![]() ![]() They are intended as a way for residents, particularly those in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, to share in the benefits of real estate developments.īut questions linger about their enforceability. Indeed, the package appeared, at least on paper, to be the most lucrative CBA in the country.ĬBAs are a relatively new phenomenon. ![]() That’s a lot of money for programs that otherwise could go unfunded in a cash-strapped city. The agreement was hailed as a “giveback” by Sagamore to the community worth $135.9 million, including a $25 million pledge to fund workforce development programs and $10 million to fund small business loans. The SB6 coalition became the SB7 and, pushed by BUILD, an interfaith advocacy group, the agreement was incorporated into a larger MOU signed by Sagamore and Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. Plank’s company originally agreed to pay $39 million over 30 years for amenities and new facilities to six South Baltimore community associations (the SB6) in exchange for their advocacy of the public financing of Port Covington. So much money was promised to so many people for various things that Port Covington became a politically unstoppable force. In addition to the number of promised jobs, the advertised size of the CBA was key to winning City Council approval of TIF financing. The mundane reality of a downsized UA campus surrounded by parking lots (BELOW) was shown to the press last month. GLOSSY GRAPHICS: This assembly of soaring skyscrapers at Port Covington comes from 2016. At last report, no leases have been signed for office space. The hope that Amazon would locate its second headquarters at Port Covington was dashed in January 2018.Ī few months later, Port Covington branded itself “Cybertown USA.” That name was abandoned earlier this year. Therefore, a 2016 market study predicting that Port Covington would create about 26,500 permanent new jobs by 2037 caught the eye of city officials.īy the time the Board of Estimates approved the issuance of $148 million worth of bonds for the first phase of the project last June, the dream of explosive job growth was gone. The city does not need to move existing jobs around it needs job growth. Rowe Price’s decision to move its global headquarters from Pratt and Light streets to Harbor Point by 2024). Much of the economic impact of the $107 million in TIF financing approved for Harbor Point appears to have come at the expense of the city’s central business district. (Brew file photo) Evaporating Jobsīaltimore government has a dubious record of subsidizing redevelopment that does little more than shuffle residents, shoppers, and office workers from one part of the city to another. To Young’s left is then-2nd District Councilman Brandon Scott and Comptroller Joan Pratt. The deal, then-City Council President Jack Young gushed, “was too good to pass up.” Now his successors are starting to face the reality that it was too good to be true.ĪLL SMILES: In a largely symbolic ceremony in May 2019, Jack Young shares a shovel with Plank associate Marc Weller. Last month’s announcement by Under Armour of its plan to build a drastically downsized global headquarters at Port Covington underscores how far the fortunes of Under Armour and its founder have fallen since 2016.īack then, city officials were giddy with excitement over the advertised $5.5 billion Port Covington project to be undertaken by Plank’s Sagamore, which he claimed would have a $4.3 billion annual economic impact when completed. The city must get unequivocal answers to questions largely left unanswered in 2016 before more bond funds are issued for the project. The CBA was crucial in winning City Council approval five years ago, and it’s now an even more important part of the deal because hopes that the project would create tens of thousands of new jobs in Baltimore are all but gone. While they’re at it, Baltimore’s three top elected officials should examine the viability and enforceability of the $135.9 million Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) and related MOUs signed by Plank’s Sagamore Development Co. (For the record, Mosby and Scott, both city councilmen in 2016, voted to approve the TIF financing, while Councilman Henry abstained.) Mayor Brandon Scott says he intends to speak with outside legal counsel about the future of the project.Ĭomptroller Bill Henry says his office will conduct an audit of the project’s local and minority hiring practices.Ĭity Council President Nick Mosby says the project’s tax increment (TIF) financing should be re-evaluated in light of the city’s other pressing needs. It appears that Baltimore officials may finally reassess the extraordinary $660 million public financing deal that the city struck with Kevin Plank in 2016 for the redevelopment of Port Covington. ![]()
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