This Week's Baltimore Deal Sheet
The developers behind the Baltimore Peninsula megaproject announced Wednesday that they had switched their office leasing team to Cushman & Wakefield.
Cushman & Wakefield’s Courtenay Jenkins, Rich Thomas, Matt Melnick and Linn Worthington will lead the marketing efforts for the 440K SF of offices within the 235-acre mixed-use development along the city's Middle Branch waterfront.
The team replaces leasing agent JLL, which was hired by the project’s previous lead developer, Weller Development Partners. MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners assumed the role of lead developers last year.
“Baltimore Peninsula offers the ideal setting for businesses looking to grow in a vibrant community and unparalleled waterfront location,” Jenkins said in a statement. “We are committed to ensuring the success of this remarkable destination and look forward to building a brighter future for Baltimore together.
Office tenants at the development include CFG Bank, which signed a long-term, 97K SF lease in January to house its headquarters at 2455 House St. Tenants also include Capital Funding Group and the Jack and Nancy Dwyer Workforce Development Center. Architecture and interior design firm H. Chambers Co. signed the project's first office lease in September for 9K SF at the Rye Street Market building.
Work on the first phase of vertical construction is nearing completion and will consist of 1.1M SF of office, retail and residential development once finished.
“Top firms have set their sights on Baltimore Peninsula, noting that it is the highest quality and best-performing office space in the market,” MAG Partners CEO MaryAnne Gilmartin said in a statement.
“We are looking forward to leveraging Cushman & Wakefield’s global reach and premier reputation to continue this momentum and amplify the dynamic community we have built here in Baltimore — a place where people not only want to live but also work and thrive.”
SALES
Harbor Stone Advisors orchestrated the $3.32M sale of the mid-rise Hampton Court Apartments in Baltimore's Bolton Hill neighborhood. HD Multifamily purchased the property from Delancey Street Capital. Harbor Stone Advisors' Justin Verner, Brooks Healy and Tom Wohlgemuth represented the seller and described the property as holding "significant value-add potential."
LEASES
A team that includes the business partner of Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley was awarded a renewed five-year lease of the city's landmark Market House, the Annapolis Capital Gazette reports. The extension was granted despite the operator failing to file annual financial reports for businesses in the building, and the operator never paid the "percentage rent" required if the vendors' gross sales exceeded $1.5M," according to the publication.
DEVELOPMENT
Meal delivery service Home Chef plans to celebrate the grand opening and ribbon-cutting next week for its newest production and distribution facility in Baltimore. The event is slated for July 10 at 1701 East Patapsco Ave. Home Chef projects the facility will support 500 jobs in Baltimore by 2024. It is the company's first East Coast site to distribute meals.
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Good Neighbor plans to launch a new hotel concept this summer called Guesthouse above its coffee shop at 3827 Falls Road in Baltimore's Hampden neighborhood. Described as a "hospitality alternative," the hotel features seven rooms it describes as "design-immersive, thoughtfully curated spaces." The goal of the concept — located in a previously combined double-wide set of row houses — is to re-create the environment of staying at a loved one's home.
PERSONNEL
Baltimore-based Continental Realty Corp. has hired Johanna Montenegro as an investor relations analyst, which has properties in 10 states valued at $3.6B. Montenegro previously worked as a financial analyst for Morgan Stanley.
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Singer Damareck Real Estate has hired Clare Berrang as senior vice president. Berrang has worked in the real estate industry for more than 25 years. In her role at Singer Damareck, a boutique firm aimed at helping small and midsized businesses, Berrang will assist clients in acquiring new space or renegotiating existing leases.