This Week's Baltimore Deal Sheet
North American Trade Schools inked a 55K SF lease at the Northwest Plaza retail center in Baltimore and plans to relocate its operations from Security Square Mall in Baltimore County.
The trade school plans to move into Klein Enterprises’ 230K SF retail center at the corner of Northern Parkway and Wabash Avenue next spring.
“The decision by North American Trade Schools to relocate from Baltimore County is significant as it signals the renewed confidence being shown in Baltimore City and is reflective of its upwards trajectory,” MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate Services’ Mike Ruocco said in a statement.
Ruocco represented the tenant in the deal along with MacKenzie's Tim Harrington. Klein Enterprises' Patricia Palumbo and Paul Weinberg represented the landlord. Based on data from CoStar Group, MacKenzie said the deal marks the largest retail lease in Baltimore this year.
The deal boosts occupancy at Northwest Plaza to 97%, with other tenants including Harvest Fare Supermarket, Advanced Auto Parts and Rite-Aid Pharmacy.
SALES
Baltimore County purchased the six-story office building at 305 Washington Ave. in Towson for $5.8M, the Baltimore Business Journal reports. A county spokesperson told the newspaper the county purchased the building because it needed space to accommodate employees from agencies such as the Department of Economic and Workforce Development and the Department of Public Works.
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28 Walker principal Mark Sapperstein told the Baltimore Business Journal he intends to sell a vacant lot his firm owns in the 2000 block of North Charles Street in early October. Sapperstein, whose firm delivered projects including Canton Crossing and McHenry Row, told the newspaper his firm is too busy to complete an apartment project planned at the site.
LEASES
Ad agency idfive has inked a seven-year lease for 4,500 SF in Mount Vernon. The firm’s founder told the Baltimore Business Journal it is downsizing from its Maryland Institute College of Art-owned building near the Jones Falls Expressway. It no longer needs as much space for its 50 employees because of increased remote working.
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Goodwill Industries of the Chesapeake plans to officially open its new Excel Center at 222 East Redwood St. Thursday morning. The tuition-free high school helps students who are at least 21 years old and who have never finished high school earn a diploma. Goodwill estimates as many as 80,000 adults in Baltimore never finished high school.
DEVELOPMENT
Carroll County Comptroller Jennifer Hobbs wants the county to withhold construction, electrical and plumbing permits from businesses that owe back property taxes, the Baltimore Sun reports. Hobbs requested the county’s Board of Commissioners send legislation to state lawmakers who represent the jurisdiction granting the county power to withhold permits due to back taxes.
