South Baltimore Business Roundup
Innovation Challenge Finalists from South Baltimore
The finalists have been announced for the Baltimore Ravens Innovation Challenge at Light City and they include two companies from City Garage in Port Covington: Hungry Harvest and Treason Toting Company. The winning company will receive a one-year, in-stadium marketing and advertising package from the Baltimore Ravens with an approximate value of $200,000. From a Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts release:
The Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts and the Baltimore Ravens are pleased to announce the six Baltimore-based startup finalists who will compete for a year-long marketing package from the Baltimore Ravens during the Baltimore Ravens Innovation Challenge at Light City. The finalists are:
- DinnerTime: DinnerTime’s highly personalized, ‘sale-smart’ meal planning and shopping web app helps busy families save time and money, reduce stress, and eat healthier automatically.
- Fixt: On-demand mobile device repair with the click of a button that makes repairs easier, cheaper and more reliable.
- Hungry Harvest: Produce delivery company working with local farms and wholesalers to recover their surplus produce and deliver it to subscribers every week at a discounted price.
- Loople: Loople provides user-verified information in real time about what all of the bars and restaurants around them are like, from drink specials and live music to pool tables and bar games.
- Treason Toting Company: Treason Toting Company designs and manufactures soft travel accessories in Baltimore, MD such as backpacks, tote bags, duffle bags and weekenders made from canvas and leather.
- Waxing Kara: Waxing Kara’s mission is to craft beautiful and functional handmade goods in a sustainable way using natural ingredients such as honey and wax that depend on bees.
The Baltimore Ravens Innovation Challenge at Light City is a live pitch competition taking place during SocialLab@LightCity on Thursday, April 6, 2017 from 6-8pm at the IMET Columbus Center (701 E. Pratt Street). The event is free and open to the public. SocialLab is one of the Labs@LightCity, the festival’s six daytime innovation conferences focused on sparking social change.
Commercial Property Movement in South Baltimore
A 3.1 acre industrial property with a 10,000 sq. ft. maintenance building at 2940 Waterview Ave., located across the street from the Middle Branch, sold for $1.65 million. From Gold and Co., which assisted in the sale.
The property was a former fleet transit maintenance facility and a contractors equipment yard. It is also located in close proximity to Westport and Under Armour’s Port Covington Project. The property offers easy access to all the main interstates. The owner will improve the property and will lease the property to an industrial services-type tenant with a need for maintenance bays and outside storage.
Jim Chivers, Mitch Gold, and Gary Glover of Gold and Co. LLC assisted in the sales transaction.
Another South Baltimore property listed for sale with Gold and Co. is a two-story 33,000 sq. ft. flex and industrial building at 1303 Carroll St. in Pigtown.
Photos Courtesy of Gold and Co.
Under Armour’s former headquarters is listed for lease at 1604-1606 Bush St. in Carroll-Camden Industrial Area. The office building is 8,000 sq. ft.
5,000 sq. ft. industrial building at 1232 Ridgely St. in Pigtown/Carroll-Camden, located within a block of M&T Bank Stadium, is also for sale. It is currently the home of Big Brothers Marble & Granite.
Guinness parent company Diageo and the Brewers Association of Maryland are teaming up on new Maryland General Assembly legislation to increase the amount of beer that can be sold at breweries. From The Baltimore Sun:
Diageo has asked state lawmakers for a tenfold increase in the amount of beer it can sell to customers in its taproom. The company has asked to serve 5,000 barrels; the state’s current 500-barrel limit on breweries would allow Guinness to sell a pint to about half of the 250,000 visitors they expect in their first year.
At first, the Brewers Association of Maryland opposed the idea, then it offered support if the barrel cap was raised for all breweries in the state. Association officials think their lobbying has had an effect.
“It has been made clear that whatever the legislature plans to do for Diageo, they will also do for the larger industry,” said Kevin Atticks, executive director of the brewers association. “There’s movement to change the law and it would be unwise to do it for any one brewery, current or speculative.”
Diamondback Brewing Company opened a brewery and tap room last year in Locust Point, Checkerspot Brewing Company will be opening a brewery and tap room this year near M&T Bank Stadium, and Suspended Brewing Company is soon opening a brewery and tap room in Pigtown.
Pratt Street Office Movement
Cushman & Wakefield will move its Baltimore offices to a 21,000 sq. ft. space at 1 E. Pratt St. From Baltimore Business Journal:
The largest commercial brokerage in the Baltimore area will take 21,000 square feet, downsizing from its current 33,000 square feet at three locations spread across three locations, including 100 Light St. When Cushman completes its move, it will have all 110 local employees on the eighth floor in a newly renovated open working space.
LeGette (a broker for the firm) said Cushman had three requirements for its new office: Remain on Pratt Street, have everyone on one floor and have easy access to Interstate 95. Cushman considered another location, LeGette said, but the final decision “came down to economics” because the alternative did not fit into the firm’s budget.
Staying on Pratt Street was a priority because Cushman considers it to be Baltimore’s “Main Street,” LeGette said.
UMB Launching an Innovation Center
University of Maryland Baltimore is planning a new innovation center at its BioPark in Hollins Market. From Technical.ly Baltimore:
The South Baltimore Now Podcast Latest Episodes Produced by Nathan Carper: https://www.natecarpercreative.comThe University of Maryland is planning to expand entrepreneurship space and activities at its campus in Baltimore, and a new innovation center on the southwest side of the city is part of the plans.
The aim is to open a new space during the summer, UM Ventures Director Jim Hughes said at a President’s Symposium event at the UMB campus. The location of the new space has yet to be finalized.
Along with researchers and private companies clustering at the BioPark and UM Ventures’ work on tech transfer, Hughes said the center could help encourage more students to start companies, and be a gathering point for efforts taking place across the different schools and departments of the university located at the campus on the west side of downtown Baltimore.
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About the Author: Kevin Lynch
Founder and Publisher of SouthBmore.com, longtime resident of South Baltimore, and a graduate of Towson University. Diehard Ravens and O's fan, father of three, amateur pizza chef, skateboarder, and "bar food" foodie. Email me at Kevin@InceptMM.com and follow me on Twitter at @SoBoKevin.
