400 Block West Baltimore Street (Baltimore, Maryland)

 place with historical importance, interesting place

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The 400 block of West Baltimore Street was the location of the first toll booth of the National Road. The block, across from the Hippodrome Theater, is a mostly intact street wall of historic properties. It includes two of the last nine full cast iron fronted buildings left standing in Baltimore. Most of the buildings on both sides of the block are protected under city ordinance and are listed as “contributing buildings to be preserved” under a written memorandum of understanding between the city and the Maryland Historical Trust. Many of the buildings are owned by A&R Development Corporation and David S. Brown Enterprises. The development team offered to retain the facades of the block and build a large new building over top, which the city’s design review committee rejected, and then unsuccessfully sought an amendment to urban renewal plan to allow for complete demolition. Currently, the developers have not publicly released their plans for the block.