When Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke announced last summer that his administration would not support construction of a high-rise hotel near the foot of historic Federal Hill, many in south Baltimore breathed a sigh of relief.
But for community activists seeking to preserve Federal Hill as a dominant feature of the harborfront and protect the water's edge from inappropriate development, limiting the hotel's height is turning out to be only half the battle.
In many ways, Schmoke made a choice between two evils: support a high-rise hotel that would block views of Federal Hill, or support a mid-rise hotel that would block views from Federal Hill. He opted to sacrifice certain views from the hill to protect other views of it.
The mayor's move forced a Florida-based developer who wants to build a $100 million Ritz- Carlton hotel and condominium complex along Key Highway to comply with the property's current height limit. That means no "occupiable floor" can be higher than 71 feet, or about seven stories.
Now, after numerous revisions, the developer and his architects have proposed a six-story complex that is in some ways less palatable than a slender tower.
Its sprawling, fragmented nature is accentuated by overly assertive architectural imagery that has little in common with other buildings around the Inner Harbor. The two guest-room wings are particularly jarring, with bowed, curving roofs that make each look like a cross between a tennis barn, an airplane hangar and an Army barrack.
And the curved roofs raise the height of the guest-room wings to 88 feet -- about nine stories tall. The higher roofs are technically allowable under the city's height limit because the areas beneath the curves contain mechanical equipment, not occupiable space. But they also block more views.
Though still at a preliminary stage, the current design shows that even a mid-rise building can be detrimental to Federal Hill. From certain vantage points, it looks as if the designers took a tall building and laid it on its side, creating a man-made mountain that rivals the mass of the hill itself.
So as Schmoke leaves office this week, guardians of the waterfront can't entirely claim victory. An important skirmish has been decided. But in many respects, the hardest part of the battle lies ahead -- massaging the final design so it doesn't come across looking like the Blob That Ate Federal Hill.
Prime location
Located at the bend of Key Highway, the 6.2-acre hotel parcel is one of the most attractive sites still available along Baltimore's waterfront. The pivotal promon-tory -- currently occupied by a brick building that would be demolished -- features sweeping views of the Inner and Outer harbors.
Because of its prominent waterfront location, the height limit, and the fact that it has no "backside," this tract would be a challenge to the most experienced developer. It's under contract to an entity headed by Neil Fisher, a Florida-based entrepreneur who has left a trail of unbuilt projects behind him, as well as fraud claims, bankruptcy filings and tax liens, including a $1.28 million Maryland court judgment against him and a business partner.
A recent investigation by The Sun revealed that few public officials or community leaders knew about Fisher's less-than-impressive record as a developer, or even bothered to check into his background. Fisher says his previous dealings are irrelevant to the Key Highway project.
Fisher has one factor on his side -- a desirable use. If done well, a Ritz-Carlton hotel can beautify the shoreline, draw more people to stay overnight and spend money downtown, and set an upscale tone for the area.
Fisher also has a first-rate designer in Michael Graves & Associates, a Princeton, N.J., firm with an international reputation for creating distinctive buildings. Founder Michael Graves this fall received a National Medal of Arts from President Clinton for his work, which ranges from museums and corporate headquarters to the temporary scaffolding around the Washington Monument.
Fisher's latest plans call for the 310,000-square-foot hotel to include 250 guest rooms, 32 condominiums, two restaurants and a lobby lounge, a 10,000-square-foot ballroom, a health club, meeting facilities and underground parking for 325 to 350 cars. A 75,000-square-foot office building would be constructed on a neighboring parcel just south of the hotel.
The architects conceived of the project as an assemblage of interconnected architectural pieces. A curving, two-level service corridor follows the bend of Key Highway and connects the hotel's disparate sections.
