On February 19, 2010, 446 Rosebank Avenue next to the Senator Theatre went up for auction. Laura Perkins (a fan and neighbor of the Senator) won the auction with a bid of $106800. This could complicate the Senator RFP. Below is an email from Ms. Perkins where she explains why she bought the house and her take on the RFP situation:
February 23, 2010
To whom it may concern,
On Friday, February 19th, I purchased the home and property located at 446 Rosebank Ave. at a foreclosure auction, which had been widely publicized within our community and beyond. The auction sale triggered speculation regarding my motives and my plans for the property, which is contiguous with The Senator Theatre property in the rear of the site.
I am one of the core volunteers with the Friends of The Senator Theatre group, and I share the group’s rising concerns over the flawed Senator RFP process that the Baltimore Development Corporation is conducting. I was also the sole Friends of The Senator representative on the BDC’s RFP advisory panel.
Despite serious past concerns over the manner in which Baltimore City acquired ownership of The Senator, I resolved to approach with optimism the city’s RFP evaluation process and I extended the BDC leadership the benefit of the doubt. I hoped for a thorough process that would give unbiased objective evaluation to the proposals. I quickly became alarmed, however, over the inappropriate secrecy of the RFP process and the BDC’s repeated flat refusals to allow bona fide historic theatre redevelopment and film industry professionals to consult with the RFP panel. From my perspective, the BDC’s insular and uninformed stance puts both The Senator’s future and over a million dollars in scarce city taxpayer funds at great risk.
It’s a scandalous situation, and in response, I pointedly resigned in protest from the RFP panel. My resignation came shortly after the BDC leaders stated that the 446 Rosebank Ave property, which Tom Kiefaber acquired 15 years ago because he believes it is critical to The Senator’s future, has no real significance to the two Senator RFPs under consideration. As a Senator RFP panel member, I knew this was false information.
That inaccurate assertion, like many previous BDC pronouncements, was clearly intended to mislead the citizens of Baltimore by using the media and our city council representatives to spread disinformation. Combined with the BDC’s refusal to consult with qualified experts in evaluating the RFPs, it was the last straw.
I’ve now personally inhabited a back room at the BDC and experienced first hand how this quasi-public agency effectively fosters incorrect beliefs among a jaded public, by trading in false and misleading information. A recent Pew Center for Excellence in Journalism study of key news stories in Baltimore, including the auction of The Senator Theatre, noted that the downsizing Baltimore media rarely fulfills its fourth estate mandate to verify the accuracy of the government’s statements.
I am relatively new here in Baltimore, and I still cling to our nation’s diminishing democratic ideals, the constitution, and the private property rights of each and every citizen. I blog as “Astrogirl,” and I spent much of the past year investigating how a few powerful individuals in city government and at the BDC have repeatedly abused Tom Kiefaber and violated his civil rights, while misrepresenting the situation to the media in ways intended to defame and undermine his professional reputation. The inaccuracy of the BDC’s past attacks on Mr. Kiefaber was shockingly easy to discover, and it chilled me to the bone to learn how Baltimore’s embedded culture of corruption and manipulation operates with seeming impunity.
The research has opened my eyes, and once I saw Baltimore’s “shadow government” in action, it was apparent that enough is enough. Someone from our community other than Tom Kiefaber has to step up, as he has done over the years despite threats of retribution, and take an overt, public stand against the abuse of governmental power in Baltimore City by the BDC and the city government. Where I come from, local government and their related institutions don’t assume they can indulge in this level of corrupt manipulation, because the citizens will ultimately stand up to be counted and do something about it.
I acted on my convictions last Friday and bought the 446 Rosebank Ave. property at auction, as the only private bidder. A BDC representative was present to observe the auction of the property they deemed inconsequential. As the successful bidder, I plan to assert my rights as the adjacent residential property owner to The Senator and occupy a legitimate seat at the table as the Senator RFP situation unfolds.
I stepped up for good reason, because The Senator’s passionate past protector and steward has been neutralized and sidelined, and the theatre’s future is at stake and endangered by the politically tainted Senator RFP selection process.
I do not agree in the slightest with the BDC’s public and private assertion that 446 Rosebank Ave. is inconsequential to the RFP process, and the pointed inquiries I’ve received in the past few days validate my firm belief that Mr. Kiefaber was right all along. The 446 property is logistically, geographically, and strategically linked to The Senator Theatre and its future. That will undoubtedly become more apparent to all as things evolve.
Increasing my vested ownership stake in the community at this time should indicate that I am determined to help ensure that the future of The Senator Theatre will ultimately be decided through an open and transparent historic theatre redevelopment process, and not the shrouded RFP sham currently being perpetrated by the Baltimore Development Corporation.
Sincerely,
Laura Perkins
Purchaser of 446 Rosebank Ave.
Filed in: Uncategorized.
Tags: Baltimore, BDC, Developers, Senator Theatre
Adam is the most recognizable face of the recent resurgence in Reservoir Hill. He has appeared on many national and local radio shows, in several news publications, and at numerous events discussing his innovative urban redevelopment ideas and his unique lifestyle. Adam is a successful entrepreneur, community activist, and a local political guru who ran for city council in 2007. He is the founder and director of the TechBalt.com Buy a Block Project and BaltimoreHourly.com. His fearless local political commentary has rocked the local blog scene for most of this decade and he plans to take it to the next level in the next decade here on Charm City Current.
Mr. Hazlet & a few others are misinformed about why Ms. Perkins purchased the property behind The Senator as the only public bidder. As a Friends of The Senator [FOTS] member & volunteer I do not speak for Laura, “Astrogirl” Perkins but I respect her stand-up courage when she knew that she would have her personal credibility and motives attacked. It’s “Smaltimore” Hon!, & anyone who stands up and speaks out against the infamous BDC agency can expect to have the tear-down cadre like “Jane” and “Michael C” quickly cast online aspersions. They should rotate these folks more often.
Mr. Hazlet isn’t a stooge defamer though, he’s just a bit confused. Perkins bought the property because the BDC’s false position, that it’s “inconsequential” to The Senator’s future, was revealed by the BDC’s presence at the “inconsequential” auction. Laura isn’t holding anything hostage. She bought the house to help facilitate the Senator’s optimal future incarnation, not delay it.
FOTS agrees that the process should result “in a long-term future for the Senator Theatre as a well-maintained public institution”. Perkins is alarmed that the BDC’s predetermined choice would not produce that result. The RFP process can be validated though if objective experts help evaluate the two RFP’s & their recommendations are publicly known. Initially Perkins stood up alone as the FOTS panel member & declared that the BDC process was heavily flawed. For that stance she was immediately attacked as a dishonest “obstructionist”.
Those nasty tactics failed, however, because she’s no longer alone. A key RFP panel member, Karen Noonan, The President of the prestigious Theatre Historical Society of America [THSA] has recently come forward to stand alongside Laura and corroborate her position by taking a bold public stance of her own in an open letter to Mayor Rawlings-Blake, stating her own informed concerns about the need for mayoral intervention in the RFP process. Ms. Noonan’s letter is posted on http://friendsofthesenatortheatre.wordpress.com. The sole area business representative on the panel is reportedly also alarmed and wrote the BDC to protest as well.
BDC loyalists and city council stooges, please stop casting cyber stones at the courageous whistleblower, whose lone voice regarding the BDC has become a rising chorus of truth and integrity.
I’m a little skeptical of the motives and methods of Ms. Perkins.
It’s not right for one person to attempt to hold the process hostage at this late date. I’m no fan of government-controlled development, but the Senator has been hanging by a thread for ages now.
The RFP process (and, in my opinion, the WTMD proposal) is the best chance right now for a long-term future for the Senator Theatre as a well-maintained public institution. Let’s get on with it!
For the past six months I’ve been working to promote events currently being hosted at Senator Theatre. Tonight, March 6th, is a Country Music Concert.
Weinberg Center for the Arts, would be an obvious, and local, example of what may be possible for The Senator. While hosting frequent Concert Events, mostly Rock and Adult Contemporary formats, I have heard several comments regarding how perfectly appropriate The Senator is for these types of events.
Likewise, if we are allowed to continue these kinds of events with an operating budget for contracting high end talent as well as investing in some basic advertising, our events would make for one of the most profitable businesses in the local area. Not to mention how it would effectively help to increase retail activity among neighborhood businesses.
We love The Senator and we want to see it become a natural Tour Stop for all types of performers passing through the Northeast. With the right management The Senator Theatre can once again become a Nationally Recognized Venue that is not only respected, but highly coveted by touring artists.
With a few minor adjustments, The Senator would be like The Grand Ole Opry of Baltimore hosting Music Events. See what we are doing now by visiting our site at BandChi! Tickets. http://www.bandchitickets.com
The Historic Senator Theatre has been a jewel to Baltimore City and the state of Maryland. It has brought national and worldwide attention to this city because of the way Mr. Kiefaber took the time to do it right! The way this facility has been handled over the years put a burden on it’s owner. He put everything he had into it and mote. As with most businesses, he borrowed from the bank now and again to make improvements to make the movie going experience like no other. Due to circumstances beyond his control and the downturn in the worldwide economy, the monies did not come in as fast as he would have liked and the bank that was also having financial difficulties called in it’s loan and it went to auction.
Now Baltimore city has the chance to do it right and find qualified individuals that know what this one of a kind Art Deco jewlel needs to survive another 70 plus years. Will they make the choice to turn this venue into a multi purpose arts and entertainment facility? Are they smart enough to pull it off or are they about to go for a quick fix and watch it go in the wrong direction of a single screen theatre that we all know cannot work in the economy of today? If they take the latter approach it will surely fail.
It is a shame so see the city that was once known as charm city is on the verge of loosing yet another of it’s charms because of the shadow government run BDC. I hope the new mayor has some insight and changes the way her government is run and can bring in the experts that can guide her in making the right choice.
As for the property behind the theatre. I have seen the original plans for an additional screen that would have needed the extra property to add drainage and exits to the existing structure. And that is why Mr. Kiefaber purchased it in the first place. Kudos for Ms. Perkins for her insight.
The Senator has an extraordinarily bright future, cool future! It’s going to be great! It CAN be great for the community and beyond. But, unfortunately, right now the movement to take it into the future has broken down into this nasty, inappropriate infighting and attacks on the very people who have made sacrifices for the future of The Senator. This is why the process needs to be opened up to experts in historic theatre redevelopment and preservation, and film industry experts, so that some clarity can be reached and decisions can be made based on information and not emotion. Such critical decisions and plans need to be fully transparent to the citizens, and as much expertise as possible should be involved.
What a folly, Michael C is right.
If the former “protector of the Senator” and Astrogirl had every opportunity to ‘do it their’ way, all they had to do was run their business, and pay their bills, like the rest of us. But their way didn’t work, and they chose to borrow money from the citizens of Baltimore, which they couldn’t pay back.
BDC certainly has it’s problems, but it wasn’t BDC or the City which put the Senator in this position, on the contrary, from what I’ve seen, the RFP selection committee is really doing it’s best to build something out of a bad situation.
So basically Ms. Perkins thought to leverage her insider knowledge of what was going on (through being in the “back room” at the BDC and her relationship with Kefauver and the “friends of the Senator theater” into making lots of money off the adjoining property. She even served on the RFP committee to further those aims. When her plans went awry, she threw a tantrum and resigned in protest.
As much as I loathe the back room deals of the Baltimore Development Corporation, I loathe people that try to take advantage of their insider status and then claim victimhood when it doesn’t work even more. This is one of the few cases in which the BDC did the right thing by taking the theater from Kefauver. Kefauver and Ms. Perkins continue to make the theater all about them while claiming to only care about the theater. If Ms. Perkins business acumen is as bad as Kefauver’s, then it’s not surprising her plans for making a quick buck off of real estate speculation went awry.
The citizens of Baltimore and Maryland have spent too much money already propping up Kefauver’s delusions of grandeur.
I can’t believe The Sun even printed this transparent, self-serving letter.
I say again: Stop the slumlords, abolish the BDC!
Laura. Great work you are doing. Going against the BDC will be hard but you do have citizens who support you.