Editor’s note: This article has been updated with additional information from The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore.
After more than 40 years as an anchor institution in the Mount Vernon-Midtown area of Baltimore City, The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore is moving its headquarters to the Park Heights area.
Leaders of the non-profit organization announced their plans on social media on Monday. Jmoreliving.com was one of the first media outlets to report the decision, with an article headlined, “The Associated to Relocate Headquarters to Park Heights campus.”
Since 1980, The Associated has had its headquarters in the Krieger Building at 101 W. Mount Royal Ave., across from the historic Lyric theater. When it moved there from the 300 block of West Monument Street, its decision was hailed as a shot in the arm for Mount Vernon and the Mount Royal cultural district. Designed by Hord, Coplan Macht, the four-story structure is a familiar sight to commuters heading south on Maryland Avenue on weekday mornings.
The Associated plans to move its headquarters to the campus of the Weinberg Park Heights Jewish Community Center at 5700 Park Heights Ave. According to its announcement, the relocation will implement the final phase of an 18-month strategic plan that grew out of the organization’s 2020 Centennial Anniversary initiative. The 10-acre campus, which dates from 1960, will be renamed the Goldsmith Campus in recognition of a major donation by the Goldsmith family.
“Using data from the 2020 Baltimore Jewish Community Study, an evaluation of its real estate and campus usage, and real-time trends from its agency network, this strategic plan focused on positioning The Associated and its agencies for their next century in serving the Jewish community while also strengthening its commitment to the Park Heights neighborhood, Pimlico area and the City of Baltimore,” the announcement said. “With more than a dozen Associated agencies to be located on the campus, the redevelopment will also foster a more efficient and collaborative environment for Associated network clients, community members and employees.”
In addition to a new headquarters for The Associated, redevelopment plans for the campus include a completely renovated Center for Sports and Wellness for the JCC, the Jewish Library of Baltimore and multipurpose and conference spaces for the community.
“This is an exciting chapter for The Associated and our entire agency network,” said Marc B. Terrill, president of The Associated, in a statement. “This is the first time in our 100-year history that The Associated’s headquarters will be housed alongside the majority of its agency partners. Enhancing the Park Heights campus and streamlining our Associated network on the Goldsmith campus is a win for the Jewish community and the entire Park Heights area. Leveraging our collective resources offers long-term savings of community dollars and also an efficient mode of working and building community.”
“We have an obligation to address the realities of the day, while planning for the future of the community, said Yehuda Neuberger, chair of the board of The Associated, in a statement. “This exciting project enables us to have a more efficient, effective, and secure environment for the members of the community that we serve as well as our talented professional team. This project will extend The Associated’s substantial investment into this important region of Baltimore City and the Park Heights community. We are grateful to the donors that have supported this project, as well as the State of Maryland which provided significant funding for this project.”
For the members and users of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore (JCC), “this redevelopment transforms a place that has served as our organization’s cornerstone for more than 60 years,” said JCC CEO Barak Hermann, in a statement. “The Park Heights JCC, which will be renovated in its entirety, anchors our presence in northwest Baltimore City. Words cannot adequately express how thrilled we are to have this investment into a beautiful new facility, for our members and the entire community.”
While the move represents a boost for the Park Heights area, it’s a loss for Mount Vernon and the Mount Royal cultural district. With Monday’s announcement, The Associated becomes the latest of several prominent organizations and businesses that have disclosed plans to close or leave Mount Vernon and Midtown since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with City Café, Eddie’s of Mount Vernon and Odorite of Baltimore.
According to state records, the Maryland General Assembly allocated $1 million in its fiscal 2023 capital budget to support the project. Quinn Evans is the architect for all the improvements on the Park Heights campus, and Southway Builders is the construction manager. They are working with The Associated’s Real Estate Committee, co-chaired by local developers and lay volunteers Mark Renbaum and Bob Manekin.
According to Michelle Gordon, The Associated’s chief of staff, the organization’s new headquarters will be created inside the existing JCC building, and construction is expected to start this spring and will be phased.
Asked how long construction of the new headquarters will take, Gordon said she didn’t have a completion date but the project is anticipated to take 18 to 24 months.
Gordon said about 80 people worked out of the Krieger Building before the COVID-19 pandemic, after which The Associated adopted a hybrid work arrangement for the staff. Once the move is complete, she said, about 120 employees will be based out of the Park Heights campus. Although signs have not been altered, she said, the organization is already starting to refer to the Park Heights property as the Goldsmith Campus.
Gordon said it was important to The Associated that its headquarters stay in Baltimore City. She said she didn’t have a figure for the total cost of the improvements, but funds are coming from a combination of private philanthropy and money from the state of Maryland.
The future of the Krieger building is uncertain at this point. Gordon said the building will continue to serve as The Associated’s headquarters until the work in Park Heights is complete. Beyond that, she said, “there are a lot of options being considered.”
