Overlook at Roland Park project moves forward

A North Baltimore apartment project that drew opposition from some neighbors has cleared its final hurdle with Mayor Catherine Pugh’s ratification of its designation as a planned unit development. Developer Blue Ocean can start work on the roughly $40 million Overlook at Roland Park. The Baltimore-based developer plans a six-story, 148-unit luxury apartment building on the wooded 12-acre parcel near the intersection of Falls Road and Northern Parkway in North Roland Park. The project faced significant opposition from some residents in North Roland Park concerned about increased traffic, despite receiving the support of two neighborhood associations. Blue Ocean has agreed to preserve more than half the site for forest conservation or green space. The project includes a parking garage, swimming pool, fitness center, media room and an indoor sports court. Blue Ocean President Jonathan Ehrenfeld said the project will be the area’s first new apartment community in several decades. A timeline for the start of construction has not been determined.

— Christopher Dinsmore

Former Acme properties targeted for redevelopment

The Baltimore Development Corp. is seeking a developer for three properties that once housed warehouses for Acme supermarkets in the Bridgeview/Greenlawn neighborhood on the city’s west side, the nonprofit said Tuesday. The city’s economic development arm issued a request for proposals to buy and renovate the properties, known collectively as the Acme Business Complex. They include two adjacent industrial buildings at 2120 W. Lafayette Ave. and 1001 N. Smallwood St., as well as a 33,000-square-foot lot at 2201 Mosher St. The Lafayette Avenue building is three to five stories and has 149,430 square feet above grade, and the Smallwood Street building is single-story masonry with 18,735 square feet above grade. Baltimore officials issued a request for proposals to “reuse ... in a fashion that will achieve the City’s objectives of job creation, tax generation, attractive design and a redevelopment that fits within the context of the neighborhood,” according to the BDC. The city spent nearly half a million dollars in 2014 to tear down the crumbling warehouse on Mosher Street for safety reasons. It had purchased it as part of five properties in the area for nearly $2 million in 2005, hoping to spur revitalization, but it drew little interest from developers at the time. Susan Yum, a BDC spokeswoman, said officials believe market conditions have improved enough that the properties now will generate interest. The site is also in an enterprise zone that may be eligible for brownfield tax credits. Prospective developers of the space are expected to comply with Employ Baltimore and hire minority- and women-owned businesses.

— Colin Campbell

Second-quarter profits slide at Laureate Education

Laureate Education Inc., the Baltimore-based operator of for-profit universities around the world, has reported a profit of $117.1 million for the April-to-June quarter. While that’s down from the $349.2 million it earned for the same period in 2016, that quarter included a $243.3 million gain from the sale of its Swiss hospitality management schools. On a per-share basis, Laureate earned 28 cents, down from $2.59 a year earlier. The company’s income attributable to holders of its common stock is reduced by payments for its preferred stock and other noncontrolling interests and equity. Laureate reported revenue grew 3.7 percent to nearly $1.28 billion in the latest quarter as overall enrollment grew 2 percent year-over-year. Laureate went public earlier this year, selling shares for $14 each and raising $490 million to help reduce its debt. The company’s stock closed down 14 cents at $16.85 a share before it released its second- quarter earnings.

— Christopher Dinsmore

KeyW awarded $24 million Air Force contract

The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory has awarded KeyW Holding Corp. a $24 million contract to help it conduct research into airborne reconnaissance technologies, the Hanover-based cybersecurity firm announced Tuesday. Under the five-year contract, KeyW will help the Air Force lab, located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, with research into “multi-sensor, multi-domain fusion” using radio frequency, electro-optical and infrared sensing and exploitation from aerial platforms. The work includes developing, testing and delivering hardware and software components, including imaging, detection, tracking and multifunctional sensor applications. KeyW also might help integrate new technologies into previously developed Air Force platforms, including the AgilePod multi-intelligence sensor pod KeyW helped develop.

— Christopher Dinsmore