Development Photo Tour: South Baltimore and Port Covington

Over the next week, SouthBMore.com will be posting development photo tours of all the projects under construction in South Baltimore. This tour features development in South Baltimore and Port Covington.

Check out SouthBMore.com’s South Baltimore Development Rundown for information about all the real estate projects under construction, recently completed, or in planning in South Baltimore.

Victory House

Interior demolition has started on the redevelopment of the Victory House at 1702-1708 Light St. in South Baltimore. The Victory House is a 7,074 sq. ft., 39-bedroom, two-bathroom residence that was condemned and shut down by Housing and Community Development (HCD) last year due to structural issues. Developer Brandon Chasen is working with architect Julie Tice of Eastend Design Group on the project.

Chasen will demolish the existing building, which has a footprint is 4,533 sq. ft. It will be replaced with a new 13,000 sq. ft., three- and four-story, 10-unit apartment building with a 10-car garage. The garage will also have space for 10 bicycles.

Church Conversion 

James Haran of Level 1 Contracting and Aris Psathas of United Restoration have teamed up to convert a former church at 1751 S. Hanover St. into two luxury rowhomes. The duo purchased the property, which was once a grocery store, after it had already been rezoned for the project.

1751 S. Hanover St. will be 12 ft. wide and 1753 S. Hanover St. will be 14.5 ft. wide. A curb cut, which was installed facing Barney St., will lead to a one-car garage on both homes, and an additional one-car parking pad on 1751 S. Hanover St. Both homes will feature four bedrooms, four full bathrooms, 11 ft. ceilings, multiple decks with skyline and Middle Branch views, a third-story sitting room with a wet bar, finished basements, and high-end finishes, including marble countertops, wooden cabinets, and glass showers.

Port Covington Bike Path

Sagamore Development’s Phase I of a Port Covington bike path project began earlier this year. This initial portion of the path starts at W. McComas St. at Hanover St.,  just east of Schuster Concrete near Swann Park, and  continues south, running parallel to Hanover St. next to the former site of Atlantic Forest Products. It connects with City Garage and West Covington Park along W. Dickman St.

A stretch of the path will be constructed with an innovative material that will absorb sunlight during the day and emit a glow at night. Completion of the path remains delayed as Sagamore Development is in discussions with CSX about a crossing at the train tracks.

The path will eliminate cyclists and pedestrians having to use Hanover St. to get to attractions such as West Covington Park, Nick’s Fish House, Under Armour’s growing Port Covington campus, and Sagamore Spirit.

On-street bike lanes have also been installed from Port Covington Dr. to McComas St.

Rye Street Tavern at Sagamore Spirit

Rye Street Tavern, a 13,000 sq. ft. restaurant and event space, will open at Sagamore Spirit distillery in September. It is headed up by Chef Andrew Carmellini of the New York-based NoHo Hospitality Group. Construction is near completion on the build-out, and finishing touches are being completed inside and outside the restaurant. The restaurant will focus on Chesapeake Bay-area foods and Sagamore Spirit. It will employ 200 individuals.

East Waterfront Park

Adjacent to the Sagamore Spirit facility is East Waterfront Park. This park will be completed in phases and will include new and redeveloped piers and paths.

Currently, improvements continue to an area called “The Lawn” in front of Rye Street Tavern. A new path has also been installed along the waterfront.

New Parking Lot

Construction is wrapping up on the new 215-space parking lot located adjacent to The Baltimore Sun’s printing facility and directly across the street from Sagamore Spirit Distillery, which opened in April. The additional parking will be used for events at Sagamore Spirit; for Volo City, which will be hosting kickball on the grass fields around the parking lot; and for special events at Port Covington, according to Caroline Paff of Sagamore Development.

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.