Private Initiative and Public Responsibility for the Redevelopment of Industrial Brownfields: Three Baltimore Case Studies

This article examines three case studies of brownfield redevelopment in Baltimore, Maryland, to refine understanding of the boundary between privately and publicly initiated brownfield redevelopments. The cases range from Camden Crossing, a city- initiated project that promised to turn an abandoned and contaminated site into middle-income housing, to Crown Cork and Seal, a privately funded site reclaimed for industrial use. The cases suggest trade-offs between the following three conditions: (a) the strength of local market demand, (b) the level of contamination, and (c) new use. When market conditions are strong, contamination relatively minor, and land use is remaining industrial, the private sector is more likely to be the sole initiator and implementer of redevelopment. When a project calls for a transfer from contaminated industrial to residential use, faces weak market demand for the final project, and con- tends with a complicated cleanup, the greater is the required public subsidy.