An old five-and-dime store on Light Street that has stood vacant for years is getting a new lease on life.
Baltimore Police Sgt. Rick Willard and his cousin, Jimmy Powell, have leased the old McCrory?s building and plan to renovate the site into an upscale coffee bar and restaurant.
The 1960s-style façade will be removed and a wood, stucco and glass front that is “more coherent with the historic flavor of the neighborhood” will take its place, said Jack Chaffin, an architect and president of Federal Hill Main Street.
“It?s been a long time coming,” said Chaffin, who also heads the design committee for the Federal Hill Main Street, a nonprofit program formed in 2000 to revitalize the Federal Hill business district.
Willard, who has been on the Baltimore Police force for 15 years, said he and Powell have been looking for a business venture for some time and decided to try an undertaking in Federal Hill.
While the name of the coffee shop and restaurant isn?t set in stone, Willard said he and Powell are leaning to the Fed Coffee Lounge And … or the Federal Bean. It should open in the early spring 2007.
The menu, he said, will feature a variety of coffee, smoothies and soft drinks, but no alcohol, and sandwiches on fresh-baked breads, bagels and waffles, among other items.
What will set his venture apart, he said, will be the operating hours ? from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and nonstop from 6 a.m. Friday until 10 p.m. Sunday.
Also, the size of the operation will be different than most other businesses in the neighborhood. At 4,300 square feet, it is several thousand square feet larger than other retail locations in the historic district.
With a 40-foot coffee bar, the interior will feature couches and comfortable sitting areas that can accommodate up to 150 customers. The business will employ 25, Willard said.
Dale Leand of Rhode Island, who owns the building with her husband, Edward, said she is excited to see the building going back into operation.
“I think it will be a real drawing point,” Leand said. “It will be a major asset to Light Street.”
Powell, currently a contractor, said the façade design should spur other business owners on the block to at least spruce up the front of their stores.
“I?m a craftsman,” he said. “When this façade is finished, the other people on the block are going to have to catch up.”
FRESH FACES
New to the Federal Hill business community are:
» Remember When on Cross Street
» Bottom Drawer on Charles Street
» Thina?s Linen Collective, coming next month to Charles Street
