Locust P-O-V

It's Official: Pazza Luna for Sale

2011-05-26T05:27:00.000-07:00

Long & Foster listing:


credit: baltimoreonthecheap.com

Pazza Luna restaurant for sale. Turnkey operation with 7-day liquor license, fixtures, name and real estate. Great Locust Point location awaiting your creative touches...this could be Baltimore's next hot restaurant!! Call for details.

The backstory: somewhere between failure to pay back-taxes and dispute among owners.

One Long Train

2011-05-10T19:50:00.000-07:00

Once again, CSX is on the agenda of the monthly neighborhood association meeting. The focus: what to do with the one long train that circles through Locust Point once a week, usually on Sundays? Resident are still complaining about the incident a couple months back where rail cars blocked both of the crossings that people use to enter and leave the Locust Point. This is particularly concerning since the Fort Avenue Bridge, the third and final way of the neighborhood, will be closed to cars for a full year starting this July. Imagine if your or a loved one were having a heart attack and could not get medical help because freight trains were blocking access to assistance.

CSX "Resident VP" Sharon Daboin told people at the April LPCA meeting that the freight operator is working on a solution. It involves separating the rail cars so that the train will not block Andre Street and Hull Street crossings at the same time. The challenge is getting the workers in the rail yard to unhitch the trains before there's a real problem. "A working yard is not under the control of the CSX dispatch system," Daboin said.

I was curious why there was such a long train in the first place. Daboin says its a reflection of the recovering economy. "There is a bright side to all this," Daboin said. "It means that people are buying again." The train that makes its weekly sojourn through Locust Point originates outside of Buffalo, snaking through cities and towns in New York, Pennsylvania, Baltimore and beyond. What other communities are experiencing what we have? Is this a temporary problem, or will there be more longer trains?

CSX has big freight plans for south Baltimore. With the state's help, it plans to build a cargo transfer station where containers can be double-stacked on railcars headed south and west. With the price of gas, rail is becoming a more attractive alternative to trucks as a way to move freight long distances. Don't worry, the transfer station will be built in either Anne Arundel or Prince George's County, not here. That's because it would cost too much to rebuild the old Howard Street tunnel to accomodate double-decker freight trains. As an aside, the location battle south of us is a big one, according to the Baltimore Sun. But so is the dispute over CSX's one long train snaking through Locust Point.

Plumbing Makeover Planned for Locust Point

2010-08-12T05:40:00.000-07:00

Remember Federal Hill last year (and the year before that, and the year before that), when PVC pipes snaked up and down the sidewalks, leaking water as they went? That's what some streets in our neighborhood will look like a year from now.

Baltimore's Department of Public Works made a formal presentation on "Infrastructure Rehabilitation Project WC #1203-E" at the Locust Point Community Association meeting last night. The goal is to replace worn out water lines on Decatur, Beason, Haubert, Hull, Cooksie and Andre Streets starting in "Spring 2011."

John Moore with RK&K Engineering, the consultant hired by DPW to manage the job, said streets were selected based on resident complaints and stress tests done on the water pipes. I will admit bias here and say I live on one of the streets that will be ripped up and I've had no complaints about dirty water of low water pressure, so I'm suspicious of those criteria.

Three main lines of questions came up at the meeting:
1. Is this project being coordinated with BGE, which will be coming through the neighborhood to rip up/replace natural gas lines? Answer: not really, gosh we should look into that.
2. What will DPW do to ensure that proper repairs will be made after the streets are ripped up? One resident who lives on Fort Avenue and lived through a water line rehab there said DPW failed to provide any construction management. Concrete sidewalks were broken and not repaired until politicians were called in.
3. How will DPW keep residents informed about service interruptions? Again, this was a problem with the Federal Hill water line work

Work in Locust Point is scheduled to take six to seven months. The Federal Hill project was supposed to take two years. It ended up taking more than three. Needless to say, lots of questions remain on how to avoid headaches while improving our aging infrastructure.

I did not know Matthew Martin

2010-05-20T09:53:00.000-07:00

By now we all know about the murder of Matthew Martin, who went missing from his home, family and friends in Locust Point in early April. The big question: who did it? My question: why didn't I write about Matt when he was missing? The posters were all over the neighborhood. First, the ones made by family. Then, the ones made by Crimestoppers. My answer is lame: life got in the way. I kept thinking I would get to the story. Would'a, Should'a. Phrases that abound when someone we know dies suddenly.

First, a promise to you:
I signed up to get on the Crimestoppers listserve; if there's a disappearance of someone from 21230 sent out via this org you'll read about it here. As many people have pointed out in online forums, media coverage of Matt's disappearance was spotty. (WBAL was the only local crew to cover it when it was a missing persons case). So, this commitment is my attempt to do better going forward.

Second, share anything you may know with detectives:
Here are a couple ways to pass tips along anonymously:

Text “MCS plus your message” to CRIMES (274637)
Click here for a link to a Crimestoppers web tip formFill out this form on the web

Lastly, a question: will Matt Martin's death unite or divide the neighborhood?
Clearly, people who grew up here and raised families here are grieving, together. Just look at what's happening on Facebook and you'll see the solidarity of the "Sobo Brotherhood." But then, there's the comment of someone presumed to be a yuppie/newcomer on Peter Hermann's crime blog in the Sun:

>> I also lived near Matthew Martin, a man whose activities did nothing but send my property values southward. Posted by: Anonymous | May 17, 2010 7:00 AM

The comment set off a firestorm of anger from long-time residents against newcomers:

>>South Baltimore was a place that no matter what happened or what you did,everyone still welcomed you with open arms.everyone new you,tryed helping you and were concerned about you.'YOU AND PEOPLE LIKE YOU CHANGED THAT! A NEIGHBORHOOD IS NOT MADE ON OR BUILT AROUND HOW MUCH MONEY YOU HAVE OR ARE WORTH,Its built on strong caring people that care about each other. Posted by: jimmy brunner | May 17, 2010 12:52 PM

Mr. Brunner.. I agree with what you say about a neighborhood being built around people who care about each other. I am sorry that you feel new people changed that. The reason why people like me moved here was precisely because of the tight-knit nature of Locust Point. I hope you will believe that not all newcomers are focused on property values and money.

If there's anything we can take away from Matt Martin's passing, its the importance of looking out for each other. It's unfortunate the lesson comes at such a high cost.

From the Search for Matt Martin Facebook page:

Services for Matt will be at Steven' s Funeral Home, E. Fort Ave and Hull St in Locust Point on Thurday May 20th and Friday May 21st from 3-5 and 7-9 Funeral Mass on Staurday May 22nd at 10am Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, Locust Point Md 21230

Introducing Francis Scott Key Community Garden

2010-04-27T06:10:00.000-07:00

New life came to what Locust Point locals know as the "old German church" when dozens of people planted butterfly and vegetable gardens to mark Earth Day and the beginning of new relationships in this little corner of South Baltimore.

Locust Point resident Diane Miceli and Francis Scott Key student Rodney Brooks plant a new cut flower garden

The newly dubbed "Francis Scott Key Community Garden" on the grounds of Christ Church on Beason Street is a collaboration among the church, FSK elem/middle school and the Parks & People Foundation. Locust Point residents and students worked side by side this past Earth Day along with some help from Maryland Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown and his staff.

Pastor Jim Bell says the congregation at Christ Church has dwindled to less than 100. He hopes the garden will become a focal point for the neighborhood and the school and hey, maybe boost the numbers for Sunday services.

Francis Scott Key Elementary/Middle School students plant what will become a butterfly garden

Christ Church is having a rededication of its renovated sanctuary on May 2nd. The service and new gardens are open to all. Want to volunteer to maintain the garden? Contact me at cathyduchamp@hotmail.com

Yes, Locust Point, there is a Harris Teeter

2010-03-25T07:35:00.000-07:00

The little girl Virgina questioned whether there was a Santa Claus. I've been questioning whether the upscale supermarket Harris Teeter will really be coming to Locust Point. It was originally slated to open last month. But with steel girders now rising 4-stories high on Mark Sapperstein's $120-million dollar McHenry Row development, there's some progress to report.

Girders Rising
First, the building in the photo here is not Harris Teeter. It's an office building slated to open this September. Among the first tenants, the Baltimore Metropolitan Council, which directs transportation policy in the region. One-and-a-half floors out of a total of four floors of office space has been leased, according to Dominic Wiker, who's heading up the project for developer Mark Sapperstein. "People have been waiting a long time," Wiker acknowledges. Construction has started and stopped twice, as we've all seen, because of the national credit crunch. "But now we've got some traction and momentum," Wiker says. "It's a matter of getting the various lenders lined up."

So, what about Harris Teeter?
Wiker wouldn't give a timeline. I got this email from Harris Teeter PR manager Catherine Reuhl:

"That store is currently scheduled to open in our third quarter 2011

but I can not offer a specific opening date this far out."

That means July 2011 at the earliest.

In the meantime..
Wiker says after the office building is complete, and loans are secured, construction will start on apartments and retail/restaurant space. This will be two "mixed use" buildings, that will rise on two sides of a plaza behind the fire station. Remember the banner that proclaimed the apartments would open in Fall 2009? Here's the new banner, which says "Coming 2011."

The list of restaurants/retailers going in remains the same: Green Turtle, Dunkin' Donuts, a nail salon, dry cleaner, and two banks: PNC and M&T [which btw will close its Fort Ave office on April 9].

Parking For Sale
We've been staring at two big parking structures for the past couple years. Developer Sapperstein tells the Baltimore Business Journal he's trying to work a deal to free up some cash for the project by selling the garages to the city, which would then lease the garages back to Sapperstein. Hmm. Its evidence the city is trying to do what it can to boost economic development in our neighborhood. Whether that's good for Baltimore taxpapers is another issue. We've had a lull in growth, but it looks like 2011 may change that.

Fire Sparks Change at Christ Church

2010-03-09T14:40:00.000-08:00

(United Church of Christ church)

Like a lot of things in Baltimore, it started with artificial flowers. In this case, a fire, fueled by a flaming bouquet at Christ Church UCC, also known as the "Little German Church" at Beason and Decatur Streets in Locust Point. The flowers were a little too close to lit candles on the altar, recalls Pastor Jim Bell. Within a minute the second-floor sanctuary of the 125 year old church filled up with smoke. That was in December. Now, the church is preparing to reopen its sanctuary, an experience that represents new hope for a congregation that's struggling to survive.

(Lit candles and artificial flowers don't mix, but they remain in the sanctuary during rennovation)

"People don't like me to say this, but this church used to be a club," says Pastor Bell, who came to his current post a little over two years ago to build a congregation that has dwindled to less than 100 members. Bell is proud to say Christ Church has netted nine new members since he arrived. Figuring out a plan to deal with the $52,000 in smoke damage from the fire has created a "new sense of belonging, and a sense of generosity," says Bell.

Carpet has been replaced around the altar. The sanctuary has a fresh coat of paint. New hardwood floors will soon replace linoleum tiles. And a painting of Jesus at the Sea of Galilee that hovers above the altar is being professionally restored. Think Sistine Chapel, Locust Point style.

(Church members will be surprised at how much lighter the refurbished mural is)

Insurance is covering the lion's share of refurbishing costs. But the church is also holding a couple fundraising events, the first, this Sunday March 14 (Corn Beef & Cabbage dinner from 12pm - 4pm). There's a quarter auction scheduled for Saturday March 20 at 6pm.

Bell would like to see young couples come out for the events, and heck, even come to church, though he admits it can be intimidating. That's in part because the sanctuary is on the second floor of the old brick church.. you really can't just sneak in unnoticed. It might also be because of the traditions: old hymns sung aloud, and a recitation of the Apostle's Creed. Bell says he's trying to find a balance: long-time parishoners need to feel its still their church; newcomers need a less doctrinal style to services.

Churches can be stabilizing forces in neighborhoods. Pastor Jim Bell wants you to know you're welcome to visit anytime. And, hey, maybe Christ Church can try out this version of the Apostle's Creed. [click on the link]

Who Is Locust Point?

2010-03-04T14:35:00.000-08:00

With all the chatter over Census 2010, I thought I'd share some demographic information on the neighborhood. The Census Bureau now counts people every year, through something called the American Community Survey. There's some very cool information available, like, how people get to work, poverty rates, educational attainment. Problem is, you can't drill down on the data to the the "Census Tract," or neighborhood level. So what's available at this point on Locust Point specifically is this demographic snapshot from the 10-year Census back in 2000. Here are some highlights. If you want more, go to census.gov, or use the data cut the Baltimore City of Planning did [click on Census Neighborhood Profiles link].

LOCUST POINT CITYWIDE

Population                     1,929                      651,154
Ethnicity                          97% white              32% white
25-64 years old       55% 51%
Married Couple Fam.         67%                           47%
Owner-Occupied House     74%                          50%

Newer Faces: a Blip or a Shift?
Anecdotally, we all know Locust Point has grown and changed since Census 2010. There are fewer families with kids, more ex-surburban empty nesters and DINKs [I'm in that category]. There are fewer factory workers, and more techie/office folks. Many newcomers came to the neighborhood thinking housing prices would continue to rise. They didn't. But when they do, will the newcomers stay? Or will Locust Point return to "the way it was?" Below is one answer from Joe the Barber. His shop is on Fort Avenue, technically in Federal Hill..

blogjoefinal.wav

Antacids for All

2010-02-26T11:57:00.000-08:00

An addendum to the post about Under Armour's cafeteria, based on a conversation I just had with a Locust Point restaurant manager:

Restaurants are upset, sure, about the possibility of losing business. But they are *not* mad at Under Armour employees, and don't want folks to turn their backs away from the neighborhood. In fact, restaurants want UA folks to visit, to maintain the sense of community that DOES exist. Its time for a beer, at a Locust Point pub.

Under Armour Cafe Causes Heartburn

2010-02-25T09:59:00.000-08:00

Tuesday is Tide Point Discount Day at Thornton’s Pub on Clement Street. 15% off the bill usually brings in a lunch crowd from Under Armour, a short walk away. But when I visited, the place was dead. Could it be because Under Armour just opened its own cafeteria? Thornton’s manager Mickie Rigatuso thinks so. She wants to know why the sports apparel company decided to feed its employees. “If the neighborhood had nothing to offer I would get it,” said Rigatuso. “But there’s everything here [in Locust Point]: Italian, Mexican, seafood, sandwiches.”

The bar stands empty at Thornton's Pub

It’s More Than About Food
Scott Plank is vice president of business development for Under Armour. He says the company’s “Hungry and Humble” Café, which officially opened this week, represents “the heart of the Under Armour campus, where employees can come together, informally or formally.” The cafeteria is part of a strategic plan to improve communication among Under Armour employees. It’s the “number one pain point as companies grow” says Plank.

Indeed, Under Armour is growing in an era where young, smart workers crave a hip, “Google-like” atmosphere. In contrast, the old soap factory buildings of Tide Point had become what Plank calls “a Habitrail where you have to cruise through tunnels” to meet anyone. After visiting 50 corporate campuses, including Google, Plank decided amenities like a cafeteria and a state-of-the-art gym would give Under Armour a competitive recruiting advantage. “We love the neighborhood, says Plank. “But we’re also savvy business people.” 700 Under Armour employees are now fanned out over both sides of the Key Highway Extension on a campus that includes Tide Point and what used to be the Overflow warehouse.

The "new" part of the Under Armour campus is the "old" Overflo warehouse building

The Cost of Growth
“My business is dead,” says Sanny Ali, owner of the Harvest Table, which sits on the Tide Point site. This week, Ali is trying a buffet lunch to entice Under Armour employees in. He says he won’t be able to compete against Under Armour if its meal prices are subsidized. Plank confirms this is the case, but he won’t reveal actual prices. Ali purchased Harvest Table two-and-a-half years ago. He says if he knew there was a possibility of Under Armour opening its own cafeteria he would never have bought the restaurant.

Plank did talk to Ali, and to other restaurant owners in Locust Point, about plans to open the Under Armour cafeteria, so it wasn’t a surprise. Plank says neighborhood restaurants can still sell catering services to Under Armour. Most important though, says Plank, is a statistic he picked up on his travels to other corporate campuses: only about 50% of employees eat at on-campus restaurants. “Nobody wants to go to the same place forever and ever and ever,” exclaims Plank. He says as long as neighborhood restaurants focus on good food there’ll be plenty of business for everyone.

Harvest Table owner Sanny Ali (l) with employee Samuel Paz

Lets Wait and See
One block south of Harvest Table on Hull Street is the Whetstone Grill, which opened last spring for breakfast, lunch and dinner service, the same service Under Armour offers to workers at its cafeteria. Dan Macatee is the owner. He also runs the nearby Hull Street Blues Café. Macatee says from a business standpoint he’s disappointed at Under Armour’s decision to open a private café. “I wanted to feed those people on a regular basis." But he’s not angry. “No business can rely on one client,” he says.

Dan Macatee owns Hull Street Blues Cafe and the Whetstone Grill

In fact, Under Armour is not the only client Locust Point restaurants are missing. Layoffs are happening at Tide Point tenant Advertising.com, as part of parent company AOL’s restructuring. AOL won’t say how many ad.com folks have left, but scanning reports and blogs, its somewhere between 50 and 200, another factor that may contribute to the drop in lunch business Locust Point restaurants report.

There is concern that Under Armour workers will wall themselves in to their campus. Plank is quick to say that the company looks at Locust Point as a big campus, “frankly, we look at Baltimore as our campus.” Plank says Under Armour started as small business so he tries to be “super-sensitive to small businesses because that’s where we were.” But its clear there are bruised feelings. “It’s turned me off to Under Armour clothing” says Thornton’s Pub manager Rigatuso. “What’s my incentive for supporting them?”

Sometimes neighbors have spats. Lets hope this one resolves itself in a good way for everyone.

Miracle on Decatur Street

2010-02-18T07:06:00.000-08:00

One week after the second of two blizzards dumped snow, bobcats appear on the 1300 block of Decatur Street to remove the frozen snow banks that limit the amount of street parking. Residents rejoice that they can retire their lawnchairs.

I witnessed snow removal at the intersection of Hull and Beason streets as well. The sight of a front end loader dropping snow into a dump truck made me smile. Problem is, this is not happening on every street in Locust Point. In fact, snow removal isn't happening most anywhere this week.

A contractor hired by the city for this job says his crews will be around for a a couple more days, removing snow [actually taking it away!]; their focus is the main streets where delivery trucks come and go.

An emerging problem: potholes. The city says call 311 to report them and they'll be filled within 48 hours. What do you think?

Reserve Your Spot.. with a Lawn Chair

2010-02-09T15:46:00.000-08:00

With snow comes the tradition of lawn chair reservations in Baltimore. Go to any old stable neighborhood in the city to witness the custom:
1. Shovel your car out of its parking spot
2. Replace your car with a lawn chair, plastic bin, traffic cone or other device
3. Go to work or the store with the faith that your parking space will be there when you return.

I learned how it works from Jean Bell, who’s lived in Locust Point for 61 years. Being a foreigner from the West Coast, the lawn chair tradition seemed odd to me. How can you trust that some schmoe won’t come along and take the parking space you spent 4 hours digging out?

Jean explained that on her street in the Point there’s a “brigade.” If someone takes a reserved spot, the brigade gets called, and the offending car gets shoveled back in, by LOTS of snow. It’s retaliation, albeit benign. Jean wouldn’t tell me the other things her street brigade has done, but I’ve heard tales about slashing tires.

Listen to Jean explain what newcomers should know about Locust Point, and how to behave after a snowstorm:

Baltimore police confirm its illegal to reserve a parking spot on a public street. But yesterday Mayor Stephanie Rawlings Blake said she’d ask the cops to respect the tradition and not issue citations.

The remaining question is whether there are time limits on lawn chair reservations. Dan Macatee runs Hull Street Blues Café. He says there should be a limit on how long you can hold a space. After all, he has hungry customers who drive to his place for lunch, only to find a street full of lawn chairs! Macatee’s work-around is to remove the chairs during the lunch rush, then put them back before residents get home. It’s a way to keep the neighborhood peace.

With the snow flying once again, we’ll probably see lawn chairs reserving parking spots in Locust Point until the middle of next week, which is when I’ll have a new story for you here. Thanks for stopping by!

Hyper-Local Locust Point News

2010-02-01T07:22:00.001-08:00

How can we get the No. 1 bus to leave on-time, instead of leaving early?

Why did Under Armour open its own cafeteria when there are neighborhood lunchspots nearby?

Is Harris Teeter a dream or reality for the Chesapeake Paperboard site?

Did you hear about the fire at the fireman's bar?

These are some of the things I'm curious about as I set out to start at neighborhood blog on Locust Point. I'll cover events and issues that are important to people who live in this neighborhood that don't get covered anywhere else.

Why is this worth your time to read? It used to be that people in the Point would learn about happenings by hanging out on their stoops, or on a work break at one of the neighborhood's factories or businesses. Today's reality is dual-income households and driving to a workplace that's somewhere beyond Locust Point. Or, like me, working at home in front of a computer.

Another reality: we learn about things online.. like you, in this moment, stumbling across this blog, thinking 'cool, this is a way I can keep in the loop on things.' This is especially true if you, like me, are new to Locust Point: we don't yet have the mosaic of relationships that take time to build. It will happen, but for now, consider this your shortcut to finding out what the deal is in this place that's affectionately called "The Land that Time Forgot." More on that in my next post.. Weds February 10. [every Weds something new]