Baltimore Skyline

Brio Tuscan Grille at 100 E. Pratt Street opens up this Friday. When nice weather comes around they will offer outside seating along Pratt Street, in a space that feels more open now that the berms are gone. A Starbucks will be opening next to Brio in the coming months, filling up the last retail space at 100 E. Pratt. This is the first new one in the downtown area since Starbucks closed some its locations during the recession. Heavy Seas Ale House opened up recently at 1300 Bank Street in the Tack Factory, just a short walk up from Harbor East and Fells Point. The Ale House serves all your favorite local Heavy Seas brews. The very popular Milk & Honey Market plans to open a second location in Station North in the old Chesapeake restaurant that is currently undergoing renovation. This will be right around the corner from Penn Station.

I've often passed by the old Mercy medical offices next to the Standard on the 500 block of St. Paul Street and thought to myself, "someone should really knock that down and put up apartments". Well it looks like I pretty much nailed it on that one. A few weeks back PMC Property Group put forth a plan to renovate the current building, add two more stories, and put in 78 apartments. PMC Property most recently completely the renovation of 1201 N. Charles Street to much fanfare. A new apartment building in this area will be a big addition. With the Standard next door, the new Mercy tower, the newly renovated Home 2 Hotel, and the forthcoming transition of the Tremont to apartments, there is more life coming to St. Paul Place and Preston Gardens (not to mention the improvements that have lately been made there). As more information comes about this project, we'll update you all.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/breaking/bs-bz-exelon-hq-site-20120201,0,5161327.story If all goes according to plan with the Constellation/Exelon merger, their new headquarters building will be constructed at Harbor Point, near Morgan Stanley's building. A major move like this looks to be a blow to the Central Business District, which was hoping to lure Exelon to build along Light Street or Pratt street. Instead this looks like another indication that the area east of the Inner Harbor is becoming the newer "downtown". All should not be lost on the current downtown. This could serve as a major push for the Downtown Partnership's encouragement to turn some of the older stock office buildings into residential spaces. There will be other opportunities to develop some of the empty lots downtown (maybe some will become hotels, apartments, or other mixed-use buildings), but if we increase the residential population of the CBD then it won't seem so deserted anymore....