Greater Baltimore is home to a diverse base of rapidly growing industries. Healthcare, Financial Services, Information Technology, Cybersecurity, Defense, Education, and Bio and Logistics are some of the key growth sectors that make up the region’s economy. Greater Baltimore boasts some of the highest concentrations of high tech industries in the nation.
Out of all 383 metropolitan areas, the region ranks 33rd in economic strength.
Industry | 1-Year Growth | 10-Year Growth |
|---|---|---|
Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 4% | 47% |
Education and Health Services | 3% | 22% |
Educational Services | 8% | 30% |
Transportation and Warehousing | 3% | 32% |
Food Services And Dining Places | 2% | 16% |
Industry | Employment Density Compared to National (1.00) |
|---|---|
Federal Government | 1.92 |
Educational Services | 1.66 |
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 1.53 |
Greater Baltimore has become a super-cluster of both PST firms and workforce, thanks to the region’s superb business climate, educational assets, and entrepreneurship resources. Though Baltimore finds itself on the smaller side of the 25 largest metros, its oversized concentration of PST activity makes it a major hub for technology, research, and engineering.
Greater Baltimore is fast becoming a popular region for expanding financial firms, thanks to a strong foundation in wealth management and a highly educated workforce. A top ten market for investment banking occupations, Baltimore also offers a strong market for specialties such as: Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds, Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Investments, Consumer Lending, and Portfolio Management.
After the nation’s capital, the Greater Baltimore region is the largest federal government hub in the U.S., with over 73,000 residents employed by the federal government. Baltimore boasts the highest concentration of state government employees of the 25 largest metros and is home to some of the nation’s most critical agencies, including the NSA, the Social Security Administration, and the U.S. Cyber Command.
Greater Baltimore remains a top contributor to the manufacturing industry, benefiting from a combination of assets, namely its Northeast corridor location, Class I railroads, and overnight trucking access to one-third of the country's consumer market. It is also home to one of the most prolific ports in the country: the Port of Baltimore.
Companies are moving to and expanding in Greater Baltimore all the time, and over the span of the last twelve months, 9,600 new jobs have been added to the region's economy. The likes of Morgan Stanley and Amazon have committed to the region, each bringing 800 and 700 new job opportunities, respectively. Soon, XPO Logistics will occupy more than half a million square feet in Harford County, adding 400 new jobs; a meal service company chose Howard County as the location for its East Coast expansion with plans to hire 500 employees.
As the Baltimore skyline evolves, businesses new and old are expanding, investing, and booming in the region. For up-to-the-date developments that are happening in the region, check out the Baltimore Business Journal’s Crane Watch.
from new and expanding businesses in the last 12 months
Business | Jobs |
|---|---|
Coastal Sunbelt Produce | Expansion, 400 jobs |
Maryland Live Casino | Expansion, 500 jobs |
Oceaneering International | HQ Expansion, 400 jobs |
XPO Logistics | New, 400 jobs |
Freshly | New/Expansion, 500 jobs |
Holly Poultry | New, 400 jobs |
IronNet Cybersecurity | New, 260 jobs |
Praxis Engineering | HQ Expansion, 250 jobs |
Harbor Designs | Expansion, 200 jobs |
Cisco - Sourcefire, Inc. | Expansion, 200 jobs |
American Urological | Expansion, 170 jobs |
BSC America | Expansion, 150 jobs |
Taylor Farms | Expansion, 150 jobs |
Emergent BioSolutions | Expansion, 100 jobs |
The $200 million Live Hotel is being built next to the Maryland Live Casino and will boast 350,000 square feet worth of space. It will be 17 stories tall and have 310 rooms, 52 of which will be luxury suites. The new development will include a Grand Event Center, a 1,500 seat concert venue, a luxury salon & spa, and1,000 additional parking spaces.
Port Covington is Sagamore Development's 266 acre project in South Baltimore. Sagamore -- the development company of UnderArmour's CEO, Kevin Plank -- plans to build several million square feet of office space, roughly 14,000 residential units, 40 acres of public parks, and make upgrades to the three miles of waterfront on the Middle Branch.
Tradepoint Atlantic is working to revitalize what used to be the Bethlehem Steel mill in Sparrows Point. Developers are aiming to turn it into a transportation and logistics hub with rail lines, ports, and manufacturing facilities. Under Armour and FedEx are among the companies to already sign on to the development. Capital Investment made is $2B.
Eldersburg Commons is a $50 million redevelopment project transforming the former Carrolltown Center into a new shopping hub for Eldersburg. The total redevelopment will be 290,000 square feet, which is approximately 40,000 square feet smaller than Carrolltown Center, and will be anchored by a Walmart Supercenter.
The new 800,000 square foot Lidl regional headquarters and distribution center, along with Amazon's newest distribution center, will both be located at Principio Park. Lidl plans to invest $100 million as part of its expansion in the U.S. while Amazon's $90 million distribution center will be the online retail giant's second in the state.
Eastgate is a 2,275,000 square foot industrial park that is comprised of three buildings located approximately 30 miles northeast of Baltimore. It presents a unique opportunity to lease or own a Class A regional distribution facility in one of the most land constrained locations on the East Coast. Build-to-suit opportunities range from 700,000 to over 1.5 Million square feet.
Downtown Columbia is a $2.3B development that is currently under construction in Howard County. At completion, this mixed use development will have over 13 million square feet of retail, restaurant, office, residential, and entertainment space.
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Shannon Landwehr
President and CEO
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