Lexington Street Tear Down Tour

On Thursday 28 January 2010 a group of Baltimore citizens gathered to tour one of the streets whose buildings will be torn down and parking lots put there until the city comes up with other acceptable ideas. My notes follow.

A group of citizens met on Lexington Street to tour the area that is being torn down.

This is a “super-block.” Everything from CRS to Park Avenue is coming down. They are building parking lots in their place. On the south side it is being planned. The 200 block of Lexington Street is the colloquial super block. Then years ago all of the west side had demolition planned. The City wanted to tear everything out and bring in big box stores. The building being torn down have been alter so much that they lost their historical status. On the south side we have legs on which to stand. A hotel will be put on the southwest corner of Park Avenue and Lexington Street and the rest of the block will be demolished.

On Fayette Street will be residential towers and two level commercial along Lexington Street. They proposed to save the facade of a few buildings. Most of Young World facade will be saved and on Howard Street where McCurry was. The highest priority for preservation are intact and corner buildings and pre-Civil War buildings.

Craig Pursell got the ball moving because he is totally offended by what is going on. Julie [2210] does public raelations.

Athis will be parking at first. They have a plan. It does not have financing yet. Weinberg did the Steward Building without financing. Howard Street area has been amazingly intact. 2213 was the old theatre.

Lexington Street Partners, out of New York and Atlanta are the developers. The New York group has a less than stellar record. In New York they demolished a building off Time Square. They did it on the morning of a scheduled afternoon hearing. Their contract is that they do the demolition.

2216 Ron Kreitner. On the southern block there is a landmark agreement. There is an agreement to restore Lexington Park. There are 14 separate buildings on the north side of the block.

Everything from the Rainbow Building will be demolished. This is in the courts now.

Several preservation groups are involved in this. The Lexington Square Partnership was the least desirable but the City granted them the rights and for five years they have not even come close to what they should be.

The Rainbow Building has been preserved because it is cast iron. The Discount Center is in the gray area. This is one of the last 20 cast iron buildings in the city.

2230-2231 used to be the Pickwick Building. It was one of the old nickelodeon movies. It is only one of two left in the country.

2235: some of these buildings are heavy timber.

2236: Pre-Civil War buildings. They are not a high preservation priority but they are in the yellow zone. They are in the center of where the residential tower will be.

2241: dog park. 2242 has an easement on it. The group there now is trying to sell it.

The Pennsylvania Railroad took over the B&O Railroad. They were very sensitive about the whole matter.