea K. Walker, The Baltimore Sun
January 27, 2011
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business...,3827633.story

Under Armour is to announce today that it will buy the Tide Point waterfront office complex in Locust Point to serve as a corporate campus, cementing the international sports apparel company's home in Baltimore.

The company now occupies nearly half of the 400,000-square-foot Tide Point complex, but for several years it has been on the hunt for a campus, a feature boasted by rival Nike and other sports companies.

Under Armour's search has sent executives across the country to study campuses maintained by firms such as Quicksilver, PacSun, Google and Intuit. Under Armour also contemplated a building along the Baltimore waterfront in West Covington.

But about six months ago, Under Armour's leadership begin to think it had already found its home at Tide Point, once a Procter & Gamble manufacturing plant that made detergents.

The decision to create a local campus came shortly after Under Armour invested $14.2 million last year to further expand at Tide Point, adding 14 showrooms, an "innovation lab," expansive meeting spaces and a basketball court. The Under Armour logo is prominently displayed at the entrance to the complex.

"We look at this as securing our future," said J. Scott Plank, executive vice president of business development and brother of company founder Kevin Plank. "We decided, why rip up our roots and move someplace else?"

Under Armour is still working out exactly what the campus will look like. At present, the complex has several tenants with leases, including Advertising.com and Mercy Health Services. Plank said the company also has not decided whether the complex will keep the Tide Point name.

"What we are trying to do is wrestle this idea to the ground," Plank said. "We haven't made all the decisions yet, but this will be Under Armour's campus."

The company did not release financial details of the transaction Wednesday. But the announcement of the deal, expected to close in 60 to 90 days, comes at a time when buyers have an advantage because of a backlog of available real estate.

"We were very fortunate that we are in a very good position to be able to make the acquisition, and the landlord wanted to sell the building," Plank said. The complex is owned by Hull Street LLC.

The Tide Point property is the brainchild of C. William Struever, a developer responsible for some of Baltimore's most prominent projects who saw his fortunes tumble during the recession. Tide Point opened in 2001 in the heart of Locust Point as a hub for high-tech companies. The five buildings that make up the complex are named after Procter & Gamble products such as Joy and Tide.

Struever recently helped found a new venture, Cross Street Partners, which Plank said will manage the campus.

Under Armour has exploded from a company with a just a handful of employees when it moved to Tide Point in 2002 to more than 1,500 in Maryland today, including 1,000 at the Tide Point headquarters.

Plank said owning the entire Tide Point complex will allow for growth.

"We need space for international, we need space for innovation and marketing functions," Plank said. "Under Armour is a company that is going to continue to grow."

A campus is also a sign of a company's prominence. It's not only an impressive place to bring potential clients but is the "face" of a brand.

"As we look at a global headquarters and look to attract talent and attract clients, we need an energetic headquarters," Plank said.

City and state officials said they were pleased with Under Armour's decision to expand its presence in Baltimore.

Under Armour is receiving no government incentives as part of the Tide Point deal. In the past, the company has received tax credits and other incentives.

"It demonstrates a lasting commitment by the company's leadership to stay, grow and create more jobs in Baltimore City," said Ryan O'Doherty, spokesman for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. "Under Armour and Baltimore have become synonymous with each other, and that's something we can all take pride in."

State officials, including Gov. Martin O'Malley, met with Under Armour executives last summer to discuss the importance of the company's presence in Maryland.

"We are happy they are making the commitment to purchase that property and make it more officially their home," Christian S. Johansson, secretary of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, said in an interview Wednesday.

Laurie Schwartz, executive director of the Waterfront Partnership, said Under Armour's presence could spur more local development.

"It's a huge vote of confidence by an international company," Schwartz said. "That kind of commitment speaks volumes to other companies looking to invest in that specific area. I would expect to see further investment clustered around them."[/QUOTE]

[MasonsInquiries]

baltimoresun.com

Third restaurant barge planned for Inner Harbor
Cordish Cos. to build floating platform

By Edward Gunts, The Baltimore Sun

7:18 PM EST, January 25, 2011

Baltimore's Inner Harbor will get a third outdoor restaurant barge along Pier 4 by summer if the city's Board of Estimates approves the project at its meeting Wednesday.

The Baltimore Development Corp. asked the spending board to amend a 1999 lease agreement to enable an affiliate of the Cordish Cos. to construct a "fixed or floating barge structure" between Inner Harbor Piers 3 and 4. The barge would be used for outdoor dining and entertainment, according to the BDC request posted online. The barge will be used by Dick's Last Resort, a restaurant that opened on Pier 4 last June.

Cordish already has built two barges in the inlets between Piers 3 and 4, one for the Hard Rock Cafe and one for the ESPN Zone, which closed last year. The new barge would be adjacent to the Pier 4 office building just south of the Pier 4 Power Plant.

According to Baltimore Liquor Board's executive secretary, Sam Daniels, Dick's Last Resort has already received approval from the liquor board to operate on the barge. Andrew Assad, general manager for the Baltimore restaurant, said Dick's is aiming to have the barge open in time for the summer tourist season.

The city first authorized construction of a third barge along Pier 4 in the late 1990s, but it was never built. Cordish originally sought to build a barge for the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., but plans for that project were opposed by the National Aquarium in Baltimore and others. According to spokeswoman Jen Bloomer, the aquarium supports the current proposal.[/QUOTE]

[MasonsInquiries]

State set to give $1M for new Inner Harbor park
By Edward Gunts
The Baltimore Sun
January 26, 2011

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business...,4522123.story

A proposal to create a family-oriented Inner Harbor park cleared a key hurdle today when Maryland's Board of Public Works voted to approve $1 million for the project.

The money will be used to develop Pierce's Park, a one-acre parcel on Pier 5 named for former businessman Pierce Flanigan. Two nonprofit groups, the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore and the Downtown Baltimore Family Alliance, have been seeking to raise $2.4 million to create the park and maintain it.

The $1 million from Program Open Space, part of Maryland's Department of Natural Resources, brings the total raised so far to more than $2 million in cash and donated labor and materials. Laurie Schwartz, executive director of the Waterfront Partnership, said she hoped that ground could be broken in the spring and that the park could be opened in the fall of 2011.[/QUOTE]

[MasonsInquiries]

Scott Ferber's TidalTV Moving HQ to McHenry Row
February 21, 2011
Link to source: http://baltimorerealestate.citybizli...enry-Row.aspx#

TidalTV, the Canton-based video advertising, optimization, and yield management solutions provider, has signed a full-floor 16,000 square foot lease within The Offices at McHenry Row, the office component of the 175,000 square foot mixed-used McHenry Row project located near the intersection of Key Highway and East Fort Avenue in the Locust Point section of Baltimore City.

Founded by Scott Ferber - who previously founded and subsequently sold Advertising.com - the company will relocate 40 employees from its existing location in Canton by April. The space is configured to support more than 100 workers as part of TidalTV's short-term expansion strategy.

Joe Nolan of NAI KLNB and Tim Jackson of Cushman & Wakefield represented the developer and landlord of the project, Mark Sapperstein. David Fields of CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant in this transaction.

The Offices at McHenry Row is a brick and glass building with 16,000 square foot floorplates on floors two-through-five, which are designed for commercial office uses. The 15,000 square foot ground floor accommodates retail tenants. Grocery store Harris Teeter, as well as The Greene Turtle restaurant, Dunkin's Donuts, M & T Bank and PNC Bank have signed leases at the project.

McHenry Row offers direct access to Interstate 95 and combines 110,000 square feet of retail space with 64,000 square feet of commercial office space and 250 residential apartments.

TidalTV utilizes its proprietary ad decisioning technology to enable addressable audience-based video advertising, as well as monetization and yield management systems for video advertising.

Two separate divisions of The Strata Group -- Yerman, Witman, Gaines and Conklin Realty, LLC, a residential real estate brokerage operation -- and Real Estate Title & Escrow, LLC combined to lease nearly 8,000 square feet of space at McHenry Row last fall. The five-story office building, which also includes the Baltimore Metropolitan Council and gkv communications as tenants, is now 80% leased, with only the second floor, representing 16,000 square feet of space available for lease.

"It was important to maintain our headquarters within Baltimore City," explained Mike Woosley, Chief Operating Officer of TidalTV. "McHenry Row provided us with a full-floor opportunity and the room to grow, combined with a Locust Point location that places us within close proximity to major highways and complementary retail amenities including a grocery store."

"We attribute our success to the changing dynamic of young professionals and empty-nesters embracing a downtown residential address, combined with the appeal to also work in an urban environment," explained Joe Nolan of NAI KLNB. "The live-work-play of McHenry Row separates it from the competition."[/QUOTE]

[MasonsInquiries]

McHenry Row....

www.mchenryrow.com











More McHenry Row updates:







From Fort Ave:

[MasonsInquiries]

www.1111lightstreet.com


as of 2/5/11.....



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as of 2/11/11.....





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[MasonsInquiries]

Mayor Rawlings-Blake suggests new federal facility on site of 1st Mariner Arena

Daily Record Legal Affairs Writer

Baltimore’s deteriorating 35-year-old federal courthouse must be rebuilt or at least refurbished, even if it takes a partnership of public and private funding to do it, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and other civic leaders told U.S. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin at a field hearing he called on the building’s status.

Cardin was more than receptive, saying in a statement after the hearing that the courthouse was “built on the cheap” and that its deficiencies “compromise the safety of judges, staff and public” who use it every day.

At the hearing, the Maryland Democrat invited suggestions for alternate funding methods, saying he doubts Congress — in the current budget climate — would appropriate the $100 million needed for refurbishment, much less the $200 million needed for a new courthouse.

“We’ve got to find creative ways to move forward,” said Cardin, who held the hearing in Courtroom 1-A of the Edward A. Garmatz Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse on West Lombard Street.

The courthouse, which opened in 1976, lacks modern security features, including windows that could withstand a bomb blast, and suffers from leaking pipes, poor electricity and inadequate plumbing, said Senior U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz, who has worked in the building since 1985.

Rawlings-Blake said her preference would be for a new, modern courthouse about two blocks away — on the current site of the 1st Mariner Arena. (Rawlings-Blake has steadfastly opposed the plan for a new arena to be built on that site.)

“Judges, marshals, lawyers and support staff are forced to work in a precarious environment with frequent plumbing mishaps, electrical failures and a lack of access to technological improvements,” she said. “A new courthouse in this vicinity would be a hub for the West Side and Baltimore city as a whole. This means jobs, construction, commerce as well as a host of other economic and social benefits that will permeate as a result.”

Charles O. Monk II, chairman of the board of the Greater Baltimore Committee, told Cardin the business group would explore a potential public-private partnership, a “P3,” to design and construct a courthouse on the arena site. Under such a partnership, the new courthouse, like other federal buildings, would be managed by the U.S. General Services Administration, said Monk, managing partner of Saul Ewing LLP’s Baltimore office.

“The utilization of a public-private partnership may be a novel approach to these forms of public use projects, but we are convinced that the potential exists for a private sector developer to design and construct the federal courthouse and enter into a long-term lease back with the GSA,” Monk said. “Although this type of a P3 may be a new concept to the … GSA for the construction of federal courthouses, this may very well be the perfect time to begin exploring what the private sector can bring to our public building needs in this country.”

J. Kirby Fowler Jr., president of the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, said the nonprofit would cooperate in a venture for a new courthouse or a renovation.

The civic leaders’ comments followed Cardin’s criticism of GSA for not giving what he called due regard to Baltimore in prioritizing federal courthouses to be replaced or refurbished.

Susan F. Brita, GSA’s deputy administrator, defended the agency, telling Cardin other federal courthouses had even greater security, electrical and plumbing problems than the Garmatz.

“It did not make the final cut … relative to the needs of other buildings,” Brita said.

That answer did not satisfy Cardin, who conducted the hearing on behalf of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which oversees construction of federal buildings and on which he sits.

“Baltimore is being penalized,” he said.

But U.S. District Judge Michael A. Ponsor of Massachusetts, who chairs the Space and Facilities Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States, said the fault lies not with GSA but with Congress’ refusal to appropriate adequate funds for courthouse repair or construction.

“We would love to build you a new courthouse in Baltimore,” said Ponsor. “Show me the money.”

[MasonsInquiries]

Baltimore Museum of Art taps Ziger/Snead for $24M renovation
Baltimore Business Journal - by Ryan Sharrow, Staff
Date: Wednesday, April 27, 2011, 3:21pm EDT[/COLOR]


Nicholas Griner | Staff
The Baltimore Museum of Art will undergo $24 million in renovations.


Baltimore-based Ziger/Snead was among five architecture firms on a short list to work with the attraction. Other finalists were Ayers Saint Gross, Design Collective Inc., GWWO Inc./Architects and RTKL Associates Inc.
Ziger/Snead was selected because of the firm’s “clarity of vision and design and their success with both historic and contemporary buildings,” Stiles Tuttle Colwill, chair of the BMA’s board of trustees, said in a statement.

The museum’s three-year capital renovation includes a major overhaul of the contemporary, American and African galleries. The project is set for completion in 2014 — the year the museum celebrates its 100th anniversary.

The project will be funded in part by a $10 million multi-year commitment from the State of Maryland, as well as $2.45 million in bond support from Baltimore. Donations to “In a New Light: The Campaign for The Baltimore Museum of Art” will contribute to the required match for the state’s funding.



Read more: Baltimore Museum of Art taps Ziger/Snead for $24M renovation | Baltimore Business Journal

[MasonsInquiries]

The NEW Baltimore Grand Prix!!
There's a new rendering of the main grandstand for the Baltimore Grand Prix released today. Saw it on Facebook, but can't seem to grab it to put up here (limited at work).

It's on the main page of their site though...just wait for the third rotating image:
http://www.baltimoregrandprix.com/

Sad that it looks like they'll be removing all those trees along Light st (both on the sides and center of the street.

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[MasonsInquiries]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/79816819@N00/















http://www.flickr.com/photos/7981681...n/photostream/

[MasonsInquiries]

Ocean City's Seacrets eyes Baltimore, other locales for expansion
Baltimore Business Journal - by Alexander Jackson, Staff
Date: Friday, April 22, 2011, 6:00am EDT - Last Modified: Friday, April 22, 2011, 11:29am EDT


As many as 1 million people visit Seacrets in Ocean City annually.



The man who brought Jamaica to Ocean City wants to take his Bob Marley party to cities across the western hemisphere, including Baltimore.

Leighton Moore, owner and CEO of vacation-entertainment complex Seacrets, plans to franchise his island-themed bar and restaurant concept and open 37 new locations within the next five years.

One of those spots could be along the Inner Harbor, but Moore is still looking for a location and franchise operator. He already has interest from entrepreneurs in vacation hot spots like the Bahamas, Florida, California and Myrtle Beach, S.C.

[MasonsInquiries]

Constellation plots new Baltimore HQ
Baltimore Business Journal
by Scott Dance
April 28, 2011
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore...timore-hq.html

Constellation Energy Group Inc. plans to leave its headquarters at 750 E. Pratt St. and the adjacent Candler Building for new downtown Baltimore digs if its proposed merger with Exelon Corp. closes, CEO Mayo A. Shattuck III said Thursday.

Along with the physical presence, the companies also pledged to maintain Constellation’s level of charitable giving locally — about $10 million a year — for the next decade.

Leaders of both companies spoke to the media at a press conference, assuring the region that this deal, unlike others, will increase economic activity in Greater Baltimore. Exelon (NYSE: EXC) struck a deal to buy Constellation (NYSE: CEG) in an all-stock deal worth $7.9 billion. If it goes through, it would take away local ownership of Baltimore’s only Fortune 500 company.

Shattuck said the companies would be looking for something with a larger footprint than either of its two buildings, which sit side-by-side on Pratt Street between Market Place and the Jones Falls. The companies want a future home large enough to fit all of the company’s downtown workers in one building, and also with room for large commodities trading floors, something that doesn’t fit currently, Shattuck said.

Constellation currently has 3,500 employees downtown. The companies said the merger will result in a net gain in jobs, but they did not comment directly on possible layoffs.

Shattuck emphasized that the site search would not extend into suburban Greater Baltimore.

“We’re committed to downtown,” he said.

Shattuck said he, too, is committed to the region — the merger deal will allow his family to remain in Baltimore. Shattuck is slated to become executive chairman of Exelon’s board of directors, while Exelon President Chris Crane would become CEO and current Exelon CEO John Rowe plans to retire.

“I will be going back and forth from Chicago,” he said. “But I know [Crane] will be doing more back and forth than I will.”

[Glispe]

After these Projects the look of the Baltimore is going to change.
I waiting anxiously to see my city more develop after these Projects.

[MasonsInquiries]

Funny you said that,, Glipse!! Guess @ everything i've found!!!!.........lol






www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-downtown-sidebar-bridge-20110525,0,2592797.story
baltimoresun.com

Business leaders propose walking bridge, light shows, waterfront park for Inner Harbor

Greater Baltimore Committee ideas would take attraction to 'next level'

By Edward Gunts, The Baltimore Sun
6:09 PM EDT, May 25, 2011
While the city reviews proposals to invigorate the Inner Harbor, the Greater Baltimore Committee unveiled a vision of its own, highlighted by a pedestrian bridge that would link the north and south shores, allowing visitors for the first time to walk a complete circle around the downtown waterfront.

Leaders of the business group also proposed light and water shows for the harbor, and three different ideas for turning Rash Field on the south shore into a world-class park.

The bridge would be built high enough above the water that most sailboats and water taxis could travel underneath. It would be designed with arms that could pivot open to let tall ships and other large vessels pass through.

People would be able to stand on the bridge and look west toward the city skyline or east toward the outer harbor — a perspective available now only aboard a vessel on the water. The bridge would complete a 1.5 mile loop.

Adam Gross, a partner of the architecture firm that proposed the bridge and other improvements, said the slender span would be a sculptural element that fills a need.

"When you walk around the Inner Harbor now, you run into a dead end," he said. "This will allow for a loop around the Inner Harbor and make a stronger connection" between the south shore and the burgeoning community of Harbor East.

Laurie Schwartz, executive director of the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore, said the bridge would add "an element of beauty and grace to the harbor as well as something that's incredibly functional. I think it's spectacular."

The bridge is one of several ideas that the Greater Baltimore Committee proposed Wednesday as part of a new vision for adding life to the Inner Harbor three decades after the opening of Harborplace and the National Aquarium in Baltimore.

The committee also proposed shows that would project colors and images onto the walls of the buildings that frame the harbor and spew water in synchronized geysers, and three concepts for a waterfront park at Rash Field.

Designed by Ayers Saint Gross of Baltimore, the Rash Field plans call for different combinations of uses, including beach volleyball courts,a childrens' playground and public art installations. One concept includes a concert bandshell at the east end and a large green space in the center — Baltimore's answer to Chicago's Millennium Park.

GBC leaders said a year ago that they would be looking for ways to make the shoreline more attractive. They promised to share the results this year as a way of stimulating public discussion.

The plans were unveiled just as city officials are reviewing nine proposals for the Inner Harbor shoreline, including two "observation wheels," a 13-story observation tower, activities such as zip lines, swings, rope courses and an expansion of the current beach volleyball courts.

City officials are reviewing the proposals with the goal of deciding whether to accept any in time to have them in place for the 2012 tourist season.

Greater Baltimore Committee President Donald Fry said the ideas unveiled Wednesday weren't meant to supplant the nine proposals submitted to the city. He said the city had requested proposals for uses that might be in place for one to five years, while the committee has been looking for longterm projects that could take the Inner Harbor "to the next level" as an attraction for area residents and visitors.

Fry said the group asked Ayers Saint Gross to propose several scenarios for remaking Rash Field, which it believes can be the next big Inner Harbor attraction.

Several decades ago, city officials had plans for a large bridge that would carry vehicles across the mouth of the Inner Harbor, as part of a proposed interstate highway system connecting south and east Baltimore. The structure never materialized, after preservation groups and others defeated plans for highways running through south Baltimore and Fells Point.

More recently, footbridges have been constructed to connect some of the finger piers on the Inner Harbor's north shore.

The committee has not come up with a financing plan. Fry said the Rash Field makeovers could cost up to $10 million. He said the light and water shows also could cost millions of dollars and could be privately financed.

The committee plans to post details of the proposals on its website — gbc.org — to solicit reactions and encourage more discussion.

ed.gunts@baltsun.com


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