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MIDDLE RIVER, MD – April 1, 2019 – Blue Ocean, a burgeoning local real estate investment and management firm, will be acquiring a large and historically-significant property this summer with plans to breathe new life into a once vibrant asset in Middle River, within Baltimore County, MD.
The Middle River Depot property, located at the intersection of MD Route 43 (White Marsh Boulevard) and MD Route 150 (Eastern Boulevard), was built in 1929 for the Glenn L. Martin Company, later known as Martin Marietta and Lockheed Martin. The area was once the proud home to over 50,000 workers who built the world-famous B-26 Martin Marauder bomber aircraft to support efforts in World War II. The buildings, originally designed by renowned Albert Kahn and Associates, contain nearly two million square feet of space along with significant land area.
In acquiring this property, Blue Ocean will aim to ‘breathe new life’ into this very important community asset. Careful consideration will be given to what this site has meant to the Middle River, White Marsh and Essex communities over multiple generations. Formerly known as the “Middle River Depot”, Blue Ocean will be rebranding to “Aviation Station”. Although plans to improve the property are still in the development phase, Blue Ocean will be improving the existing structures, which cater largely to industrial users and recreational businesses that require large expansive spaces to operate.
In 2018, the State of Maryland strategically designated this site as an “Opportunity Zone”, which, as part of the 2017 Tax Act, aims to spur economic development and job creation in these designated zones. Additionally, Baltimore County designated this site as an Enterprise Zone, which encourages investment in distressed areas by helping to assist businesses to expand as well as attract new businesses to invest in the area, creating additional jobs. In fact, numerous County, State and Federal officials have expressed strong support for this acquisition and revitalization project. Maryland Senator J.B. Jennings and Maryland Delegate Rick Impallaria have voiced excitement and support, as well as Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski, who stated, “By reinvesting in this historic site, we can ignite the economic potential of this property and continue to expand opportunity across the Middle River community, said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski. ‘Building a better Baltimore County means maximizing our County’s amazing assets – that’s exactly what this project will do.”
And, Baltimore County Councilwoman Cathy Bevins indicates, “I am very excited that Blue Ocean is under contract to purchase the Middle River Depot. The property has been an eyesore for years and the community deserves better…Blue Ocean is a local developer and has already been taking steps to clean up the property and reach out to the community. This is a great opportunity to bring more jobs and positive investment to Middle River. With the success of Greenleigh right up the road on Route Rt.43 the pieces of the revitalization of Middle River are coming into place.”
Blue Ocean is pleased to create a driving force of vibrancy and opportunity for businesses in this area. The improvement of this important historical property will create a significant amount of jobs in the local community, and the company looks forward to releasing additional details on the improvement plans in the coming months.
About Blue Ocean:
Blue Ocean is a property management company in Baltimore, MD that is active in syndicating, purchasing and managing investment grade real estate assets in the multifamily, industrial, office, retail and hospitality sectors. The Company was founded in 2004. Since that time Blue Ocean has grown its portfolio to over 25 properties valued at over $400,000,000. The Blue Ocean portfolio consists of approximately 3,500 apartment homes and 2,000,000 square feet of commercial space.
Blue Ocean specializes in acquiring, developing and managing investment-grade real estate in Maryland. The company carefully selects properties ripe for repositioning and invests the time, resources and expertise necessary to creatively improve them. As a result, Blue Ocean has delivered extraordinary returns both to its investment partners and to the Maryland-based communities where these properties are located.
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