Downtown Baltimore is experiencing the excitement and rejuvenation of an urban renaissance. The Downtown area is comprised of three primary neighborhoods, The WEST SIDE, The Inner Harbor/Waterfront, and the City Center.

The West Side

Cathedral Place is located in the heart of The West Side, at the corner of Cathredal St. and Saratoga St.

The West Side Initiative, led by Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC), is the largest redevelopment effort by the City of Baltimore since The Inner Harbor. The development of a strategic plan was a joint effort by the area stakeholders and the City, and reflects the type of public/private partnership that will continue to target this area of historic significance and tremendous economic potential. Parts of Mount Vernon, the Central Business District, especially Charles Center, and the area adjacent to the Inner Harbor are also within the purview of the West Side Initiative.

The goal of the West Side Initiative is to take the vision of a vital, dynamic, and urban neighborhood dominated by a concentration of residential housing and “mixed use” retail, and implement it into the fabric of historic buildings and a vibrant streetscape. To do this it is essential to build on the recognized strengths of the West Side-its centers of history—University Center, the historic market and retail centers, and its once grand theatre center exemplified by the renovated Hippodrome. The initiative supports, wherever possible, the existing merchants to better serve the retail market, while a major objective has been encouraging new complimentary retail.

There are tremendous possibilities for development that will be implemented over a gradual six-year period:

• 1800 additional market rate housing units in new and renovated construction projects;
• 400,000 square feet of new private office space focused on university and medical research, health care, information technology, and telecommunications;
• 250,000 square feet of new retail and entertainment uses;
• 400,000 square feet of new university and medical system facilities within their campus;
• The commitment to attracting, enhancing and sustaining new open space areas;
• Recommendations on general guidelines for new construction that will help preserve the historic qualities and unique urban characteristics, as well as serving as a reference for applying consistent criteria.
• Increase public transit usage, consistent with Smart Growth.
  

A preservation strategy which strikes a balance between significant landmark structures and contributing building resources with the development of new construction, targeted at non-contributing resources and existing vacant or underutilized sites, while recognizing the importance of preservation to the West Side.