An area of West Baltimore long neglected, despite having a potential anchor for growth in Coppin State, appears to be finally getting some redevelopment traction. The vacant rowhouses are gone. The old mill is gone. And the block immediately to the west of Coppin State is getting a big lift with the Walbrook Mill apartments and retail complex.
From Abandoned to Affordable
Walbrook Mill Transformation
Until a few years ago, there were five vacant houses and an abandoned mill along North Avenue, just to the west of Coppin State University. Not a pretty site, by any means, and not a good look for prospective students on college scouting trips with their parents. In fact, there are stories of families driving onto North Avenue, getting one look at the approach to Coppin from the west and suddenly making other plans.
But that was then and this is now. The vacant rowhouses are gone. The old mill is gone. And the block immediately to the west of Coppin State is getting a big lift with the Walbrook Mill apartments and retail complex.
The construction of 65 apartments, to be rented at "affordable" or "workforce" rates, is well underway. The developer, Osprey Property Companies, has a commitment from BB&T to plant a branch of the bank there. There will be other commercial space along North Avenue and a food hall, with eight local restaurateurs, is promised.
Walbrook Mill and Lumber Co. was founded in 1918 and was known for making custom-sized windows for historic properties, along with cabinets and doors. But the company left West Baltimore and consolidated its operations in Baltimore County several years ago, with its president writing about crime, unanswered letters to city officials, and outrageous water bills.
A Breakout Project for CHCDC
Partnership and Financing
Now, the construction of one long apartment building is not a game-changer for the Coppin State neighborhood - there are still plenty of vacant properties and low-income families spread across a wide swath around the campus - but the project gives the heights a major lift.
And it serves as a kind of breakout project for the Coppin Heights Community Development Corporation, led by Gary Rodwell, its executive director, its board members and "clergy caucus" of activist ministers. The CDC partnered with the non-profit Neighborhood Housing Services and Osprey to line up city and state financing for the apartments.
If you stand on the parking lot of Mount Hebron Baptist Church, across North Avenue, and look at the new apartment building, the remaining Walbrook land and the Coppin State campus, a big opportunity starts to come into view.
Opportunity Zone Potential
Federal Investment Incentives
The old Walbrook property is five acres and falls within a federally-designated "opportunity zone," the latest iteration of government-hatched plans to lure private investment to the most distressed areas of U.S. cities. Brian Lopez, executive vice president of Osprey, pointed out the availability of more space for manufacturing or perhaps urban agriculture.
These "opportunity zones," or OZs, have been billed as an improvement over earlier plans because the incentives are so much better. Investors who put capital gains in an "opportunity fund" can defer paying taxes on those profits until as late as 2026.
Patrick McKenna, an investor in Baltimore tech companies and a co-founder of an OZ fund, explained that "this incentive isn't going to create growth, but it can catalyze the organic growth into a sustainable ecosystem. You don't win at three-year, or five-year investment. You need the ecosystem to be sustainable and to get enough critical mass so that what you're investing in will be successful on its own and attract other investment."
There are dozens of OZs spread across Maryland, several of them in Baltimore, where they are most needed and have the greatest potential to create jobs. Can Coppin Heights offer the "ecosystem" that brings in more investment and feeds new growth?
Walbrook Mill apartments under construction
Coppin Heights Community Development Corporation (CHCDC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to developing and improving affordable housing in the Greater Coppin Heights/Rosemont community.
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