Downtown Plan Urges Conversion Of Vacant Office Space

Nonprofit issues call to action to strengthen the city center

Warning that downtown Baltimore is at a critical juncture, a plan to be released Thursday by the Downtown Partnership recommends that some vacant office space in the city center be converted to apartments.

"New uses must be found for older towers that no longer work as office space," the group says.

That is just one of several suggestions from the nonprofit, which seeks to promote and revitalize Baltimore's central business district. With the commercial vacancy rate downtown about 19 percent — and with plans for office districts on its periphery raising fears that even more commerce could be siphoned off — the Downtown Partnership's new strategic plan recommends several steps to keep downtown from stagnating further.

Among them: The city should create a Tax Increment Finance, or TIF, district in the oldest parts of downtown to pay for capital improvements and encourage new development.
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