The vacant Harborplace once bustling with businesses is looking to make a comeback under new ownership — and it starts with bringing in Black-owned businesses to its storefronts.
To make that happen, P. David Bramble, who is embarking on a multimillion dollar redo of Harborplace, reached out to Downtown Partnership of Baltimore to bring its BOOST program to the waterfront landmark retail center as it embarks on a temporary plan to bring crowds back.
The BOOST program — which stands for Black-owned and operated storefront tenancy — has already been a catalyst in downtown’s central business district by matching aspiring entrepreneurs to vacant downtown storefronts. Three BOOST businesses have already moved into downtown storefronts with two more coming soon. The Downtown Partnership is now looking for five more businesses to join the program and move into storefronts located in the Bromo Arts District. Multiple additional rounds are planned for later this year, including one at Harborplace.
“BOOST can be the starting point to really allow a business to come into its own,” said Sam Storey, Downtown Partnership’s senior director of economic development.
