Davon Barbour, vice president of economic development and planning for the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, is closely following the buying habits of Millennials. He knows many of those dollars are invested in food and beverage, particularly when it comes to Millennials who live and work in downtown settings. With that in mind, Barbour and his team are focused on attracting new entries into the market, as well as expanding current offerings, such as Blackwall Hitch, which is set to open its fourth location in the area.
Yard 56, a Prudential-backed project in the Greektown neighborhood of East Baltimore, is currently underway. It will contain a 106,000-square-foot shopping center, among other commercial components. LA Fitness, Chipotle, Panda Express and Brass Tap Craft Beer Bar have all signed onto the project so far, with more announcements expected soon.
Barbour also serves in a volunteer role as P3 (public-private partnerships) Public Chair for ICSC’s Eastern Division, which allows him to keep his finger on the pulse of Opportunity Zones throughout the country.
to hear more about Downtown Baltimore activity specifically and about Opportunity Zone potential nationally.
This video was created as part of the Retail Insight newsletter by Shopping Center Business, a brief newsletter series leading up to the 2019 ICSC RECon conference and including post-conference video interviews. The videos in the publication are created in conjunction with our content partners, which sponsor the newsletter. Click here to subscribe.