BMZA approves neighborhood commercial, fence and reuse requests; postpones large downtown rooming-house plan
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Summary
Baltimore City’s Board of Municipal and Zoning Appeals on Jan. 6 approved multiple conditional uses and variances — including neighborhood commercial uses, fence height variances for safety, and an industrial reuse with a parking variance — and postponed a proposed 182‑room rooming‑house at the American Building for more operational detail.
The Baltimore City Board of Municipal and Zoning Appeals voted Jan. 6 to approve several conditional‑use appeals and related variances while postponing one major downtown conversion for more information.
In a brief series of approvals, the board granted a conditional‑use appeal at 4902 Litchfield Avenue that will allow the site to continue neighborhood commercial operations and add small‑scale personal‑service businesses in the basement. Planning staff told the board the building has an established nonresidential history and recommended approval; applicant Sonia Bynum said the first floor has long been used as a deli and the new downstairs uses will provide barber, beauty and massage services “so that the individuals in the community can learn to love themselves.” The board voted to approve the conditional use.
The board also approved a restaurant conditional use at 901 Harlem Avenue after the applicant revised an earlier carryout request to include a seated dining component, as the planning department required. Planning cautioned the applicant about signage compliance under Title 17 of the Baltimore City code and urged adherence to the city’s sign rules.
Two fence‑variance requests were approved. On Eden Street the board found that an unusual lot orientation (rear yard facing a secondary street) created a practical difficulty and approved a 6‑foot corner‑side privacy fence for the applicant, who said repeated thefts prompted the after‑the‑fact installation. At Pennington Avenue the nonprofit Drink at the Well won approval to raise an existing perimeter fence to 8 feet so the organization can provide outdoor play space for children; representatives described daily sanitation and safety problems in the yard and said a taller, see‑through iron fence would be a deterrent.
The board also approved a conditional use and a parking variance to allow Mahogany Incorporated to occupy a 15,800‑square‑foot warehouse at 1500 Ridgely Street as an industrial woodworking operation with accessory offices. The applicant provided an off‑site memorandum of understanding to lease eight spaces nearby, and staff noted site constraints — including a city‑owned parcel adjacent to the site and an irregular lot — that make on‑site parking impractical.
Board members emphasized that these approvals are subject to a written resolution that staff will draft and circulate; they reminded applicants not to begin construction until the final resolution is issued. The board postponed a separate, larger application for the American Building (a proposed rooming house conversion of roughly 182 rooms) to allow the applicant to return with final floor plans and a detailed property‑management plan.
What’s next: staff will prepare written resolutions for the approved items and the applicants will receive notice through the city’s Acela system. The American Building application will return to the board once the applicant submits final plans and operational documentation.