Baltimore spending board approves $16M to build employment center, signs 32-year lease

Baltimore’s spending board approved a $16 million contribution and agreed to a long-term lease worth millions of dollars Wednesday for a West Baltimore mixed-use building that will house the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development.

Plans for the development , which is being led by Harborplace developer David Bramble, call for a four-story office building to be constructed in Reservoir Square that would be leased by the city for 32 years. After that time, the city would have the option to purchase the site.

The move represents a significant investment by the city in the Reservoir Square area, which has come to be known as the “murder mall.” The neighborhood is undergoing a $100 million makeover planned for 8 acres along North Avenue between Bolton Hill and Reservoir Hill. The broader plan, which is being developed by MCB Real Estate, Atapco Properties and MLR Partners, includes housing, offices and shops.

MacKenzie Garvin, director of MOED, said the 63,000-square-foot office space will offer a centralized job center and career hub for city residents. The job center would feature career skills classrooms, collaborative workspaces and learning labs where residents could get job placement help, career training and support services. The building also would house a cafe.

The office would consolidate six MOED locations currently spread across the city, she said. It is slated to open by early 2026.

“The current model we have right now is not sustainable because the facilities are insufficient, they are limiting,” she said. “We have to have a building that represents the way we feel about the people we serve.”

Baltimore’s contribution to the project, approved Wednesday by the board, would go toward the total $41 million price tag of constructing the office building. An additional $21.5 million would be funded by bonds sold by the Maryland Economic Development Corp. and New Market Tax credit financing of $3.9 million.

According to lease documents presented to the Board of Estimates, base rent payments would be paid to P3 RS Office Holdings LLC at a rate of $17.95 per square foot. That rate would be subject to the interest rate on the Maryland Economic Development Corp. bonds and could be increased. However, base rent will not exceed $24.23 per square foot. Additional rent can also be charged to pay for operation and maintenance expenses for the building, the lease states.

The five-member spending board, which includes the mayor and two of his appointees, approved the spending unanimously with little discussion.

Scott called the project “important,” and noted the city has not built new office space in many years.

“This shows the administration’s efforts to modernize facilities for our employees and our visitors,” he said.

Asked after the meeting why the employment center could not be located in existing office space, Scott said the center should be in the community, not in downtown Baltimore where office space is available. The mayor also said being part of the revitalization of the so-called “murder mall” was a priority.

“I don’t think the people in West Baltimore will be complaining about us giving money to build a new office building here,” he said. “No one complained when we gave money to build Harbor East or Harbor Point or Baltimore Peninsula. We should treat West Baltimore the same.”

Principals with MCB Real Estate, one of the developers of Reservoir Square, have made campaign donations to all three of the elected members of the Board of Estimates. Scott has been the biggest recipient. MCB Property Services, an arm of MCB Real Estate, gave Scott $6,000 in October, campaign finance records show. Peter Pinkard, MCB’s managing partner, and Drew Gorman, a principal, each contributed $5,000. Pinkard’s donation arrived in January while Gorman made his in November. Principal and Chief Investment Officer Michael Trail gave $4,000 in November.

MCB has also donated to Scott in the past. The company gave the mayor a $6,000 maximum donation in 2022 while Bramble contributed $3,000 that year. Bramble gave an additional $1,000 in January 2023.

This election cycle, Bramble and MCB have given a collective $8,000 to Council President Nick Mosby, who chairs the board. Comptroller Bill Henry, who is running unopposed this year, received $4,000 from Bramble and $6,000 from MCB Real Estate this election cycle.

Scott, Mosby and Henry are all Democrats.

In addition to its work in Reservoir Square, MCB Real Estate has plans for a controversial development deal for the city’s Harborplace that calls for razing the more than 40-year-old shopping and dining pavilions at the Inner Harbor in favor of a mixed-use development including high-rise apartments. That plan, approved by the City Council, still requires approval of voters in November.