Developers of the luxury Four Seasons Hotel and Residences under construction on Baltimore's waterfront said they will delay building the residential portion of the tower - half the 44-story high-rise - until at least next year due to the slumping housing market.
Plans remain on track for Four Seasons to open the hotel in the Harbor East neighborhood by late 2010, the developer and a hotel spokeswoman said. The hotel was originally expected to include condominiums when it opened next year. The project is part of a $600 million plan that also includes a 24-story office tower, more than three quarters finished, which will house Legg Mason's world headquarters.
But with the national economy deteriorating, the developers have decided to build the 485-foot Four Seasons in two phases, said Michael S. Beatty, president of H&S Properties Development Corp., the developer of Harbor East and majority owner of the Legg Mason/Four Seasons project. At the originally planned height, it would have been the city's tallest building. H&S is building the project with Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse Inc.
Revised plans call for building 21 stories, which will include the 256-room Four Seasons hotel on levels one to 18 and three additional floors. One of the top three will be temporarily developed as a $4.5 million "preview gallery" for the residences, with a sales office and model homes designed to show off harbor views. At that point, the developers intend to gauge the housing market and then determine the number of condominiums and pricing.
The current slowdown has made it harder to secure mortgages on high-end properties and has eroded buyer confidence.
But "I'm very bullish," about the longer-term prospects, Beatty said. "If there's ever a place to build condos, that's the place to do it. My intention is that's what will be built."
Developers say they're convinced the demand for high-end housing will rebound and the tower will be built as originally envisioned. Harbor East, which now offers condos, shops, offices, hotels, restaurants and a cinema complex, will be well-positioned, they believe, to attract upscale buyers.
The shift in construction strategy for the Four Seasons comes after a tumultuous few months in the nation's housing and financial markets and as new condominium development in the city has nearly ground to a halt. In three of four quarters of 2008, Baltimore had more condo buyers cancel contracts than go through with settlement, according to statistics from Delta Associates, which tracks the market.
