Despite last minute efforts, a group seeking to block development in Baltimore City's parks, including a one- billion dollar overhaul of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, has failed to meet a key filing deadline to get their question before voters in November.
Petitioners had until 4:30 pm on Monday to submit 10,000 signatures to the Baltimore City Board of Elections to get a charter amendment on the ballot.
Outside of the Safeway in Charles Village, Jim Prost spent Monday morning collecting last minute signatures for Protect Our Parks, a proposed charter amendment that would prohibit the construction of apartments, office spaces, and buildings taller than 100 feet in Baltimore City parks.
“We have 10,000 signatures but we’re collecting extra to be safe,” explained Prost. On any petition, the Board of Elections will verify signatures to ascertain that there are no duplicate signatures and that all signers are registered Baltimore voters.
The Protect Our Parks measure would have blocked a proposal for the redevelopment of Harborplace in the city’s Inner Harbor– which is a public park. Those plans, which are from Baltimore-based developer MCB Real Estate, include an architectural feature dubbed “The Sail”, green space, a promenade and the most controversial elements: two towering waterfront commercial and residential buildings.
In total, MCB wants to include 900 apartments at the Inner Harbor.
Resident Phyllis Berger signed the Protect Our Parks petition, despite wanting more development at Harborplace.
“I'd like to see more commercial use,” she said, although she does not want to see high rises. “I think we have plenty of apartments down there. I would love to see a wonderful place for people to go and shop and have fun and enjoy the harbor and beautiful restaurants.”
Thiru Vignarajah has served as the lead organizer behind the effort. Vignarajah, a Democrat, made a second run for Baltimore mayor earlier this year before dropping out to endorse Sheila Dixon (who lost to incumbent Mayor Brandon Scott). During his campaign he spoke strongly about halting plans for Harborplace and doing a new public process.
“We had 9912 validated signatures that we pulled together in just under six weeks. But you know, close is still disappointing,” said Vignarajah during a Tuesday afternoon interview.
Vignarajah also addressed concerns that the petitioners were misleading. Multiple petitioners observed by WYPR could be heard asking if residents wanted to simply “protect parks from development” but did not specifically mention the Inner Harbor.
Vignarajah pushed back by saying the first line of the proposed charter question, which read,“... to establish the Inner Harbor Park and 19 other identified parks. Is a system of city parks forever dedicated to public use and to protect those parks from certain private commercial development.”
“You know, I don't know how much more explicit you can be than putting it in the first five words of the bolded highlighted section on the very top of the signature page,” he said.
Voters displeased with the Harborplace redevelopment plans still have the chance to shut it down. The proposed designs need voters to pass a different charter amendment that was put forward and passed by the Baltimore City Council earlier this year.
That would allow for multi-family housing to be built along the Inner Harbor, which is currently prohibited by the city charter, and would actually increase the amount of land included in the park: it would increase from 3.2 acres to 4.5 acres. During presentations to the public, MCB claims that there will be more public green space in the redesign although Councilman Ryan Dorsey (D-3) has pointed out that the designs aren’t set in stone.
MCB Real Estate co-founder David Bramble addressed concerns that the amendment would not be passed in a recent Dan Rodricks column.
“I firmly believe,” Bramble told Rodricks in an email, “that the people of Baltimore want to see a reimagined Harborplace that is dynamic, multi-faceted and will be for everyone — not just some people. That’s why Peter and I invested to begin with. MCB was the only company to step forward when Harborplace became available and we believe the only way to make this project viable for generations to come is that it is financially stable and vibrant — and that means mixed use and some component of residential. We’re confident in its passage and we are not currently planning for failure.”
In 2022, MCB Real Estate purchased the properties around the Harbor, including the Pratt and Light Street pavilions, out of receivership.