For years, developer Scott Plank has pitched his heliport on a narrow dock at the elbow of land across from Canton Waterfront Park as a home for the Baltimore Police helicopter unit known as Foxtrot.

The city would save the time and expense of ferrying officers to and from the fleet’s longtime home at Martin State Airport in Middle River, city officials past and present recall Plank arguing.

The deal wouldn’t hurt Plank, either. The city’s current lease for hangar space guarantees its landlord, the Maryland Aviation Administration, $303,000 annually — more than $3 million over the life of the 10-year agreement. Plank tried to sell former Police Commissioner Michael Harrison on the idea of moving the fleet to the Pier 7 landing spot with years still remaining on the city’s lease.

Now Plank’s time may finally have come.

The city’s lease with Martin State expires in September, and state Senate President Bill Ferguson, whose district includes the helipad, tucked $750,000 for the project into the state budget this year. Ferguson, who was a recipient of two campaign donations from Plank late last year, recalled taking the idea last fall to Police Commissioner Richard Worley, who he said expressed support.

Ferguson’s spokesperson, David Schuhlein, initially said the Senate president’s staff didn’t know who was responsible for the money ending up in the budget.

Although city officials say they never sought the funding, they confirm they are exploring a deal with Plank to relocate the aviation unit.

“A concrete plan was proposed earlier this year, and that is when more in-depth discussions began,” said Jonas Poggi, a spokesman for Mayor Brandon Scott.

Plank did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

With the advent of drone technology, some cities have begun shifting airborne policing away from more costly manned helicopters, but Baltimore has continued to make investments into the technology. A move to Pier 7 could mean more traffic and noise in an industrial area with nearby residents who could still be affected.

The limited group of city and state officials aware of the quiet exploration of the Plank-owned site see potential benefits such as reduced fuel costs and better oversight. But the perks of the Canton location that make it attractive for city police have also made it popular among other users — a potential drawback.

Data shows a site that’s already serving a number of users, from a company that offers sightseeing tours to U.S. Army Blackhawks, and in increasing frequency.

A Banner analysis of flight records from flightaware.com, which tracks flight paths around the world, showed that in 2025 Pier 7 heliport has seen a 41% spike in activity over the same period last year.

Plans for a city hub get off the ground

A potential heliport move would mark the end of an era for the city’s aviation division, which has been housed at Martin State Airport since city helicopters first got off the ground in 1970.

Used for car chases, tracking suspects and crowd control, the fleet includes three choppers. Foxtrot has flown continuously except for a three-year span following a 1998 crash that claimed the life of a city officer.

The latest iteration of the fleet, three Airbus H125s, was purchased in 2022 for $18 million. Officials said at the time the choppers typically have a 12-year lifespan.

A more centralized hub for the helicopters in Canton could have a number of benefits, Ferguson and Scott’s staff argued. Police could respond faster and save the fuel expended flying to Middle River when changing shifts and to upload data. Using helicopters less frequently would save on maintenance costs, they said, and make it easier for city officials to oversee staff and equipment.

Ferguson said he envisions city police also moving what’s left of their water-based operations to the site. The police Marine Unit, defunded in the city’s fiscal year 2021 budget, is largely defunct. However, the city maintains police boats that are parked nearby at the city-owned Canton Waterfront Park. The department’s Underwater Recovery Team still uses the boats, city officials said. The team would move to Pier 7 if the lease moves forward.

“When the Key Bridge happened, we didn’t have a place close to the port for aviation-based refueling,” Ferguson argued, referring to the 2024 collapse. “There is a potential to have an aviation hub there in South Baltimore that is very centrally located.”

Flight records show Baltimore Police helicopters are landing regularly in Canton, using the Plank-owned heliport for what’s called “hot-pit” refueling, which involves filling up with the engine running for a quicker turnaround. A Banner analysis showed the department’s helicopters have arrived or departed at least 483 times from Pier 7 in the last six months, ranking the department as one of the heliport’s most prolific users.

Poggi said city police can choose to land there based on weather conditions or if they prefer to keep the helicopter within city lines.

If Baltimore were to lease a new home base for the helicopters, Pier 7 is not move-in ready. The compact site would need to accommodate a yet-to-be constructed hangar to house helicopters, Poggi said. Before that, design work must be done. The landing pad is smaller than Martin State’s and has considerably less parking space.

Poggi deferred to Plank to provide a cost estimate. Ferguson said he believed the total cost to be $6 million but also yielded to Plank, who did not respond, for a hard number.

Councilman Mark Parker, who represents the city’s 1st District including Canton, said Plank gave him a tour of the heliport. A portion of the site now dedicated to boat storage and docking would be converted to accommodate city police, he said.

Parker said area residents are aware of the heliport and periodically complain about air traffic in and out. But word hasn’t made it to most residents about the proposed addition of police, he said.

“It’s interesting because it’s not a new use. It’s an expansion of an existing use in an industrial zone,” Parker said “That is potentially less disruptive than a brand-new use in that community.”

Plank campaign contributions land

Plank, a former Under Armour executive and brother to Kevin Plank, purchased the Pier 7 heliport in 2017 as part of a $22.5 million deal for several Canton waterfront properties, including the former Bo Brooks restaurant and Lighthouse Point. Plank’s War Horse Cities, a player in the Baltimore real estate market behind the development of the Sagamore Pendry Hotel and Belvedere Square Market, also acquired 10 parcels just south of Canton Crossing Tower.

All came from Selvin Passen, a doctor who has held many Baltimore waterfront properties for decades.

As he’s expanded his real estate empire, Plank has also dabbled in politics. Campaign finance records show he’s contributed thousands to Democrats and Republicans at the state and city levels since 2006.

In September, Plank gave Ferguson, who is up for reelection in 2026, a $1,032 donation. He followed up in November with another $1,000, and he previously gave $5,000 in 2022. To Scott, who essentially clinched a second term in May, Plank gave $1,000 in November. Parker, who was elected last year, received $1,774 in November.

Beyond the benefits he sees to Baltimore Police, Ferguson said shifting the police heliport to Canton would help to solve a problem in the making at Martin State Airport. This year, the Maryland National Guard began decommissioning a fleet of A-10 “Warthog” planes housed there. The elimination of the fleet, which state officials fought, will force a rethinking of plans for the airport, Ferguson argued.

Terminating the city police lease at Martin State would hurt the airport’s bottom line, but Ferguson said he saw it as a benefit to the city and therefore the state.

Ferguson said buying property for an in-city heliport wouldn’t be feasible. He noted the state has been condensing its real estate holdings in Baltimore in favor of renting more space.

“I just can’t imagine that being anywhere near financially viable,” Ferguson said.

Traffic at Pier 7 takes flight

Flight data shows the narrow pier has seen a substantial increase in use this year. The number of flights in and out is up by 41% over the first six months compared to the same period in 2024.

Johns Hopkins Lifeline’s medical transport helicopter is stationed at Pier 7 and makes frequent flights, stopping at the hospital’s nearby critical care tower before returning to the pier. Helicopters offering charter flights are also based at the site.

Other local flyers make frequent stops at Pier 7, where they can refuel.

Maryland State Police, which operates a fleet of helicopters across the state and has one stationed at Martin State, has averaged 73 arrivals and departures each month this year. WBAL’s news helicopter, also headquartered at Martin State, made eight stops in June. Numerous other medical helicopters, many with STAT MedEvac, are frequent visitors. Martin State, about a 10-minute flight away, is by far the most popular destination for helicopters leaving Pier 7.

The site has also proven attractive to the U.S. military. A Banner analysis found that U.S. Army Blackhawks have made more than 30 trips to and from Pier 7 since January. More than half of those stops were in June.

Flight records show the majority of those Army choppers began or ended their journeys at Davison Army Airfield at Fort Belvoir in Northern Virginia. In January, a Blackhawk that took off from the same base collided with a commercial jet over Washington in a crash that killed 67 people.

Ferguson said he was unaware of issues of crowding at the heliport. Poggi, the mayor’s spokesman, said police will assess the impact on air traffic and the facility’s other users before moving forward with a potential relocation.

Parker, whose constituents would bear the brunt of traffic to the facility, said he expects some existing users of the heliport may need to move out if city police move in.

Before anything moves forward, Parker said he was confident there would be a “robust” community engagement process through which data will be available and residents will have the chance to raise questions. The councilman said he would like to see regulations put in place to govern approaches to the site and the amount of time choppers can sit while powered on to minimize disturbance.

“I don’t think the neighborhood as a whole has wrestled with what it will mean for us,” Parker said of the potential move. “We recognize we’re in an industrial area, but these impacts fall on a residential area too.”

Banner data reporter Allan James Vestal contributed to this report.