Baltimore Co. executive weighs purchase of former aircraft assembly plantJames Mosher The Daily Record 04-01-2005 Baltimore County Executive James T. Smith Jr. is scheduled to tour a former aircraft assembly plant in Middle River today with an eye toward bidding for the building when it comes up for sale this summer. Smith will decide fairly quickly after the tour whether the county will try to buy the 1.9 million-square-foot property, according to Fronda Cohen, spokeswoman for the county's Department of Economic Development. The building, known as the Depot, is on 50 acres of land in the vicinity of the Route 43 extension and is close to rail, air and sea transport. The news of Smith's interest pleased Shawn T. Meyer, president of the Essex-Middle River Renaissance Corp., a citizens group interested in the refurbishment of old neighborhoods on the county's East Side. Meyer has advocated for the county's purchase as a way of getting redevelopment that's supported by most residents. Following adoption of a popular development plan, the county would then sell the building to a private developer, presumably at a profit. He [Smith] is very interested in the property and will be getting back to me late Friday or Monday, Meyer wrote in an e-mail message. Cohen also said Smith is very interested. A loan would most likely be needed to buy the property, one of the largest buildings in Baltimore County. The county hasn't started making loan applications because a decision to bid hasn't been made yet, Cohen said. The building, a former Glenn L. Martin Aircraft Co. factory, has been owned by the U.S. General Services Administration, an arm of the federal government, since 1964. It's currently used for storage and as a data processing center by the U.S. armed forces. The GSA plans to offer the property late this summer, said Gina Blythe Gilliam, a spokeswoman in the agency's Philadelphia office. The community group advised Baltimore County to seek a delay of up to one year on the sale. The county has not asked GSA to delay the sale, Cohen said. In its most recent contact with GSA, the county asked the agency to confirm its sale timetable, she said. County officials have been talking to the GSA on and off since 2003, Cohen said. The county also contacted U.S. Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes on the matter, saying the county wanted to get the building back on the tax rolls via a sale to a private concern. County officials other than Smith first toured the property about a year ago, Cohen said. Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., was contacted by the Essex- Middle River Renaissance Corp., spokeswoman Heather Moeder Molino said. Molino was unsure if the organization requested Ruppersberger to seek a delay in the sale. The congressman, who was Baltimore County Executive before Smith, feels it's very important the county and public have a role in the redevelopment, the spokeswoman said. Earlier this month, members of the public offered development ideas that included an air museum, schools and condominiums. The plethora of ideas prompted the renaissance corporation to ask for county intervention to ensure a mixed-use outcome popular with most residents. The corporation also advised the site's zoning be changed from its current heavy industrial classification. The GSA has not publicly stated what it expects to make from the sale. GSA will not sell if it deems bids too low, Gilliam said. The renaissance corporation is scheduled to have a board meeting April 11 in which Depot developments will be discussed. I am hoping [Smith] will be interested in pursuing purchasing the property through some sort of creative financing via federal government for resale, Meyer wrote.
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