Mayor shores up Baltimore public market leadership ahead of changes for Lexington Market

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is making two key changes to the city's Baltimore Public Markets Corp. that are aimed at breathing new life into the nation's oldest public market system.

Rawlings-Blake has named Kirby Fowler, the president of the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore Inc., as the new chairman of the Public Markets Corp.'s nonprofit board. She has also promoted the interim executive director, Robert Thomas, to a permanent executive director role to replace former director Casper Genco, who retired over the summer.

There are also key staff changes coming for Lexington Market, the largest of the city's five public markets. The nonprofit Baltimore Public Markets Corp. has hired a new property manager for Lexington Market, Stacey Pack, who formerly oversaw day-to-day operations at Belvedere Square. Another key hire is Scott Garfield, a former Trout Daniel LLC broker who specialized in restaurant and retail leasing and also served as COO of his family's Lee's Ice Cream business.

All of these changes come as the Public Markets Corp. is set to release a massive consultant's study that is expected to include recommendations aimed at modernizing and updating Lexington Market. There is growing concern that Lexington Market has not kept pace with the rapidly changing food retail sector as consumers' palates have broadened and downtown's population booms.

It also comes as the board considers turning over Cross Street Market to private control to a developer seeking to redevelop the Federal Hill market.

Kaliope Parthemos, the mayor's chief of staff, said the changes also reflect the mayor's commitment to a citywide food policy that ensures residents have access to fresh and healthy foods. The markets — particularly the sprawling Lexington Market — are seen as key economic development drivers and neighborhood hubs that both improve the quality of life and provide sustenance for thousands of city residents.

Kevin Litten covers Commercial Real Estate and Economic Development