Gorn: 414 Light St. leasing off to ‘really good start’

Listen to this article

Leasing at the partially completed 44-story luxury apartment building 414 Light St. is off to what the developer described as a “really good start.”

Stephen Gorn, CEO of developer Questar Properties, said they’ve received “lease reservations” for 20 percent of the building’s 394 units. In the next few weeks, tenants in about 20 units are expected to move in. Pre-leasing launched at the building in August of 2017.

“Having just opened in the last three weeks, we think that’s a great accomplishment,” Gorn said in his remarks during a grand opening ceremony on Wednesday night.

The project received design approval in 2014. At the time, Questar intended to break ground in 2015. In February 2016, Citizens Bank announced it was providing a $107.28 million construction loan for the the development.

Previously the developer estimated the cost of the project to be between $165 million and $170 million.  Gorn praised a city tax credit for making the project possible during a ground breaking ceremony in March 2016.

Tax credits for new market-rate apartment projects are available citywide for 10 years, starting with 80 percent off the increase in the value of real property as a result of improvements, and eventually drawing down to 30 percent in the final year.

In designated sections of Baltimore, the tax credit lasts for 15 years, with 100 percent off property taxes due to improvements, and a gradual reduction to 20 percent in the final year.

“It was a game-changing factor, and I would say order of magnitude over $2 million a year,” Gorn said more than two years ago.

414 Light St. is located at one of the most visible corners in Baltimore at the intersection of West Conway and South Charles streets. The land was previously the site of a McCormick & Co. spice warehouse.

So far only 14 of the buildng’s floors have been delivered. The additional 30 floors are expected to come online in the next several months.

Rents, according to the developer, range from $1,890 to $8,000 a month. The website Apartments.com, which links renters with buildings, found studio units started at $1,891. Prices escalated up to $9,775 a month for the most expensive two-bedroom unit.

Gorn, on Wednesday, touted the project’s 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities, 24-hour concierge services, and personal shopper as unique to Baltimore.

“There’s a lot that this building is offering and there’s a lot that’s distinctive and unique about it. A formula that hasn’t really been presented in the Baltimore market to date,” Gorn said.