This Week's Baltimore Deal Sheet
The office tower at One E. Pratt St. next to Baltimore’s iconic Inner Harbor is slated for auction later this month.
BCS America Auctions Inc. scheduled the foreclosure sale for 2 p.m. on Jan. 25 at the Calvert Street entrance of the city’s Clarence M. Mitchell Courthouse at 100 N. Calvert St.
The mortgage for the property is held by an affiliate of MCB Real Estate, which plans to redevelop Harborplace across Light Street from One E. Pratt St. According to the legal advertisement announcing the auction, Deutsche Bank AG was the original mortgage holder before MCB OEP Noteholder took over the debt in April.
The 47-year-old property includes 275 covered parking spaces, according to a property listing on LoopNet. Office tenants include PNC Bank, commercial real estate brokerage Cushman & Wakefield and design firm Gensler.
According to property records, Florida-based Banyan Street/Gap 1 East Pratt Owner LLC purchased the property from East Pratt Strategic Ventures for $80.1M in 2018. State assessors estimated the property’s current value at over $68.5M as of Jan. 1.
MCB Real Estate’s co-founder P. David Bramble told Baltimore Fishbowl, which first reported the auction, that his firm requested an auction to recoup money the borrower owes. He estimated the building is currently more than 70% occupied.
If a bidder does buy the 356K SF office building, they’ll be required to provide a $1M deposit at the time of sale, according to the legal advertisement announcing the sale.
SALES
An affiliate of local hospitality firm Sarbahn Realty purchased the Courtyard by Marriott Baltimore BWI Airport for $15.6M last month, according to property records. Sabrahn Realty 2 BWI LLC purchased the property from Marcourt Investments LLC on Dec. 21, records show. The property last traded in 1992 when Marriott Corp. sold the hotel for more than $12.4M. The Baltimore Business Journal first reported the sale.
***
New Jersey-based Outcome Healthcare has purchased the 313-unit The Village at Augsburg in the 6800 block of Campfield Road in Baltimore for an undisclosed price, according to broker Continuum Advisors. State assessors estimated the phased-in value of the property will reach more than $10.3M by July. The 50-acre campus includes 131 independent living apartments, 51 assisted living units and 131 licensed skilled nursing beds. Continuum Advisors' Jay Jordan and Dave Kliewer represented the seller, Maryland-based National Lutheran Corp.
LEASES
Travelers Insurance plans to relocate its Hunt Valley offices this fall from 111 Schilling Road to nearby 10 North Park. The move raises the occupancy level at the four-story 82,300 SF building owned by North Park Ventures LLC to 100%. Joe Bradley, senior vice president and principal at MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate Services, represented the landlord. Cushman & Wakefield’s Doug Brinkley and Charlie Fenwick represented the tenant.
DEVELOPMENT
Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski plans to push legislation to promote denser mixed-use development in the suburban district. As proposed, the new legislation would permit mixed-use development in parts of the county zoned for business uses inside the jurisdiction’s urban and rural demarcation line. According to the county executive’s team, a significant goal of the bill is to encourage developers to overhaul vacant or underutilized big box stores, shopping centers and malls as mixed-use projects.
Additionally, the legislation offers development incentives, such as less stringent parking requirements, for including affordable housing as part of a redevelopment. The bill also stipulates that mixed-use developments that receive county financial support must set aside a percentage of residential units as affordable housing.
The Pikesville Armory Foundation and partners Seawall and Onyx Development plan to host a groundbreaking ceremony Monday morning at 610 Reisterstown Road in Pikesville. The event will celebrate the start of work on transforming the historic armory site into a regional hub for recreation, sports, the arts, veterans and community gatherings.
PERSONNEL
Baltimore-based St. John Properties Inc. has expanded its operations in North Carolina by adding a regional office in Charlotte. The company has tasked Alaina Kiewit, the new office’s regional partner, with overseeing the pursuit of speculative development opportunities. The company first ventured into North Carolina when it opened a regional office in Raleigh in the fall of 2022. St. John Properties now operates 14 offices in 11 states.
