The Rotunda (Baltimore)
Encyclopedia
The Rotunda is a shopping mall
in Baltimore, Maryland, located near the renowned neighborhoods of Roland Park, Hampden, and Charles Village, and near Johns Hopkins University
. The mall was developed by Bernard Manekin who converted the 1920's Maryland Casualty Insurance Co. building, designed by Otto Simonson, into a shopping center in 1971. The mall's centerpiece is a bell tower which chimes the Westminster Quarters. It was renovated in 2002.
It featured office and retail space, including a Giant Food
store, Rite Aid
, the Rotunda Cinematheque
, and various specialty shops such as
The former Christian Science Reading Room
was located on the second floor at the foot of the ramp in front of Giant Food, now occupied by Allstate
.
An escalator once occupied a space at the mall.
The Baltimore Clear Channel
headquarters are located on the third floor, which includes the studios for WPOC
93.1, WZFT Z104.3, WQSR
102.7 Jack FM and WCAO
Heaven 600 AM.
The Social Security
office is located on the fourth floor.
The rest of the offices house lawyers, dentists, sports physicians, a dyslexia tutoring program, mental health professionals and various other specialists.
A fountain once located in the mall's center court atrium has been gone for decades, but plans call for a new outdoor fountain.
Local musician Logan Mitchell Sr. and his Electro-Acoustic Orchestra made their first performance here in 1998.
, townhouse
s, condominium
s, and more retail and office space. The name will be changed to The Grand Rotunda.
bus lines operate past The Rotunda: Routes 22
and 98
.
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
in Baltimore, Maryland, located near the renowned neighborhoods of Roland Park, Hampden, and Charles Village, and near Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. The mall was developed by Bernard Manekin who converted the 1920's Maryland Casualty Insurance Co. building, designed by Otto Simonson, into a shopping center in 1971. The mall's centerpiece is a bell tower which chimes the Westminster Quarters. It was renovated in 2002.
It featured office and retail space, including a Giant Food
Giant Food of Landover, Maryland
Giant Food LLC is a supermarket chain with 202 stores in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.. It is headquartered in unincorporated Prince George's County, Maryland, near Landover. Giant often is known as Giant-Landover to avoid confusion with sibling company Giant-Carlisle...
store, Rite Aid
Rite Aid
Rite Aid is a drugstore chain in the United States and a Fortune 500 company headquartered in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, near Camp Hill. Rite Aid is the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast and the third largest drugstore chain in the U.S....
, the Rotunda Cinematheque
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
, and various specialty shops such as
- Recordmasters Music and Video, which featured a unique Marilyn MonroeMarilyn MonroeMarilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
painting in the window, - a Recordmasters Classics specializing in classical music across the hall,
- Casa Mia's Pizza,
- Horn and Horn Smorgasbord,
- Rotunda Opticians,
- Rotunda Cleaners and Cobblers,
- Rotunda Wine and Spirits,
- Hair CutteryHair CutteryHair Cuttery is a United States-based unisex hair salon, founded by Dennis and Anne Ratner in 1974.The first salon opened in West Springfield, Virginia, and the enterprise has since expanded to become the largest privately-held salon chain in the United States, with locations up and down the East...
, - Radio ShackRadio shackRadio shack is a slang term for a room or structure for housing radio equipment.-History:In the early days of radio, equipment was experimental and home-built. The first radio transmitters used a noisy spark to generate radio waves and were often housed in a garage or shed. When radio was first...
, - TCBYTCBYTCBY is an international franchise chain of frozen yogurt stores based in the United States. It is the largest U.S. retailer of soft-serve frozen yogurt with live active cultures....
, - The Bead,
- Charm City Diner,
- Amazing Spiral Comics,
- Tands Hallmark,
- Bunny Dwinn,
- Fleet Feet,
- Shoe Place,
- Rotunda Plants and Flowers,
- Rotunda Photo Supply,
- Cook's Cupboard,
- Maryland National Bank,
- Tomlinson Arts and Crafts,
- Ground Control Coffee,
- Ritz Camera,
- Gordon's Booksellers and Gordon's Kids,
- Gallery G and
- Bombay Cosmos.
The former Christian Science Reading Room
Christian Science Reading Room
400px|left|thumb|A typical storefront Christian Science Reading Room on the main street of a suburb of Boston. The window displays a lamp, a large Bible open to the current reading, and copies of Science and Health....
was located on the second floor at the foot of the ramp in front of Giant Food, now occupied by Allstate
Allstate
The Allstate Corporation is the second-largest personal lines insurer in the United States and the largest that is publicly held. The company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., and was spun off in 1993...
.
An escalator once occupied a space at the mall.
The Baltimore Clear Channel
Clear channel
A clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...
headquarters are located on the third floor, which includes the studios for WPOC
WPOC
WPOC is a radio station in Baltimore, Maryland, broadcasting a country music format focusing on newer artists and signature songs of the 1990s...
93.1, WZFT Z104.3, WQSR
WQSR
WQSR is a radio station broadcasting on 102.7 FM. The station is licensed to Baltimore and serves that market. Its transmitter is located in Pikesville, next to the Pikesville Reservoir. It is under ownership of Clear Channel Communications. The station offers an adult rock hits format known as...
102.7 Jack FM and WCAO
WCAO
WCAO is an AM station broadcasting Gospel music in Baltimore, Maryland, owned by Clear Channel Communications. The station's frequency is 600 kHz....
Heaven 600 AM.
The Social Security
Social Security (United States)
In the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...
office is located on the fourth floor.
The rest of the offices house lawyers, dentists, sports physicians, a dyslexia tutoring program, mental health professionals and various other specialists.
A fountain once located in the mall's center court atrium has been gone for decades, but plans call for a new outdoor fountain.
Local musician Logan Mitchell Sr. and his Electro-Acoustic Orchestra made their first performance here in 1998.
History
The Rotunda has been neglected for the past several decades. The mall was bought by Hekemian & Co., Inc. in the 2000s.Future Plans
Baltimore City officials have been attempting to find a developer willing to revitalize the complex. A $70 million plan is currently in place that would expand The Rotunda and add a 120-room hotelHotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, townhouse
Townhouse
A townhouse is the term historically used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and in many other countries to describe a residence of a peer or member of the aristocracy in the capital or major city. Most such figures owned one or more country houses in which they lived for much of the year...
s, condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
s, and more retail and office space. The name will be changed to The Grand Rotunda.
Transportation
Two Maryland Transit AdministrationMaryland Transit Administration
The Maryland Transit Administration is a state-operated mass transit administration in Maryland, and is part of the Maryland Department of Transportation. It is better known as MTA Maryland to avoid confusion with other cities' transit agencies who share the initials MTA. The MTA operates a...
bus lines operate past The Rotunda: Routes 22
Route 22 (MTA Maryland)
Route 22 is a bus route operated by the Maryland Transit Administration in Baltimore. The line currently operates between the Mondawmin Metro Subway Station and Bayview Medical Center, serving Television Hill, the Woodberry Light Rail Stop), Hampden, The Rotunda, Homewood, Johns Hopkins University,...
and 98
Route 98 (MTA Maryland)
MTA Route 98, also known as the Hampden Shuttle Bug or Hampden Shuttle, was the first neighborhood shuttle to be introduced. It started operating in 2000 as an experiment conducted by MTA to provide a new type of service. At that time, service operated every 17 minutes in order to match light rail...
.