Overhead Photos of Under Armour’s Under-Construction Port Covington Campus
With Under Armour having started construction on its new Port Covington global headquarters, the reminders of the never-completed Port Covington Shopping Center are finally being erased.
The shopping center, which opened in 2002 and was never finished, only ever featured a Sam’s Club and Walmart. The 59-acre site was filled with pad sites that were never built on and parking lots that were filled with grass and never completed. All the parking lots, pad sites, street lights, and never-completed parking lots are now being demolished to make way for Under Armour’s new track and field stadium and new office building.
Walmart closed in 2016 and Sam’s Club closed in 2007, just five years after opening. The Sam’s Club was transformed into a 170,000 sq. ft. office building called Building 37 that opened in 2016. The former Walmart building still stands and has been used for warehouse sales and PPE manufacturing.
Under Armour’s transition from Locust Point to its new Port Covington campus will happen in three phases. The first phase is for UA LightHouse, which is currently at City Garage, to relocate to Building 37 this year. Under Armour vacated Building 37 in early-2020 so renovations could begin.
The second phase is the construction of a NCAA-regulation track and field facility with a multi-sport playing field on land just east of Building 37. This facility will serve primarily as a testing ground for Under Armour’s innovation, product development, and sports marketing. The athletic facility will also be available to Under Armour team members and the greater Baltimore community through shared-use agreements and special events. It will have bleachers with a seating capacity of 1,400.
Neil Jurgens, senior vice president of real estate at Under Armour, said last year he envisions a lot of “Friday night lights” at the stadium by hosting high school football games and additional events. He also noted the track will be open to the public. There will additionally be three new outdoor basketball courts along the Patapsco River.
Today, an Under Armour spokesperson told SouthBMore.com in an email: “We will focus first on the track and field facility, while we continue the design and planning phase for the new teammate building. We look forward to presenting more details to the relevant city agencies in the weeks and months ahead.”
This building will be at the north portion of its campus, near Cromwell St. and the new buildings in Chapter 1 of the Port Covington Development. The Port Covington Development team is made up of Under Armour Founder and Chairman Kevin Plank’s Sagamore Ventures, Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group, and Weller Development.
Across from Under Armour’s campus is a proposed residential real estate development by 28 Walker. The project will take the place of the former Locke Insulators facility on W. Peninsula Dr.
Under Amour said last year it expects to have about 1,100 employees a day at its Port Covington campus. The company, which has mostly worked remote during the pandemic, will have a portion of its workforce on campus everyday, a portion entirely remote, and a portion in a hybrid model.
Along with office spaces that are designed for collaboration in a post-COVID-19 world, it will also have a 30,000 sq. ft. Under Armour retail store.
Last year, Under Armour said there are no plans for a parking structure at its Port Covington campus at this time. Employees and visitors will utilize surface parking lots. The company also said the new campus will be a 40 percent reduction of its office footprint, but the Port Covington property has room for future growth.
Below are photos of Under Armour’s new campus, as well as the former Port Covington Shopping Center, from atop the seven-story Building E5A office building in the Port Covington Development.
Renderings courtesy of Under Armour
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.
