Maryland’s state government will try again at redeveloping the State Center, its aging office complex in Baltimore.
It’s a strategy that’s been tried before, spurring a yearslong logistical and legal saga that ended with the state forking over $58.5 million to a private company that had been contracted to rebuild the site.
This time, officials with Gov. Wes Moore’s administration say they’re optimistic that they can engineer a turnaround of the beleaguered site into a vibrant, mixed-use community that takes advantage of nearby train and bus service.
“It really represents a rare opportunity to advance economic growth, increase housing supply and revitalize a key part of Baltimore,” said Atif T. Chaudhry, secretary of the state Department of General Services, the agency that owns and manages state properties.
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The first step, Chaudhry said, is to hire a consultant who can draw up a vision for the site. The consultant will review all the prior State Center plans and studies, identify options for building and rebuilding, and come up with cost estimates and potential funding sources.
A request for proposals is being sent out Thursday, and a consultant would be selected in the fall. The consultant’s work is estimated to cost about $2 million over two years, though state officials said the specifics will depend on the proposals that they receive.
The consultant will be required to work with local residents, and at the same time a joint work group of officials from state and city agencies will oversee the plans.
Chaudhry described the hiring of a consultant as “a major turning point” for the State Center.
The goal for the State Center, he said, is for it to be “no longer seen as an antiquated government complex, but in the future to be a walkable, transit-oriented, community-centered place that serves the people of Baltimore and all Marylanders.”
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It’s not clear how long it would take for the state to reach an agreement with a developer, when shovels would hit the ground, how much it would all cost and who would pay for it.
The 28-acre site sits just off of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, between Midtown and West Baltimore. For years it’s been seen as a key site to unlock revival in West Baltimore.
Built in the mid-1900s, the buildings are showing their age. The bacteria causing Legionnaires’ disease has been found in the water system and the Department of Health headquarters building has been broken into twice in the past year.
The site carries several designations that can make it eligible for streams of government funding, including status as a federal Opportunity Zone, a state Priority Funding Area and a state Transit-Oriented Development site.
The State Center has a stop on Baltimore’s Metro Subway line, is close to the Cultural Center Light Rail stop, adjacent to bus service and about a half-mile from Penn Station.
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State officials suggested that the State Center project could be coordinated with potential redevelopment of the nearby McCulloh Homes public housing community, offering a bigger boost to the area.
In a statement, Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott said the city is “fully committed” to supporting State Center redevelopment.
“This project represents far more than just the redevelopment of old office buildings — it’s a long-overdue investment in the future of this community," said Scott, a Democrat.
The state has attempted to redevelop State Center for two decades, an effort that has spanned four governors. Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.’s administration first explored the idea in 2005 and Democratic Gov. Martin O’Malley led a process that picked a developer in 2009. After a lawsuit from opponents and a lack of progress, Republican Gov. Larry Hogan canceled the developer’s contract in 2016, leading to more litigation. Hogan, at one point, proposed turning State Center over to city government.
The litigation was finally settled under Moore, a Democrat, in 2024, resulting in the $58.5 million payout to the thwarted developer.
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Under both Hogan and Moore, the state has been relocating workers from the State Center to other offices in the city, in anticipation of eventual redevelopment. About 2,500 people currently work at State Center.
Correction: This article has been updated to correct the number of employees at State Center provided by the state.
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