Land targeted 10 years ago for a city branch of Walmart will now provide new homes for Good Doggie Day Care and Baltimore Tree Trust, among others.
Seawall Development announced Tuesday that it has acquired about three acres at 320-340 West 24th Street – part of a 12-acre parcel dubbed 25th Street Station, which was to have been anchored by a Walmart branch – and plans to use part of it to relocate Good Doggie Day Care and Baltimore Tree Trust. A purchase price was not disclosed.
Seawall is the lead company behind Sisson East, a mixed-use development planned for a 3.3-acre tract bounded roughly by 29th Street on the north, Sisson Street on the west, West 28th Street on the south, and Hampden Avenue on the east.
As approved last year by Baltimore’s Urban Design and Architecture Advisory Panel, Sisson East will include 200 apartments, an office building, entertainment and retail space, a garage and a public plaza. Baltimore’s zoning board is scheduled to review plans on May 7.
Good Doggie Day Care is currently located at 529 W. 29th Street, part of the Sisson East footprint. By moving to the former 25th Street Station site, Good Doggie Day Care will be able to make way for Sisson East while remaining in Remington and expanding its business.
“We are ecstatic to be working with Seawall to move Good Doggie Day Care to 24th Street, keeping us in Remington and also allowing us to expand our operations to meet demand for our services to customers and their beloved pets,” said Joanne Garrett, owner of Good Doggie Day Care, in a statement.
The business occupies 21,000 square feet of space on 29th Street and will expand to 35,000 square feet with additional outdoor space on 24th Street. At present, the company serves 170 dogs a day and has an 18-month waiting list. The new location will enable Good Doggie Day Care to accommodate 250 dogs.
Baltimore Tree Trust, a nonprofit focused on restoring Baltimore’s urban forest through increased tree planting, community engagement, and advocacy, will move to the 24th Street property from a Seawall-owned building on Sisson Street.
“This move will allow Baltimore Tree Trust to grow our operations and maintain the important central location for our work throughout the city,” said Bryant Smith, CEO of Baltimore Tree Trust, in a statement. “We’re excited to be staying in Remington.”
This isn’t the first time Seawall has found nearby space to relocate businesses. In 2016, Seawall moved Baltimore Glass Company two blocks to make room for its Remington Row development at 2700 Remington Ave. Eight years later, the glass company is still open where it moved, 2930 Remington Ave.
“As we approach projects on Sisson Street in mostly underutilized warehouse properties, we’ve heard from many in the Remington community how they don’t want to see important neighborhood businesses displaced as a part of the process,” said Andrew McCrumb, Director of Property Management at Seawall. With the most recent acquisition, “we are excited to keep a neighborhood staple in Good Doggie Day Care and allow them to expand their operations, and also help Baltimore Tree Trust to grow their important mission.”
Seawall said its acquisition of 320-340 W. 24th St. completes its assemblage of the “25th Street Station” parcel proposed for development by a different company a decade ago. Walmart was to have been part of a large commercial venture planned by WV Urban Developments, but the project faced strong community opposition and never moved ahead. Walmart drew opposition from merchants in Hampden, Charles Village and other communities on the grounds that the arrival of a big box chain store would put smaller local retailers out of business.
Before the 25th Street Station project was announced, much of the land was occupied by a car dealership, Anderson Automotive, headed by Bruce Mortimer. In recent years, much of it has been used by the Maryland Transit Administration as a bus dispatch and parking facility.
In 2014, Seawall acquired three other properties that made up the 25th Street Station tract — 2500 Huntingdon Ave., 204 W. Ware St., and 2438 N. Howard St. – and now controls the entire 12-acre site. The company says the properties at 320-340 W. 24th Street are more than 90 percent leased, with one remaining 5,000-square-foot warehouse available.
