Baltimore may have to abandon the fireboat pier it spent $2M to renovate

A dispute between Baltimore and the federal government could cost the city the home for its fireboat fleet and $2 million spent to repair and renovate the facility.

For almost a century, the city’s fireboats have been operating from Fort McHenry, using it as a base for marine emergencies. The city leases a pier there from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

In 2023, Baltimore embarked on rebuilding the pier, which was dilapidated after years of weather damage. But in April last year, with work on the site well underway, the Corps of Engineers sent Baltimore a cease and desist order, accusing the city of violating the provisions of its lease with the work.

While the lease acknowledged the city’s plans to rebuild the pier, city officials didn’t get approval to run a utility line to the pier or to stage construction vehicles on federal property, according to Cynthia Mitchell, a spokesperson for the Corps of Engineers.

With the work stalled, the John R. Frazier fireboat, one of three boats in the city fleet, has no electric supply, forcing it to run on generators, said Jennifer Muth, a fire union official who works on the boat. Someone had been sleeping on the boat each night to keep watch and make sure things were running properly.

The boat has been out of service since early January after a generator broke down and forced repairs.

“It’s a hot mess down there,” Muth said.

City officials are considering a new home for the fleet, a prospect that could mean taking a bath on the renovation costs and signing a more expensive lease. Baltimore has been leasing the space at Fort McHenry for the bargain price of the Corps’ water bill, roughly $2,400 per month or $28,800 annually.

Fire Chief James Wallace said a decision to move the fire fleet has not been finalized, but he acknowledged new sites were being considered.

“I’ve got to have some contingency plans in my pocket,” he said.

“The power situation is something that needs to be sorted out and fixed,” Wallace said of the John R. Frazier electrical problems.

Baltimore Police confirmed a heliport owned by developer Scott Plank is in consideration. In February, Baltimore signed a $17.8 million contract to lease that site for the city police helicopter fleet for the next 20 years.

The Board of Estimates approved the $2.3 million renovation project in late 2023. By August the next year, the price had escalated by $123,000 as officials sought approval to install a temporary pier and begin demolition of the original pier ahead of schedule.

In October, another $129,000 was added to the budget to increase the size of the boat lift at the site. The original lift included in the plans was too small to accommodate new fireboats the city purchased.

Baltimore paid $2 million toward the project before work stopped.

Silas Woods, a spokesperson for Mayor Brandon Scott, said work at Fort McHenry has been placed on hold as discussions between the city and federal officials continue.

The city’s contractor, McLean Contracting, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Asked if the experience may lead city officials to reconsider leasing space from third parties — instead opting for facilities Baltimore owns — Woods said there are a “wide variety” of reasons the city may enter a lease.

“In some cases with commercially leased properties, the city will work with property owners to retrofit or renovate spaces to fully maximize their use,” he said. “It is an industry standard for lessors and lessees to work together to negotiate the costs of tenant improvements.”

Baltimore’s lease for the federally owned property expired a month after the cease and desist letter. Army officials said they have been holding over the terms of the lease since then.

In October, the Corps of Engineers sent the city cost estimates for a new lease but the city did not respond, they said.

Woods painted an alternative picture, saying fire officials have been in “open discussion” with the Corps of Engineers to better understand concerns with the site.

John Marsh, a spokesperson for the fire department, said the agency is “currently exploring its options.”

What now?

If the city is forced to move, all signs point to Canton as a possible location. Situated directly across the Inner Harbor from Locust Point, Canton’s waterfront would offer similar response times to marine emergencies.

Wallace said a city-owned property at Canton Waterfront Park is among the locations being considered. That spot, at the corner of Boston and Clinton streets, is home to what’s left of the city’s police marine fleet. The fleet was defunded in fiscal year 2021, and boats that are still used for emergencies remain on the site. City officials said this year they were in talks with Plank to move the boats to his heliport.

Police spokeswoman Lindsey Eldridge said the heliport itself is also under consideration as a location for the fireboats. The narrow pier is being outfitted with hangar space for police helicopters, lockers rooms, offices and a small gym.

Owners who have been storing boats at the Clinton Street Boatel on the heliport site were recently notified they will be evicted in April.

Woods said city officials have been discussing “the best long-term plan for storage and maintenance” of the fireboats with the U.S. Army and “community partners.”

“Conversations are still ongoing,” he said. “No decision has been finalized at this time.”

Muth said there’s been other work done at the current site, such as a new roof and windows on the fire station, that would go to waste in addition to upgrades such as adding bunks to any new site.

“It’ll be a logistical nightmare,” she said.