YARD 56 IN THE NEWS

Chipotle, Panda Express sign onto Yard 56 project in Greektown

The Yard 56 development in Greektown — on the site of the former Pemco — has signed restaurant chains Chipotle and Panda Express and has other deals in the works.

The new eateries are expected to join anchor tenants LA Fitness and Streets Market & Cafe in the 106,000-square-foot retail phase of the 20-acre project at 5601 Eastern Ave. Overall, the development will total up to 2.2 million square feet of retail, office and hotel space with 1,100 parking spaces.

A leasing brochure by the Seagall Group shows that other retail tenants currently in negotiations are the craft beer bar chain Brass Tap, Cafe 304 and Topcoat, a nail salon. Those retailers would lease a total of 8,500 square feet of space at Yard 56.

Brass Tap's addition to the development would be an expansion for the Tampa-based brewery that has locations in the Towson Town Center and at The Fitzgerald on Mount Royal Avenue near the University of Baltimore.

Streets Market & Cafe, a boutique grocery store chain based in Washington, D.C., is expected to open in 2020. The market will total 20,000 square feet and feature organic produce and prepared foods, said P. David Bramble, managing partner of MCB. Streets Market opened its first Baltimore location at Charles and Saratoga streets in 2015.

LA Fitness is expected to open in late summer or early fall in 34,000 square feet of space.

The Yard 56 project has required about $15 million in environmental cleanup work over the past year. Renderings of the Yard 56 design by local BCT Architects — with LA Fitness designed by Studio 222 based in Chicago — show a modern, industrial space with an open, pedestrian-friendly retail hub that resembles a main street hub.

Yard 56 sits across from Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center campus in East Baltimore.