| The revitalization
of Baltimore's "West Side" (the area between Charles Street and Paca Street
(East to West) and from Pratt Street to the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (South to North) is
one of the largest Urban Renewal undertakings in Baltimore's history. Just the term Urban
Renewal evokes vivid memories and associations, both good and bad. So a debate has raged
over the last few months how such revitalization of the former retail and department store
hub should occur. Few disagree that the area is in dire need of new life. The City's
Development Corporation (BDC) has obtained condemnation rights for over 100 properties,
many of them with high historic and architectural value. Meanwhile the state-funded
renovation of the Hippodrome Theater is scheduled to begin next year. Developers'
proposals have been submitted to BDC for two areas: One by the Weinberg Foundation and
Grid City Development Corporation of New York City for the blocks east of Howard Street
along Lexington Street and three competing proposals for the block east of the former
Hippodrome Theater. No public presentations have been made on any proposals yet and little
is known about them to date. Additionally private development converting historical
structures into downtown housing is underway or planned in several places promising actual
change independent of City plans. The Urban Design Committee of the Baltimore
Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has commented on the efforts to
revitalize the West Side at different times. AIA has sided with the preservation community
on the notion that historic preservation should be considered an economic development tool
and that demolition, condemnation and business displacement should be minimized in the
planned approach.
The AIA architects
feel strongly that the flexibility of dealing with individual blocks and projects needs to
be combined with an overall plan. Such a masterplan would thoroughly address issues which
pertain to the West Side as a whole such as urban design and architectural character,
historic preservation strategies, circulation, placement of shopping, housing and open
spaces as well as connections to adjacent areas.
The AIA committee
proposed a dual planning strategy in which specific blocks redevelopment can proceed while
an area wide masterplan is being prepared. The masterplan should be based on a consensus
set of goals for the West Side redevelopment developed by the Project Area Committee
(PAC). The PAC is the public participation element and consists of stakeholder
representatives. It met at the end of September for the first time.
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