It looks as if the University of Baltimore’s midtown campus will be the temporary home of Baltimore City College high school students and teachers for an extra six months or more.
Led by UBalt President and former Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke, a 1967 City College graduate, the University of Baltimore offered three years ago to serve as the college preparatory school’s temporary base while its historic building at 3220 The Alameda undergoes renovations.
The original plan was for the high school’s students and staff to move to the University of Baltimore for three years, from mid-2025 to August of 2028, and then return to The Alameda for the start of the 2028-2029 academic year. The transition got underway last year as scheduled, bringing approximately 1,400 students in grades 9 to 12 to the midtown area, plus teachers and other school staffers.
The high school is primarily using two of the university’s buildings for classes, the Academic Center at the northwest corner of Charles Street and Mount Royal Avenue, and the William H. Thumel Sr. Business Center at the southwest corner of the same intersection.
But a year later, officials say that construction on the renovation project has been delayed and will take an extra six months or so to complete. A revised frame calls for work to be finished in late 2028.
According to Director of Communications Chris Hart, the University of Baltimore is prepared to let City College continue using its midtown campus while construction is underway on The Alameda.
“City College has proposed a one-year extension of our lease agreement, and we are collaborating with [Baltimore City Public Schools] on a revised lease,” Hart said in an email message. “The yearly financial commitment is very small, so we don’t believe any further approvals are needed. The request for an extension is a result of nationwide shortages in construction materials, in-demand labor, and other factors that are impacting the major renovation project happening at the high school’s home campus. A one-year extension of our lease with City College, ending in June 2029, would continue the approach and campus experience of the past year.”
The university has plans to replace its Academic Center with a smaller structure that’s designed to better meet the needs of today’s students, but extending City College’s stay won’t hold up that project, Hart said. “We are continuing to make plans for a new Academic Center, with construction-related work beginning sometime after 2030, so this extension would not affect that schedule.”
