Pigtown Main Street Building Under Construction for Apartments and Retail

A long-vacant Pigtown Main Street building at 919 W. Barre St. is currently under construction to become a new retail space and two apartments. Marc Smith, who owns Magnum Construction and many apartments and retail spaces in Pigtown, does not own this building but is leading construction and leasing on the project. The building is a half a block from the Washington Blvd. retail and is across the street from a shopping center.

One of the apartments will have two bedrooms and the other will be a one-bedroom efficiency. Both will have high-end finishes. Smith told SouthBMore.com that he’s always been able to lease his apartments in Pigtown because of the quality of the units, as well as their affordability compared to nearby Federal Hill.

The retail space will be 1,500 sq. ft. Smith is hoping a restaurant shows interest in the space, but is open to other retail businesses. “Leasing retail has always been a little slow in Pigtown, but I think we have definitely turned the corner with restaurants like Culinary Architecture and Café Jovial,” said Smith, who is the landlord for both businesses.

Smith said a new business will be signing a lease this coming week for one of his Pigtown properties. His property at 782 Washington Blvd. will also soon be available for lease as it is being vacated by Baltimore Police Department’s Horseshoe Casino District office.

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.