When you think of West Baltimore, or West North Avenue specifically, images of disinvestment might come to mind. But The Mill On North Food Hall represents a new chapter - neighbors gathering over good food and drink, brand-new apartments rising from former vacant lots, and West Baltimoreans investing in their own community.
Transforming Perceptions
From Disinvestment to Community Hub
"It is one of our most disinvested areas in the city. It is certainly very much in need," said Gary Rodwell, CEO of Coppin Heights Community Development Corporation. But that narrative is changing.
The Mill On North represents a new vision for West North Avenue - neighbors gathering over good food and drink, brand-new apartments rising from former vacant lots, and born-and-raised West Baltimoreans investing in their own community by opening new businesses.
The building was once a lumber mill, but hasn't seen any action in close to 20 years. Now, it's home to seven local vendors. The proud new owners are Neighborhood Housing Services of Baltimore and the Coppin Heights Community Development Corporation.
"It's important to bring assets and amenities to communities that have often been left out of those opportunities," said Dan Ellis, CEO of Neighborhood Housing Services of Baltimore. "Bringing something that's really exciting, that's really cool to West Baltimore, to West North Avenue is something that makes people want to be here."
Local Entrepreneurs Leading Change
D&B Deli and the Food Desert Challenge
Debbie Wilson and her sister Bianca Tabbs are the owners of D&B Deli, one of the vendors in The Mill On North Food Hall. They're addressing a critical need in their community.
"It was a food desert," said Wilson. "And we wanted to figure out how we can impact the community. We wanted to bring a healthy food concept - well, as healthy as can be - healthy yet delicious."
"This area hasn't had a new food concept in 40 years," Tabbs told WMAR-2 News. Their commitment to their community is deeply personal and represents the kind of local entrepreneurship the project was designed to support.
"Change is contagious," Wilson said. "This is an anomaly right now, but in a few years this could be normalized, and that's what we want to find a new normal, a new beginning, a new chapter."
Years in the Making
A Journey Since 2020
The work includes new housing and mixed-use development along West North Avenue. It's part of a larger effort to revitalize the neighborhood - an effort that dates back years. This particular project started in 2020.
"Because COVID happened, so everything was pushed back from materials to permits to health," Tabbs explained. "That process was interesting. But we learned a lot. We learned how to navigate."
"My relatives used to live on this block and it was a time when there was community and memories and families," Gary Rodwell told WMAR-2 News. "Now we're all excited about that returning as a result of the work that we are collectively doing."
The Mill On North had its grand opening on Thursday, April 24 at 10 a.m., though it had been "softly" opened in the days leading up to the ceremony, operating from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
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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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