Roost extended-stay hotel to open this summer at Baltimore Peninsula

A Roost Apartment Hotel will open this summer at Baltimore Peninsula, billing itself as an extended-stay property that blends the attributes of a boutique hotel and upscale apartments.

The hotel with 81 extended-stay units and 40 apartments will be the latest addition to the 235-acre mixed-use waterfront neighborhood under development in South Baltimore. Leasing started earlier this month for two separate apartment buildings with 416 units.

On Wednesday, developers unveiled the brand, design and management of a hotel they’ve long planned for Baltimore Peninsula, under development by MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners with joint venture partners Sagamore Ventures and Goldman Sachs.

The Roost brand “not only brings a high-quality, high-design hotel operation to the neighborhood, it bolsters our credentials as a destination to visit and enjoy,” said Kevin Plank, Sagamore’s principal and CEO, in an announcement.

Plank is also founder of Under Armour, which is building a new global headquarters nearby on waterfront land owned by the sports apparel brand.

The waterfront community, formerly called Port Covington, was rebranded as Baltimore Peninsula in November. The hotel and apartments are among the first five buildings, which also include two office buildings with tenants that include CFG Bank and H. Chambers Co.

Roost, at 2400 Terrapin Way, is a hotel concept of Philadelphia-based Method Co., a real estate and management company that specializes in hospitality and restaurants. Method has opened Roost hotels in Philadelphia, Cleveland and Tampa, Florida, and plans locations in Detroit and Charleston, South Carolina. The hotels offer stays as short as a few nights to as long as nine months.

Before becoming familiar with Method’s offerings, MaryAnne Gilmartin, founder and CEO of MAG Partners, said in an interview that her “sense of extended stay was really an idea that was really stuck in the past. I did not understand how evolved and bespoke the offering is at Method. … They’re really focused on a very particular piece of the market.”

Gilmartin said she expects businesses at Baltimore Peninsula to rely on ROOST as a place for their guests and visitors to stay.

The hotel, which Method will manage, will offer a mix of furnished studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment hotel units with full-size kitchens and balconies, a concierge, fitness center, open-air pool, and outdoor bar and lounge.

“It’s a great location for our first Roost here in Baltimore,” said Randy Cook, Method’s co-founder and CEO, in an interview.

Method started the brand about a decade ago to fill a void in the extended-stay space, which Cook said lacked “product that focused on high-touch service and design in an apartment setting.”

“AirBNB has done a lot for this segment in terms of letting people experience what it’s like to stay in an apartment for a shorter term, but there’s a lot of inconsistencies in that experience,” Cook said. “One of the things we deliver with Roost is a branded experience in an apartment-style accommodation.”

Rates typically depend upon length of stay, starting at $269 a night. Cook said he expects about half the business to come from guests who stay a month or more, while about half will likely stay from about a week to a month. He said he has seen strong demand among employees who relocate or travel to work on long-term projects and in areas with medical facilities or film production hubs.

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Development Team Announces New ROOST Hotel in Baltimore Peninsula

The high-design, extended-stay hotel brand will introduce an 81-room apartment hotel to the waterfront neighborhood

Today, the Baltimore Peninsula development team, led by MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners, and Method Co., the nationally-acclaimed development and design company rooted in hospitality, announced plans for a new design-centric, 81-room ROOST Apartment Hotel, the concept known for bridging the boutique hotel experience with apartment-style living. The new ROOST Apartment Hotel in Baltimore will be located within Baltimore Peninsula at 2400 Terrapin Way, a 235-acre mixed-use waterfront neighborhood. The team, together with its joint venture partners Sagamore Ventures and the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management (Goldman Sachs), is scheduled to open ROOST Baltimore Peninsula in Summer 2023.

The multi-million-dollar project, designed by architecture firm Hord Coplan Macht, will feature a mix of furnished studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment hotel units with interiors designed in collaboration between interior design firm Aumen Asner Inc. and Method Studios, Method Co.’s in-house design firm.

Each apartment hotel unit will feature full-size kitchens with modern-day appliances and full-wall windows and balconies to take advantage of the stunning waterfront views. The apartment hotel units, amenity space and lobby feature custom and curated furnishings from designers such as Lawson-Fenning, Gubi, TON, Pedrali, &Tradition, Interior Define, Noguchi, Santa and Cole, Dumais Made, O & G, and Lumas. The furniture curation throughout the space, also designed by Method Studios, draws inspiration from the industrial and maritime heritage of Baltimore as a premier port city. The space is populated with vintage designer pieces, with a color palette of blues and greens accented by blackened steel and rich walnut wood. The property includes a 24-7 concierge, an on-site fitness center with Peloton bikes, and 20,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor resort-like amenity space including an open-air pool lined with cabanas and an outdoor fireplace centered around a full-service hybrid bar and lounge. Additionally, Method Co. will be leasing out 40 apartment units for long-term residents who will also have access to all of the building’s amenities. 

“With the addition of ROOST, Baltimore Peninsula is poised to become a vibrant destination for visitors and workforce talent that wouldn’t otherwise have an opportunity to experience the Baltimore Peninsula lifestyle,” said MaryAnne Gilmartin, Founder and CEO of MAG Partners. “ROOST’s high-design and commitment to quality compliments our broader approach as we create a new 24/7 neighborhood.”

“When we brought ROOST to the table a few years ago, we were confident this would all happen in due time,” said Marc Weller, Founding Partner and President of Weller Development Partners. “There is real momentum around this new neighborhood – you are seeing office leases getting signed and now an apartment hotel with ROOST that offers unique flexibility for Baltimore’s dynamic residents and visitors alike.”

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to open our sixth ROOST location within the incredible city of Baltimore. MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners are completely transforming the city’s waterfront experience with Baltimore Peninsula, making it an incredibly desirable destination for locals and visitors alike,” said Randall Cook, Co-Founder and CEO of Method Co. “We were drawn to this project by Kevin Plank and his partner’s positive energy, vision and commitment for the area and we look forward to playing a role in bringing that vision to life. At Method Co., it is an exciting moment for us as we explore new dimensions within our ROOST brand. The property’s design is thoughtfully layered with luxury details to create an elevated home-like experience. We’ve also worked to enhance our full-service amenity space. With a relatively low number of units versus the size of our team, we’ll be focused on delivering a high service and personalized experience to our hotel guests and residents alike.”

“We’re excited by the continued momentum and the addition of ROOST further establishes Baltimore Peninsula as the destination for travelers to experience Baltimore’s vibrant, waterfront community,” said Michael Lohr, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs Asset Management. “The development furthers our collective goal of increasing opportunities for residents of the local community by creating new jobs and bringing new economic activity to the area.”

“The momentum of activity at Baltimore Peninsula is a testament to the overall vision that we set out to create from the start,” said Kevin Plank, Principal and CEO of Sagamore Ventures. “ROOST’s unique brand not only brings a high-quality, high design hotel operation to the neighborhood, it bolsters our credentials as a destination to visit and enjoy. It’s a great addition alongside our growing list of office tenants and new residents.”

The ROOST Apartment Hotel will be Baltimore’s first high-design, extended-stay hotel concept, blending the comfort and space of an apartment with the amenities and design of a boutique hotel, creating a temporary living environment ideally suited for today’s travelers away for a few days and long-term guests alike. Considered a pioneer in the high-design apartment hotel movement, Method Co.’s ROOST Apartment Hotel brand is significantly expanding its portfolio with recent openings outside of its home base of Philadelphia, including Cleveland and Tampa with plans to open additional locations in Detroit this Spring and Charleston in 2024.

Method Co. has combined its expertise in design, placemaking and operations to lead the development of the new property, building upon its robust portfolio of successful brands and hotel property launches, including five open locations of the ROOST Apartment Hotel brand, Whyle, Wm. Mulherin’s Sons Restaurant & Hotel, HIROKI, Charleston’s newest luxury boutique hotel, The Pinch, along with its adjacent oyster bar and cocktail lounge, The Quinte, and the recent opening of Wilmington, Delaware’s first, luxury boutique hotel, The Quoin along with its craft cocktail lounge, Simmer Down.

The Baltimore Region is the 20th largest metropolitan population in the United States with more than 2.8 million residents and encompasses more than 2,500 square miles of diverse land. With its premier geographic location, the region provides overnight access to one-third of the U.S. consumer market. For residents, business, or leisure travelers, it’s a short trip from Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston. The new ROOST Apartment Hotel will further support Baltimore Peninsula’s ability to accommodate the high volume of travelers, as well as residents moving to the area.

This addition of the ROOST Apartment Hotel follows a string of announcements the development team has recently made, including the start of residential leasing; welcoming CFG Bank as the area’s largest office tenant; renaming of the neighborhood to Baltimore Peninsula; and the launch of a new strategic partnership with Sweeten to bring transparent, data-driven decision making to the construction industry, resulting in increased participation by local minority and women-owned businesses. To date, Baltimore Peninsula has committed more than $132 million in contracts to Baltimore City-certified MBE/WBE firms, exceeding its initial goals with 35 percent participation for MBEs and 13 percent for WBEs.

Property renderings and imagery can be found here. Visit the property’s website here and follow ROOST Apartment Hotel on Instagram here.

For more information on Baltimore Peninsula, visit baltimorepeninsula.com or visit on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

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About ROOST Apartment Hotel

ROOST Apartment Hotel is a high-design, boutique extended-stay hotel concept, conceptualized by Philadelphia-based hospitality company Method Co. A first of its kind, ROOST introduces a fresh approach to hospitality by blending the comfort and practicality of an apartment with the amenities and design of a boutique hotel, creating a temporary living environment ideally suited for a long-term stay. ROOST offers studio, one and two-bedroom and penthouse apartments with full-sized kitchens and modern appliances in a beautifully appointed space, which features contemporary furnishings, antique elements, custom lighting, and unique artwork. Featured amenities include an artisanal coffee program curated by La Colombe, bike share program, and recurring resident receptions that partner with local vendors, while a dedicated 24-hour concierge desk and on-site services team further enhance and ensure a memorable guest experience. The first location, ROOST Midtown, opened in 2015 and features 28 fully furnished apartments; their second outpost, ROOST Rittenhouse, followed in 2016 featuring 27 apartments and a communal lobby; their third location, ROOST East Market opened in January 2019 with 60 apartments, an outdoor pool, and communal in Philadelphia’s Midtown Village neighborhood. The fourth location is the first outside of Philadelphia – ROOST Cleveland, which opened in March 2022 and features 62 apartments located downtown within the historic May building, a restoration of the city’s original 1915 department store, while their fifth location, ROOST Tampa, opened in July 2022 and includes 97 apartments within Asher, a residential building within the new Water Street Tampa development. ROOST has plans to open locations in other markets, including Detroit in the spring 2023, Baltimore in summer 2023 and Charleston in early 2024. www.myroost.com

About Baltimore Peninsula

Baltimore Peninsula is a 235-acre redevelopment project located on Baltimore City’s prime waterfront, featuring investments from Sagamore Ventures and the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management. As one of the largest urban revitalization efforts in the United States, Baltimore Peninsula will have a fundamental and far-reaching impact on Baltimore’s future. At completion, this transformative project will include: up to 14 million square feet of new, mixed-use development; 2.5 miles of restored waterfront; and 40 acres of parks and green space. The Baltimore Peninsula redevelopment is expected to generate fresh opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship for Baltimore City residents and its local workforce.

About the Goldman Sachs Asset Management Urban Investment Group (UIG)

Bringing together traditional and alternative investments, Goldman Sachs Asset Management provides clients around the world with a dedicated partnership and focus on long-term performance. As the primary investing area within Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), we deliver investment and advisory services for the world’s leading institutions, financial advisors and individuals, drawing from our deeply connected global network and tailored expert insights, across every region and market—overseeing more than $2 trillion in assets under supervision worldwide as of December 31, 2022. Driven by a passion for our clients’ performance, we seek to build long-term relationships based on conviction, sustainable outcomes, and shared success over time. Goldman Sachs Asset Management invests in the full spectrum of alternatives, including private equity, growth equity, private credit, real estate and infrastructure.  Established in 2001, the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management has committed over $14 billion through real estate projects, social enterprises and lending facilities for small businesses and students, creating economic value and opportunities for underserved communities and families. Follow us on LinkedIn.

About MAG Partners

MAG Partners is a woman-owned, urban real estate company with decades of experience developing impactful, iconic, large-scale projects throughout New York City. Led by MaryAnne Gilmartin, together the MAG Partners team has successfully designed, built and operated over 7 million square feet of office, residential and mixed-use projects, including over 2,000 units of housing, with a total value of over $4.5 billion. The firm believes and has proven that principles of beauty, diversity and sustainability create lasting value.

About MacFarlane Partners

MacFarlane Partners is a real estate investment and development firm that acquires, develops and manages properties on behalf of some of the world’s largest pension plans and institutions as well as for its own account. Founded in 1987, the firm pioneered the urban investment concept among institutional real estate investment managers in the 1990s and today is a leading investor in and developer of properties that promote smart growth, urban revitalization, sustainability and equitable development in urban and high-density suburban areas nationwide. It is headquartered in San Francisco and operates a regional office in Los Angeles.

About Method Co.

Method Co. is a Philadelphia-based hospitality, development, design and branding firm founded on the joining of historically compatible disciplines under one roof; the firm bridges the worlds of interior design and real estate development, while embracing the custom design of products, furniture, identities and experiences. Built from a team of individuals with extensive experience in the fields of finance, interior design, branding, architecture, urban planning and fine arts, Method company’s diverse skill set forms the foundation of the firm’s interdisciplinary practice. The team has been responsible for the design, staging and development of hotel, restaurant, and real estate projects, such as the ROOST Apartment Hotel brand, Whyle, Wm. Mulherin’s Sons Restaurant & Hotel and HIROKI restaurant, along with the newly opened boutique property in Charleston, The Pinch, and the recently opened boutique hotel, The Quoin, in Wilmington, DE. www.methodco.com

Media Contacts:      

Baltimore Peninsula/BerlinRosen

[email protected]

Method Co./M18

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Faces to Watch 2023: MaryAnne Gilmartin, CEO of MAG Partners

The coming year at the Baltimore Peninsula will bring more feet on the street, a likely demolition of The Sun’s former headquarters and a new wave of hope at the large project for MaryAnne Gilmartin.

The first residents will move into luxury apartments in two towers at the emerging community off of Hanover Street by March. Razing Sun Park may occur to clear the way for a new public green space off Interstate 95. Nearby, design firm Chambers Co. will unpack in its new office space at Rye Street Market and serve as the pioneer tenant for the project there.

And if Gilmartin has her way, her pen will sign a bevy of other lease deals.

All told, she predicted 2023 is go time for the $5.5 billion project envisioned by Under Armour (NYSE: UA) founder Kevin Plank. A deal for CFG Bank to move its headquarters into 97,000 square feet was finalized Wednesday after months of talks, a move that will add a second tenant with local gravitas.

“We are hoping that by the end of this year there will be one or two commercial leases signed,” she said in early December. “This is a pretty big moment for the project.”

The 58-year-old founder of MAG Partners came to Baltimore last spring after she was tapped by Plank to take over as master developer from Weller Development. She and partner, San Francisco-based McFarlane Partners, invested an undisclosed amount in Port Covington, and in November, Gilmartin led a rebranding push and renamed the area “Baltimore Peninsula.” It was a change complete with red and white swag bags and a catered party.

The coming 12 months will bring her hometown New York-style of can-do energy to the 235 acres adjacent to the Hanover Street Bridge, south of Federal Hill. With five buildings built by Weller opening this year, she admitted that MAG and its brokers must remain nimble to fill the commercial and retail space because of headwinds from an economic downturn and still-morphing corporate workplace needs.

Nevertheless, she remains positive enough to forge ahead with plans to break ground on another one or two commercial buildings with a vision to begin design phases in 2023.

“It’s a challenge. But if we have proof of concept and show that people came to Baltimore Peninsula to live and work and we sign leases with rents that justify putting another building together, it allows us to put it together,” she said. “I think it’s doable.”

Gilmartin splits her time between MAG Partners’ New York office and Baltimore and is planning to move into residential digs in one of several short-term stay apartments designated in Baltimore Peninsula’s multifamily towers. Her plans also include moving MAG’s offices from City Garage to Port Covington by the third quarter of the year and she is aggressively seeking to land a large corporate anchor tenant with a national search now underway.

What about the rest of the city? Gilmartin says MAG’s portfolio could expand off the peninsula.

“I would like to do more business in Baltimore,” Gilmartin said. “I want to contribute to the city. While Baltimore Peninsula is massive, I think there are opportunities outside the Peninsula that we can look at. Rising tides lift all boats.”

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CFG Bank Signs Lease at Baltimore Peninsula Becoming Newest Commercial Tenant Holding Largest Lease to Date

CFG Bank to Move to the South Baltimore Development in Q4 2023, Leasing 97,000 Square Feet of Office Space

Today, the Baltimore Peninsula development team, led by MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners, and CFG Bank, announced that CFG Bank has signed a long-term lease for three floors, totaling 97,000 square feet of office space in 2455 House Street in Baltimore Peninsula. CFG Bank is the development’s latest confirmed commercial tenant, signing a 15-year lease at the 235-acre mixed-use development. 2455 House Street will serve as the headquarters for CFG Bank, as well as Capital Funding Group and the Jack and Nancy Dwyer Workforce Development Center, Inc.

The lease signing comes as the development’s first phase of vertical construction nears completion, with over 1.1 million square feet of new office, retail, and mixed-income residential opening in 2023. It is also the first commercial lease signing since the project rebranded in November 2022 to Baltimore Peninsula and is part of the larger effort to realize the development as a vibrant mixed-income residential neighborhood and thriving business district, supported by waterfront events and activities, new restaurants and social destinations that bring opportunity and strengthen the spirit of Baltimore. 

Along with MAG Partners, CFG Bank is working with NewGround to create its one-of-a-kind headquarters. The office spaces will feature various indoor and outdoor collaboration areas with an employee lounge totaling 5,000 square feet, a rooftop community space, a library area, robust kitchens, an indoor sports simulator, and more. 

“The partnership with CFG Bank represents our shared values and commitment to fostering a strong, inclusive community. It speaks volumes that a company like CFG Bank, a pillar of the Baltimore business community, has selected Baltimore Peninsula for its future home,” said Kevin Plank, Principal and CEO of Sagamore Ventures. “I am incredibly proud to welcome CFG Bank and look forward to working together to build on our vision of impact at Baltimore Peninsula.”

“We are excited to continue to welcome new tenants to Baltimore Peninsula, especially those like CFG Bank who have strong, established roots within the broader Baltimore community,” said Michael Lohr, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs Asset Management. “This lease represents another key milestone toward our broader revitalization efforts in South Baltimore, which seeks to engage the community through job creation and workforce development, in addition to providing access to new attractions and events.”

“Our lease with CFG Bank marks the beginning of an exciting partnership for Baltimore Peninsula, as the Baltimore-based institution grows its workforce in and for the city. With buy-in from partners such as CFG, we are building a place where people want to live and work,” said MaryAnne Gilmartin, Founder and CEO of MAG Partners. “We have incredible momentum and interest from potential tenants in Baltimore and around the country and expect to have a number of leases to announce in the coming months as we move closer to construction completion for the first phase of the project.”

“We’re thrilled to be moving our headquarters to Baltimore Peninsula. As our businesses continued to grow, we were in search of a new location that could accommodate our current and future expansion, provide an environment to foster our team’s entrepreneurial spirit, and support the reinvigoration of Baltimore,” said CFG Bank CEO & President Bill Wiedel. “As we design and build our new headquarters, we are creating a truly unique space where all our employees will thrive and work together, grow, and achieve our own goals and those of our clients. Our plan is to design a special workspace where our employees want to come into the office. Moving to Baltimore Peninsula reinforces our commitment to Baltimore and our leadership position in the banking industry, as the largest bank headquartered in Baltimore.”

“We always knew that Baltimore would be a ‘build it and they will come’ office market, and now that the buildings are delivering you are seeing that dynamic play out,” said Marc Weller, Founding Partner and President at Weller Development Partners. “Since first introducing CFG Bank to the project, we always thought they would be a great fit given their aligned entrepreneurial philosophy and their focus not only on transforming the banking experience but also their commitment to the community. We are so excited to see CFG Bank moving to this new burgeoning neighborhood.”

Scooter Monroe, Vice President of Office Leasing at MAG Partners, and real estate advisor Ed Guiltinan worked closely with the teams at JLL and Weller Development Partners to secure the lease. Antony Gross and Anne Marie Paintsil with JLL represented Baltimore Peninsula. Kevin Haus and Matt Haas, also with JLL, represented CFG Bank in the transaction. 

CFG Bank’s lease follows the September 2022 announcement that H. Chambers Company, an architecture and interior design firm, was the development’s first commercial tenant, having signed a long-term lease for 9,000 square feet of office space at Rye Street Market. Chambers will relocate to Baltimore Peninsula in March of 2023. Also in November 2022, the development team revealed Rye House and 250 Mission, comprising 416 brand-new affordable and market rate residences. Leasing will begin in the first quarter 2023 and the first residents of Baltimore Peninsula are expected to move in March. The project has 20% affordable housing on site, with 35 affordable units at 250 Mission for households earning 80% AMI and 54 affordable units at Rye House for households earning 50% of AMI. Additional information about Rye House and 250 Mission can be found at liveryehouse.com and live250mission.com, respectively. In January the team will launch the final building, 2400 Terrapin Way, which includes 121 residential units, of which 81 are extended stay.

Baltimore Peninsula development is expected to deliver robust community benefits to support Baltimore City and South Baltimore communities. To date, Baltimore Peninsula has committed more than $132 million in contracts to Baltimore City-certified Minority and Women Business Enterprise firms, exceeding its initial goals with 35 percent participation for MBEs and 13 percent for WBEs. In line with the project’s MWBE goals, the Baltimore Peninsula development team supported Baltimore-based MBE Conscious Venture Lab in raising $50 million for investment in local companies using innovation to create a more equitable society, specifically targeting MWBEs. 

In November 2022, Baltimore Peninsula launched a new partnership with Project JumpStart – a workforce development and job placement program – to implement its 15-week construction training program that will ultimately support the continued construction of Baltimore Peninsula. The partnership, which will support the education of up to 22 students, includes financial support by Sagamore Ventures. In addition, Baltimore Peninsula announced a new partnership with Sweeten – a software company known for bringing trust, transparency, and data-driven decision making to the construction industry. Together, the parties built a tool that expands Baltimore Peninsula’s MWBE contracting goals and achievements, creates greater transparency in the procurement process of MWBEs and helps development teams communicate the status of their projects with the community. 

For more information on Baltimore Peninsula, visit baltimorepeninsula.com or visit on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

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About Baltimore Peninsula

Baltimore Peninsula is a 235-acre redevelopment project located on Baltimore City’s prime waterfront, featuring investments from Sagamore Ventures and the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management. As one of the largest urban revitalization efforts in the United States, Baltimore Peninsula will have a fundamental and far-reaching impact on Baltimore’s future. At completion, this transformative project will include: up to 14 million square feet of new, mixed-use development; 2.5 miles of restored waterfront; and 40 acres of parks and green space. The Baltimore Peninsula redevelopment is expected to generate fresh opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship for Baltimore City residents and its local workforce.

About the Goldman Sachs Asset Management Urban Investment Group (UIG)

Bringing together traditional and alternative investments, Goldman Sachs Asset Management provides clients around the world with a dedicated partnership and focus on long-term performance. As the primary investing area within Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), we deliver investment and advisory services for the world’s leading institutions, financial advisors and individuals, drawing from our deeply connected global network and tailored expert insights, across every region and market—overseeing more than $2 trillion in assets under supervision worldwide as of September 30, 2022. Driven by a passion for our clients’ performance, we seek to build long-term relationships based on conviction, sustainable outcomes, and shared success over time. Goldman Sachs Asset Management invests in the full spectrum of alternatives, including private equity, growth equity, private credit, real estate and infrastructure.  Established in 2001, the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management has committed over $14 billion through real estate projects, social enterprises and lending facilities for small businesses.

About MAG Partners

MAG Partners is a woman-owned, urban real estate company with decades of experience developing impactful, iconic, large-scale projects throughout New York City. Led by MaryAnne Gilmartin, together the MAG Partners team has successfully designed, built and operated over 7 million square feet of office, residential and mixed-use projects, including over 2,000 units of housing, with a total value of over $4.5 billion. The firm believes and has proven that principles of beauty, diversity and sustainability create lasting value.

About MacFarlane Partners

MacFarlane Partners is a real estate investment and development firm that acquires, develops and manages properties on behalf of some of the world’s largest pension plans and institutions as well as for its own account. Founded in 1987, the firm pioneered the urban investment concept among institutional real estate investment managers in the 1990s and today is a leading investor in and developer of properties that promote smart growth, urban revitalization, sustainability and equitable development in urban and high-density suburban areas nationwide. It is headquartered in San Francisco and operates a regional office in Los Angeles.

About Sagamore Ventures

Sagamore Ventures is a privately-held investment company with diversified holdings that include commercial real estate, hospitality, food and beverage, and venture capital. The company is based in Baltimore, MD, and serves as the family office of Kevin A. Plank, the founder, Executive Chairman, and Brand Chief of Under Armour, Inc. Key investment holdings include Sagamore Spirit and a major equity stake in the Baltimore Peninsula redevelopment in South Baltimore.  The mission of Sagamore Ventures is to execute the initiatives of the Plank Family, support the growth of our investments, and contribute to economic development and opportunity in Baltimore City.

About CFG Bank (http://www.CFG.bank)

CFG Bank, headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, is a full-service bank that provides premier commercial, personal, and online banking solutions to the Mid-Atlantic business community, national cannabis industry and national healthcare market. Locally owned and operated, CFG Bank transforms the banking experience by delivering big bank capabilities and expertise, coupled with relationship-driven boutique bank service. CFG Bank has branches in Lutherville and Baltimore City, and a commercial office in Annapolis. For more information, visit www.CFG.bank, and follow CFG Bank on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. 

About JLL 

JLL (NYSE: JLL) is a leading professional services firm that specializes in real estate and investment management. JLL shapes the future of real estate for a better world by using the most advanced technology to create rewarding opportunities, amazing spaces and sustainable real estate solutions for our clients, our people and our communities. JLL is a Fortune 500 company with annual revenue of $19.4 billion, operations in over 80 countries and a global workforce of more than 102,000 as of September 30, 2022. JLL is the brand name, and a registered trademark, of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated. For further information, visit jll.com. 

About Weller Development Partners

Weller Development Partners is a dynamic and innovative mixed-use development firm that builds world-class communities. Led by Founding Partner and President Marc Weller and Partner Steve Siegel, our leadership team offers a wide range of expertise and experience to tackle the most complex real estate developments. At the heart of the company ethos is a triple-bottom-line approach to development, designing strategies that are financially viable, while also providing benefits to surrounding communities, the environment, and investors.

CFG Bank finalizes deal to move headquarters to Baltimore Peninsula

The long-anticipated deal to move CFG Bank’s headquarters to Baltimore Peninsula has been finalized.

The bank will move into 97,000 square feet of space at 2455 House St. by the end of the year, officials said Wednesday morning. Details of the CFG lease deal first surfaced in mid-September, even as negotiations remained ongoing for the anchor tenant of the seven-story, red-brick tower. House Street will be the new name for the street formerly known as Banner Street, a spokesperson for the development said.

The 15-year lease is the largest to be signed to date at the 235-acre project formerly known as Port Covington. The redevelopment of the former industrial peninsula off Hanover Street was envisioned nearly a decade ago by Under Armour founder Kevin Plank whose Sagamore Ventures is a major investor along with master developers MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners.

“It speaks volumes that a company like CFG Bank, a pillar of the Baltimore business community, has selected Baltimore Peninsula for its future home,” Plank said, in a statement.

Bill Wiedel, CEO of CFG Bank, said the move to South Baltimore from the current HQ near Mt. Washington and the city-Baltimore County line would allow the bank to expand in the coming years including a foray into consumer lending. The bank has only two branches, in Fells Point and Timonium, and is currently headquartered in a large building just over the line in Baltimore County near Lake Roland.

CFG’s move to Baltimore Peninsula comes as the bank is also raising its local profile with the sponsorship of Baltimore Arena downtown. The arena is expected to reopen in February after a $200 million overhaul by Oak View Group.

“As our businesses continued to grow, we were in search of a new location that could accommodate our current and future expansion, provide an environment to foster our team’s entrepreneurial spirit, and support the reinvigoration of Baltimore,” Wiedel said. “As we design and build our new headquarters, we are creating a truly unique space where all our employees will thrive and work together, grow, and achieve our own goals and those of our clients.”

Wiedel said in an interview with the Baltimore Business Journal last month the space at Baltimore Peninsula is being designed to entice most of its 240 employees to come into the office at least three days a week. Amenities and incentives will include a large kitchen space, rooftop deck access, 5,000-square-foot employee lounge and golf, soccer and baseball simulators as well as collaborative work stations.

“We are thinking of every detail down to the colors, fragrance and acoustics,” Wiedel said.

In addition to CFG Bank’s new headquarters, the new office space will also hold the headquarters for the Capital Funding Group and the Jack and Nancy Dwyer Workforce Development Center, Inc.

CFG Bank is among the largest commercial lenders and private companies in Greater Baltimore with $2 billion in real estate loans and $2.5 billion in commercial and industrial loans as of June 30, 2022, according to Baltimore Business Journal research. CFG is part of Capital Funding Group, an umbrella corporation owned by local businessman Jack Dwyer.

Scooter Monroe, vice president of office leasing at MAG Partners, and real estate advisor Ed Guiltinan helped to close the CFG lease with brokers Antony Gross and Anne Marie Paintsil of JLL. Kevin Haus and Matt Haas, also with JLL, represented CFG Bank. Design firm NewGround is working with CFG to create its new space.

Another office tenant, Chambers Co., signed a lease at the Baltimore Peninsula last year for 9,000 square feet of space at Rye Street Market.

BBJ reporter Garrett Dvorkin contributed reporting to this article.

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Port Covington gets new name, rebranding amid leasing push

Farewell Port Covington. Meet “Baltimore Peninsula”.

The new name is part of a glossy rebrand for the area south of Federal Hill, which a development team led by Under Armour Inc. founder Kevin Plank envisions as a new, mini-city on the Middle Branch.

“It will be impactful, inclusive and equitable,” said MaryAnne Gilmartin, another partner in the project and principal of New York-based MAG Partners. “The new name is clear, it has a narrative and is authentic and easy to understand. It delivers on the aspiration.”

The rebrand is the latest for the site that has also been known as Cyber Town USA and was once touted by Plank and top city and state officials as the best location for Amazon’s HQ2.

The nearly eight-year-old project is nearing completion of its $650 million first phase this month that will hold 1.1 million square feet of office, residential and retail space — with more building soon to follow in 2023, Gilmartin pledged on Monday. She took over the project as master developer in May as Weller Development was jettisoned from the gig by Plank’s Sagamore Ventures.

More construction could be next. Gilmartin said planning for another office and residential tower could begin in 2023 and be fueled by the sale of another tranche of tax increment financing bonds as part of a record $660 million TIF deal approved by the city in September 2016.

Gilmartin added the project now will hold a large-scale, diagonally shaped park as part of its redrawn master plan that will result in a swath of green space that will extend to the waterfront from the busy ramp of Interstate 95 at the northern rim.

But for now, Gilmartin said she is focused on filling buildings in the $5.5 billion total redevelopment. So far, one tenant, Chambers Co., has signed a lease for 9,000 square feet and CFG Bank is negotiating for 100,000 square feet for its new headquarters in the seven-story 2455 Banner St. tower.

“We are focused on leasing, leasing, leasing,” Gilmartin said, during an interview Monday afternoon. “We plan to go far and wide and from one coast to another. We have a bold national strategy.”

Gilmartin and her partners, who also include Goldman Sachs and San Francisco-based McFarlane Partners, said they decided to reveal the new name Baltimore Peninsula about six weeks earlier than originally predicted. The move will help the development team and brokers from JLL and McDevitt Co. lease office and retail space, respectively.

The first retail tenants could be announced during the first quarter of 2023, Gilmartin said.

The rebranding effort will include a new storyline and narrative and a website that will focus on the location on the Middle Branch waterfront with its natural environment amid a series of modern new towers and retail. The Baltimore Peninsula rebrand was crafted by Ashley C. Cotton, a principal at MAG Partners, who is also based in New York.

The first office tenants are expected to move to the former Port Covington site in March alongside residential tenants as leasing gets underway on the 537 luxury apartment units now getting final touches. Gilmartin said 89 of those units will be affordable apartments and another 81 will be designated as “extended stay” dwellings.

“I believe there are only a handful of projects like it around the country today with its access, land mass and waterfront views,” she said.

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Port Covington renamed Baltimore Peninsula, ushering in new brand and new chapter

Port Covington, the once industrial South Baltimore waterfront that is being redeveloped, is getting a new name to go with its future as a place to live, work, shop and gather.

Starting Tuesday, the massive project south of Interstate 95 will be called Baltimore Peninsula.

The name change, announced Tuesday morning by developers, is the most visible part of a rebranding by a newly installed development team and aims to focus on the area’s future instead of its past.

“We find ourselves at a moment in time, a moment in time where we can think big and carry on the momentum and be all in,” said MaryAnne Gilmartin, founder and CEO of New York-based MAG Partners, which along with San Francisco-based MacFarlane Partners, took over in May as lead developer and investors with owners Sagamore Ventures and Goldman Sachs.

“It’s not a project. It’s a place,” Gilmartin said. “It’s a neighborhood. It’s a home. It’s a headquarters. So it’s time to call the project what we want it to be forever.”

Developers wanted to re-direct thinking about the project with a “powerful” brand that would be clear, authentic, easily recognizable and that “conveys the character and personality of what it represents,” Gilmartin said.

She added that the site is more of a peninsula than a port and that developers believe in Baltimore as a brand, especially in marketing outside the city.

“That’s what we’re pitching,” she said. “We think Baltimore is amazing.

Baltimore Peninsula was chosen from about 50 names, including the current name, over about six months, with the help of consultants and project owners including Under Armour founder Kevin Plank.

Developers, said they hope all of the Port Covington neighborhood, of which they own about 80% of the real estate, will embrace the new name. Other developers are operating separately in Port Covington, some building homes while Under Armour is building a global headquarters on 50 acres owned by the company.

The rebranding comes at a time when the project’s first five buildings are nearing completion, including two office buildings and three residential buildings, with the the first office tenants and apartment residents to start moving in early next year. The 1.1 million square feet of offices, apartments, a hotel, retail and parks is the $500 million first phase of a project eventually planned to hold 14 million square feet on 235 acres.

“Baltimore is an incredibly special place to me — it is home — and it is rewarding to see the culmination of all the great work that has been done to-date,” said Plank, principal and CEO of Sagamore Ventures, in Tuesday’s announcement.

An official grand opening for Baltimore Peninsula is being planned for next September.

Gilmartin said developers are working on finalizing leases with two tenants for the office building on the newly named House Street by the first quarter of next year, which would fully occupy the building. One of those tenants is expected to be CFG Bank. A second office building will house Rye Street Market, and H. Chambers Co., an architecture and interior design firm, will move into 9,000 square feet in that building in March.

“The philosophy for the commercial space is not to cannibalize the Inner Harbor and to move tenants around Baltimore but to go wider on a national strategy,” Gilmartin said.

The first phase also includes 250 Mission, a 162-unit apartment building, and Rye House, a 254-unit apartment building, a 121-unit residential building with an extended-stay hotel, a parking garage and a park. Leasing for the apartments will start in the first quarter and the first residents are expected to move in by March.

Sagamore’s Port Covington project has sprouted alongside its earlier developments, Rye Street Tavern and Sagamore Spirit Distillery. The Baltimore Sun leases its office in the Port Covington development.

Developers hope to announce the start of another office building next year, with a company headquarters type of tenant in place, and another apartment building, Gilmartin said.

“Obviously with the headwinds in the economy, it remains to be seen if we can do that,” she said, though “the residential market is quite robust in Baltimore.”

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AN INTERVIEW WITH NEW PORT COVINGTON DEVELOPER MARYANNE GILMARTIN OF MAG PARTNERS

Earlier this month, The Port Covington Development Team announced MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners will take over as the development partners of the Port Covington Development. Weller Development will exit the project at the completion of the 1.1 million sq. ft. Chapter 1B phase in Fall 2023.

The Port Covington Development Team is owned by Kevin Plank’s Sagamore Ventures and Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group. MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners will lead the development, as well as invest in the project.

SouthBMore.com spoke with MaryAnne Gilmartin, founder and CEO of MAG Partners, to learn more about what attracted her to the project and her vision for Port Covington.

Gilmartin told SouthBMore.com she met Plank in February 2021 through friend Jody Clark, who is the chief of real estate for Sagamore Ventures, and then started to look at the Port Covington project.

“My team started to look at it, made some recommendations, and somewhere along the way I fell in love with it,” she said. “There is no greater spokesperson for Baltimore I’ve come across than Kevin Plank.” 

“I think I can leverage Kevin to be an essential part of the project,” said Gilmartin. “The quid pro quo for me was that Kevin is involved.”

Gilmartin compared Plank’s dedication to Baltimore to the way Dan Gilbert has “lifted up” Detroit. Gilbert is the co-founder of Quicken Loans, owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and founder of Rock Ventures, which is co-owner of Horseshoe Casino Baltimore.

After her interest grew in the Port Covington Development, Gilmartin called her friend Victor MacFarlane of MacFarlane Partners.

“He only works on things with purpose and only works in cities,” she said, noting how she told MacFarlane, “If I do it, I want to do it with someone like you.”

The two formed a partnership and then not only agreed to join the project, they invested in it as well.

Gilmartin said MacFarlane is “probably one of the largest Black developers in the country.”

Gilmartin started MAG Partners in 2020. She has worked on projects such as The New York Times building in Manhattan, Barclays Center in Brooklyn, and the 14-building Pacific Park Brooklyn mixed-use project. This is Gilmartin’s first project outside of the New York City metro area.

She said it’s “incredible what Weller Development has put in place.”

“We view Chapter 1B as proof of concept,” said Gilmartin. “Weller will finish up the construction and we will take over from there.”

She said she has been working closely with the leasing team that includes JLL, but noted “we need results.”

Gilmartin said there are “infinite possibilities” for Port Covington. She noted uses such as residential, entertainment, commercial, education, and hospitals, and said she sees a lot of possibilities for life sciences.

“When I think about Johns Hopkins and the unbelievable institutions in Baltimore, the compelling campaign is life sciences. Everyone wants it, there isn’t enough of it, and there is so much money backing it,” she said. 

“We shouldn’t be cannibalizing the CBD [Central Business District] and Inner Harbor, this project needs to be bigger than just moving companies around,” she added.

When asked about the idea of a new arena or soccer stadium for Port Covington, Gilmartin said, “I’m absolutely open to the opportunity and know what sports can do for a community.”

Gilmartin worked on the Barclays Center project that brought the Nets to Brooklyn.

She specifically noted that soccer comes up as “high possibility.” She added “very few other places amass the type of land needed for soccer” and that a team would “attract people from all parts of the city.”

When asked about the business climate in Baltimore and Maryland, which never rank high as the best places to do business, she noted her vast experience working in the New York market. “New York is downright hostile, we are challenged every day,” said Gilmartin.

She also said, however, “I have this love affair with New York. People want to be in New York for a reason – for the culture, the food, the people, the opportunity, and the spirit. If a place has a magic fairy dust, it counterbalances what’s not great.”

“I spend a lot of time in Brooklyn. Baltimore has the kind of grit and possibility Brooklyn has. I love the underdog status, ” said Gilmartin.

She said it wasn’t easy to lure companies to Brooklyn but said they were able to create a “sense of place” which led to the momentum Brooklyn is seeing now.

MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners will take over Weller Development’s office at City Garage in Port Covington which includes a “beautiful” leasing space, according to Weller Development.

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Sagamore Ventures and Goldman Sachs Asset Management Announce Expansion of the Port Covington Development Team

Unique partnership between leading national woman-owned and Black-owned development firms, MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners, will bring new investment to the Port Covington development and focus on the development of future phases

Weller Development Company will continue driving construction of the first phase, which is already delivering promised benefits to MBE/WBE businesses, the SB6 communities and the City of Baltimore

Sagamore Ventures and the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management (Goldman Sachs) today announced an addition to the development and investment team for Port Covington that brings together two of the leading woman-owned and Black-owned development firms in the country, MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners. The addition of the MAG and MacFarlane team brings national experience that will focus on leasing, marketing and placemaking campaigns. Weller Development Company (WDC) will continue to focus on the construction of Chapter 1B, the 1.1 million- square-foot phase currently underway.

The MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners team will lead the future development efforts outside of Chapter 1B and continue with the vision and transformation of the 177-acre South Baltimore project, with an approved master plan consisting of up to 14 million square feet of mixed-use development and 40 acres of open space across 45 new city blocks. The new development teams are direct investors leading all leasing, as well as  future development and construction.

“With a dynamic and unsurpassed waterfront location, including direct access to I95 and unparalleled corporate branding opportunities, Port Covington is perfectly positioned for brands looking for more than a headquarters location, and are instead focused on community and impact. As the first phase of Port Covington springs from the ground, we are thrilled to grow our development team with the national, proven experience and scale of MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners who will support the ambition and vision we have for the project. Getting the project to this point has been nothing short of herculean by Weller Development Company and the entire Port Covington Development Team,” said Kevin Plank, Principal and CEO of Sagamore Ventures. “With the support of Goldman Sachs, a catalytic anchor in Under Armour, and additional, innovative development partners in place, Port Covington is poised to attract top-tier commercial tenants and fulfill its potential for Baltimore and continue creating a new model for equitable and impactful urban development.”

“Port Covington is a transformational project that will help define and advance our renaissance by generating thousands of jobs and economic opportunities for the City and our residents for generations to come,” said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. “I am encouraged by the latest, premier additions to the development and investment teams and look forward to working with them to ensure that this project continues to benefit the South Baltimore community, especially its residents, equitably and inclusively. I am grateful to Sagamore for their demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion that they have achieved to date.”

MAG Partners and MacFarlane bring national experience and acknowledge the growth opportunities in Baltimore, having delivered some of the most complex mixed-use developments across the country, with a shared mission of bringing architecturally significant, equitable and sustainable development to America’s urban centers. Led by MaryAnne Gilmartin who has decades of experience leading complicated organizations to deliver impactful projects, the MAG Partners team has successfully designed, built, leased, and operated over seven million square feet of office, residential and mixed-use projects. MacFarlane Partners is led by Victor MacFarlane, a pioneer in urban development with a 40-year track record of investments that promote smart growth, urban revitalization, and sustainability in urban and high-density suburban submarkets. Both developers have also created and implemented innovative plans around community engagement, workforce development and local hiring, and affordable housing, and will bring that experience to Port Covington.

“Community and purpose are at the core of everything we do. Coupled with the vision and stewardship of Kevin and his team at Sagamore Ventures and Weller Development Company, we are excited to join the great work already underway which is uniquely focused on impact,” said MaryAnne Gilmartin, Founder and CEO of MAG Partners. “We are grateful to have had the opportunity to ground our team in the long-term vision for Port Covington and are looking forward to implementing new strategies to bring innovators to Baltimore City and ensure the neighborhood is built for all its constituents – particularly local residents.”

“Our business is focused on high-impact investments in key gateway cities and Port Covington perfectly aligns with our vision of smart, urban growth,” said Victor MacFarlane, Chairman and CEO of MacFarlane Partners. “Port Covington is a model of sustainability, inclusivity and forward-thinking development that is vital to the lasting success of our urban communities nationally. We are excited to partner with MAG Partners and Sagamore Ventures to advance the next chapter of Port Covington’s story.”

“Goldman Sachs invested in Port Covington because we have great confidence in the vision, and the opportunity to create something that delivers true community benefits for the city of Baltimore. As such, the Sagamore Ventures and Goldman Sachs teams proactively sought the support of nationally-experienced development partners that are uniquely qualified to enhance our mission,” said Michael Lohr, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs Asset Management. “The growing development team reflects both our ambition for Port Covington and commitment to delivering a world-class project that will drive renewed community investment and revitalize South Baltimore’s waterfront. Building on the achievements of the talented team at WDC, we are poised to deliver on this commitment.”

“We are so thankful to Goldman Sachs and Sagamore Ventures for their commitment to Baltimore; together, we exceeded expectations and delivered on the promises and commitments made to the community and the City. As the project evolves, we are excited to pass the reins to MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners to develop future phases,” said Marc Weller, Founding Partner, Weller Development Company.  “Building on the momentum of the project and the ongoing efforts with the City’s community partners will be an important priority for the Weller Development Company construction team.”

Port Covington is expected to deliver robust community benefits, including $19 million already funded to support Baltimore City and South Baltimore communities. To date, Port Covington has committed more than $110 million in contracts to MBE/WBE firms, exceeding its initial goals with 35 percent participation for MBEs and 12 percent for WBEs, and 500 Youthworks positions have been funded for Baltimore City youth.

Mike Middleton, Chair of the South Baltimore Seven (SB7) Coalition said, “From the onset, the community partnered with the Port Covington Development Team to ensure that the project will have a long-lasting, positive impact on South Baltimore and the City as whole.  The collaboration between the community and Sagamore Ventures, Goldman Sachs, and Weller Development has been unprecedented.  They have lived up to their promises and delivered as they said they would.  The progress we are seeing and this latest milestone gets us one step closer to reaching our goals and realizing a brighter future for our communities.”

Last March, Port Covington celebrated the start of vertical construction and more than 1.1 million square feet of development is underway. This phase includes 586,000 square feet of residential, 440,000 square feet of office,116,000 square feet of retail, over 1,000 parking spaces, and ten acres of parks and public space.

About Port Covington

Port Covington is a 235-acre redevelopment project located on Baltimore City’s prime waterfront, featuring investments from Sagamore Ventures and the Urban Investment Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management. As one of the largest urban revitalization efforts in the United States, the neighborhood of Port Covington will have a fundamental and far-reaching impact on Baltimore’s future. At completion, this transformative project will include: up to 14 million square feet of new, mixed-use development; 2.5 miles of restored waterfront; and 40 acres of parks and green space. The Port Covington redevelopment is expected to generate fresh opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship for Baltimore City residents and its local workforce.

For more information on Port Covington, visit www.pc.city.

Two high-profile developers join Port Covington team to take over next phase of development

Two developers of high-profile urban projects in major U.S. cities have joined Sagamore Ventures’ effort to create a mini-city in South Baltimore’s Port Covington and will lead the next phase of development.

As five buildings near completion in the waterfront neighborhood south of Interstate 95, Sagamore and investment partner Goldman Sachs on Tuesday announced new partner firms, both of which invested undisclosed amounts in the project.

MAG Partners, a New York-based woman-owned firm, and MacFarlane Partners, a San Francisco-based Black-owned development and institutional investment firm, will leverage decades each of national experience in taking the reins from Weller Development Co. for leasing, marketing and “placemaking” campaigns for the current $500 million, 1.1 million-square-foot phase, Sagamore said.

MAG and MacFarlane will lead all future development outside that initial phase. The vision for the massive project, which spans 235 acres along Cromwell Street, includes up to 14 million square feet of shops, restaurants, office space and housing, plus 40 acres of parks, across 45 new city blocks.

Weller, which has led development thus far, will complete the construction of the current buildings, which include the centerpiece Rye Street Market with a food market, restaurants, retail, office space and a rentable events venue, as well as four additional buildings for apartments, offices, parking and retail.

Under Armour founder Kevin Plank, whose private investment firm, Sagamore Ventures, began carving out and acquiring parcels for Port Covington in 2014, touted the new development team members’ proven national experience and scale.

“Getting the project to this point has been nothing short of herculean by Weller Development Company and the entire Port Covington Development Team,” Plank said in the announcement. Now, “Port Covington is poised to attract top-tier commercial tenants and fulfill its potential for Baltimore and continue creating a new model for equitable and impactful urban development.”

Construction, which began on Port Covington in 2019, was temporarily suspended in April 2020 shortly after the coronavirus pandemic hit but since resumed.

Buildings are sprouting amid existing businesses, including Sagamore-owned Rye Street Distillery and The Baltimore Sun, which recently shut down its printing plant there.

No leases have been signed yet for any of the first phase buildings but tenant negotiations are underway, officials said.

Sagamore and Goldman sought out nationally-experienced developers to direct future phases, said Michael Lohr, managing director of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, which includes the investment bank’s urban investment group.

“The growing development team reflects both our ambition for Port Covington and commitment to delivering a world-class project that will drive renewed community investment and revitalize South Baltimore’s waterfront,” Lohr said in Tuesday’s announcement.

The heads of both MAG and MacFarlane, neither of whom has worked in Baltimore before, said in an interview that they were attracted to the project through personal ties and because of a belief in the untapped potential of U.S. cities and Baltimore in particular.

MaryAnne Gilmartin, founder and CEO of MAG Partners, and Victor MacFarlane, chairman and CEO of MacFarlane Partners, said they each found a niche pursuing against-all-odds types of development work.

The developers acknowledged Baltimore’s challenges but said they were impressed with accessibility along I-95, a strong labor pool, relative affordability for an East Coast city and expansive undeveloped waterfront land, all in an urban setting. That’s a recipe to draw companies, small businesses, residents and visitors, they said.

Key benefits, they said, include Under Armour’s commitment to build a five-story global headquarters for 1,700 employees on 50 acres it owns across Cromwell Street in Port Covington, along with a track and field facility and a flagship retail store. Port Covington also has buy-in from the city and the community after it funded a community benefits agreement that has funneled $19 million to South Baltimore neighborhoods.

“When we thought about all these ingredients, we thought there’s real possibilities here,” Gilmartin said. “We believe in cities as a company. … We started MAG partners so we that could demonstrate that you could build beautiful buildings and create value not just for partners and investors but for the communities in which we build.”

The Port Covington project, valued at an estimated $5.5 billion, is backed by $660 million in tax increment financing, which means property taxes generated by the project will repay city bonds sold to pay for its infrastructure. It is Baltimore’s largest such deal in history.

MacFarlane, who first went into business as an institutional investment manager in 1987, said his company looks for high-impact investments in key gateway cities. He is considered a pioneer in urban development for investments in inner-city Los Angeles after the 1992 riots and has led urban revitalization projects both in urban and high-density suburban submarkets.

“Port Covington perfectly aligns with our vision of smart, urban growth,” said MacFarlane, calling it a “model of sustainability, inclusivity and forward-thinking development that is vital to the lasting success of our urban communities nationally.”

His firm was a development partner in the mixed-use Time Warner Center along Central Park in New York. MacFarlane is partnering with another developer on a $2 billion, twin-tower luxury hotel project in downtown Los Angeles. Over the past decade, he said, he has focused on large urban projects “that can make an impact.”

“I’ve never really had an opportunity to do much in Baltimore, and the attributes that MaryAnne discussed about this project are very compelling,” he said during an interview. “We think with Port Covington we can place-make, which will not just cannibalize, as a lot of these projects are doing to themselves, but create an expansion of the employment base in Baltimore and make it more attractive overall.”

Gilmartin started her career as an economic developer under former New York Mayor Ed Koch and worked as an executive for Forest City Ratner Cos. before founding her own firm in 2020. She said she was brought into the Port Covington project by Jody Clark, Sagamore’s chief real estate officer, and first met with Plank just over a year ago at his Sagamore Farm in Baltimore County, site of Plank’s former thoroughbred racing operation.

While at Forest City, Gilmartin spearheaded the development of some high-profile New York City projects, including theBarclays Centerin Brooklyn. In the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks, Gilmartin worked on the New York Times building in Times Square.

“We built a very safe, beautiful building we designed before 9/11,” she said. “We took some precautionary steps but we did not build a fortress, and it was really a vote on the future of New York City.”

Gilmartin said her first step after signing on to Port Covington was to reach out to MacFarlane, who she met years ago while doing work in San Francisco for Forest City.

The developers say they intend to capitalize on Plank’s talent for brand building with Under Armour and promise he will be a “strong voice” in selling the Baltimore story and re-branding the project.

“It was super important to us that we be able to call on Kevin,” Gilmartin said. “He is such a believer in Baltimore. He is very much going to be an active part of this endeavor.”

Port Covington is a “canvas,” she said, and the construction so far “really allows us now to start talking about Port Covington as a place to be, a place to go, a place to have fun, a place to raise a family, a place to grow your business. Yes the city has challenges … but it’s a very affordable alternative to some expensive bigger cities.”

Future development will be market driven, with design of office and residential buildings influenced by new ways of working that emerged during the pandemic, the developers said. They see Baltimore’s multi-family, for-rent market as healthy, with demand for both market-rate and affordable housing. Residential leasing is expected to start by the end of this year when model apartments will be available.

And commercial leasing, after a disruption during the pandemic, is getting back on track, with about 100,000 square feet of office space and 60,000 square feet of retail under negotiation and buildings expected to be ready for occupancy later this year and into early 2023. Developers said they expect the project to appeal to a diverse sector of businesses and will cast a wide net for tenants.

Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott said in the announcement that he was encouraged by news of the latest partners. Port Covington is expected to be transformational, he said, generating “thousands of jobs and economic opportunities for the city and our residents for generations to come.”

Marc Weller, founding partner of Weller Development, said the work to date on the site has “exceeded expectations.”

“As the project evolves,” Weller said in Tuesday’s announcement, “we are excited to pass the reins to MAG Partners and MacFarlane Partners to develop future phases.”

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