Purchase agreement signed for 5723 York Road
Building formerly housed Flight restaurant
Invest York Road (IYR) has signed a purchase agreement for the acquisition of its first commercial property, the building that formerly housed the Flight restaurant at 5723 York Road.
The purchase sets the stage for IYR to move forward with its plan for community control of commercial properties as a way of promoting a vibrant York Road Corridor. IYR’s vision is based on the idea of attracting businesses that uplift the neighborhood while creating investment opportunities to benefit individuals with ties to the area.
To pay for the property, IYR is getting a major boost from the York Road Partnership, which has agreed to contribute funds that it received under a legislative grant that was secured by state Sen. Mary Washington, the Democrat who represents District 43.
“This is a terrific use of these funds, to bring this critical property into community ownership,” said Dan Pontious, president of York Road Partnership. “We are proud to partner with Invest York Road to help revitalize this corner next to Govans Elementary School in a way that serves the surrounding community and builds on a growing center of exciting restaurants.”
IYR will also make use of a state grant it received under the Baltimore Regional Neighborhood Initiative. A Project Restore grant, which was secured with the assistance of the York Road Improvement District and the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative, will provide additional funding. The organization is also in conversation with local private foundations about providing capital for the project.
Later this year, IYR will launch a community investment campaign aimed at attracting small-dollar investments, primarily from people who live, work or own a business in the two dozen neighborhoods that line York Road in the northern part of Baltimore City.
The goal is to renovate the soon-to-be acquired structure and return it to active use by the end of 2025.
“I'm thrilled to see Invest York Road moving forward with the redevelopment of 5723 York Road–a prominent vacant building in a corridor that’s evolving quickly,” said Sam Storey, executive director of the York Road Improvement District.
“This project builds on major recent investments next door, like the 21st Century Govans Elementary School and HEX Superette, further strengthening the Mid-Govans community,” Storey added. “The York Road Improvement District is proud to support projects like this that drive equitable growth and create a more vibrant, connected corridor.”
IYR is currently negotiating a lease with a prospective tenant and expects to provide additional details in the near future.
Invest York Road is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that was formed in 2019 to address the issue of blighted business parcels along York Road. IYR’s plan is to bring such properties into community ownership, fix them up and rent them to businesses that the community wants to see.
Profits from the businesses that are housed in IYR properties will be paid out in the form of dividends to individuals who make investments. Details about the structure of these investments, which will be governed by the regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, will be released in the coming months.
IYR is adapting a community investment model that has been used in other parts of the country, most notably Portland, Oregon. This is the first time such an approach has been used in Maryland.
To date, IYR has benefited from the generous support of the Goldseker Foundation, the Abell Foundation, the Baltimore Community Foundation, the Baltimore Progress Fund, the United Way of Central Maryland, Fulton Bank, Truist Bank, M&T Bank, and the Marigold Effect.
The Baltimore Progress Fund gave a grant to IYR before it was IYR. The Progress Fund helped make it possible to create the structure that became IYR. (The Baltimore Progress Fund was housed at Baltimore Community Foundation.)