‘A LOVE LETTER TO BALTIMORE’

GRIT profiles the stories of some of Baltimore’s most iconic buildings and the communities & developers that brought new life to the structures and their surrounding neighborhoods—revitalizing Charm City. It is the story of Baltimore’s building Renaissance and those with the grit and determination to create a new sense of community in a crumbling town.

Once beaming physical structures stood as the centerpiece to thriving local economies - uniting communities, sustaining generations, and offering a sense of pride and place. But with the onset of the modern era, these buildings and their communities have crumbled under the weight of time. 

For more than five decades, there has been a vigorous movement to reuse, restore and revitalize those edifices in a modern, green sensibility that is bringing back communities, creating thriving economies, and offering a rebirth to Baltimore as well as cities across the nation. 

This movement has been not so quietly led by a group of activist developers that have transformed literally every corner of Baltimore. Their story is the centerpiece of our journey to the rise of Charm City.

SHAPING THE FUTURE OF A CITY

In GRIT we explore how Baltimore’s innovative approach to re-development has influenced its industry, transportation, business, economics, race relations and ultimately a sense of community—reflecting the city’s history, character, racial reckoning, industrial evolution and future. 

We see how a group of scrappy young developers helped shape a city’s future and influenced the way the entire  nation views and approaches creative urban re-development and re-use. 

We explore the dynamics of how a city’s buildings shape its interactions with its citizens and how a thoughtful approach to development can alter so many aspects of life— economically, socially and structurally.  

It is an opportunity to discuss the most fundamental ideas of community. And a place to share stories of resiliency and unity. 

A LOVE LETTER TO BALTIMORE

GRIT is a love letter to Baltimore shining a positive light on community, cooperation and hope, for a city whose struggles have long cast a dark shadow. 

The energy and ideas being implemented in Baltimore reflect the struggles in so many cities across the nation. 

An arc extends throughout Baltimore’s story to the nation as a whole, offering an optimistic opportunity to discuss our identities as cities and communities in all of its forms. 

GRIT  is a story of resiliency, optimism and determination.