State Grants to Aid Local Nonprofits, Including Load of Fun

On Nov. 27, at the City Arts Building, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown announced that Baltimore-area nonprofits will receive $1,455,000 of $5.5 million to be awarded in the Community Legacy grants from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.

“Community Legacy is an innovative program that invests in cities and towns throughout our state,” said DHCD Secretary Raymond A. Skinner. “These awards help create jobs, move local economic development efforts forward, and allow neighborhoods to thrive. As these communities prosper, Maryland as a whole does too.”

Central Baltimore Partnership was awarded $100,000 to upgrade the Load of Fun building, a longtime anchor of the Station North community, so that it meets zoning and code enforcement requirements. The Load of Fun, which housed artist studios, Single Carrot Theatre, and other creative projects, was voluntarily closed by Sherwin Mark, its operator, last August, following an anonymous 311 call complaining of code violations. At the time, Tania Baker, a Housing Department spokesperson, told CP that the building did not “meet requirements for occupancy” (“Load of Trouble,” Mobtown Beat, Sept. 11).

Though many tenants, including Single Carrot Theatre (see page 39) have found new locations, the award should allow the building to reopen.

Central Baltimore Partnership was awarded another $100,000 to “stabilize 10 E. North Ave. from further deterioration so that it may be transformed into a 66,000-square-foot multi-use arts hub,” according to the Department of Housing and Community Development’s announcement. For a complete list of the awards statewide, visit mdhousing.org.