A jewel is staying in Maryland?s crown.
Tuesday, Acting Secretary John Porcari of the Maryland Department of Transportation announced that the state of Maryland will maintain ownership of Baltimore?s World Trade Center. The 31-floor building was previously a topic of discussion for sale to the right buyer, but following a recommendation from Porcari to Gov. Martin O?Malley, the decision was made for Maryland to retain the Inner Harbor building.
“The decision is to hold onto the building, at least for now,” Porcari said.
Built in 1977 at a cost of $22 million, the tower features about 300,000 square feet of office space. Planned as an “anchor for the Inner Harbor,” the property has stagnated. In a story published Feb. 23, The Examiner reported that the World Trade Center was nearly 50 percent vacant and struggling to attract tenants.
David Edgerley, secretary of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, said his agency will do its best to put the luster back into the World Trade Center.
“I know that we will take a snapshot of the physical status of the building and have a good understanding of what it could be with a limited level of improvements and will put it out through our network of business reps,” Edgerley said. “We will take a broad approach to marketing it, and we will be very aggressive in helping MDOT with the program.”
As for its future, what becomes of the World Trade Center is unclear. While hoping to strengthen the property and fill it with tenants, Porcari also indicated Maryland would be willing to part with the property if the price is right.
“Should a decision be made to sell the building at some point, you want to be sure you captured maximum value of the building,” he said.
Bob Aydukovic, the vice president of economic development for the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore Inc., had a similar view, but said he was glad to see it remain in the care of the state.
“The state obviously has a very valuable asset and keeping it within the state realm is more than prudent on Maryland?s part to keep it in their portfolio and do when they can to fix it up,” he said.
