Upton Mansion Breaks Ground

On February 28, 2025, Afro Charities and community partners celebrated a milestone in Baltimore’s cultural legacy: the official groundbreaking of the $16 million Upton Mansion redevelopment project. For nearly two decades, this landmark at 811 W. Lanvale Street remained vacant. Built in 1838, the mansion served as a private residence, Maryland’s first radio station, a musical arts institute, and a school before closing its doors in 2006.

The revitalization will transform the historic mansion into the permanent home of Afro Charities and the AFRO American Newspapers Archives, a collection of more than three million photographs, rare audio recordings, and thousands of newspaper editions documenting Black life in America.

Ziger|Snead Architects is leading the restoration in coordination with Cross Street Partners and Commercial Construction as the general contractor. The project includes restoring the mansion and carriage house, adding a modern annex, and making the site ADA accessible for the first time. Future programming will include a gallery, museum-quality archives labs, a podcast suite, classrooms, and community event spaces—positioning the site as an international destination for historic interpretation and public engagement.

Completion is expected by summer 2026. Once tax-credit compliance is complete, Afro Charities will own the building debt-free, ensuring its long-term sustainability.

We’re honored to support this effort to reclaim Black history and reinvigorate West Baltimore. The Upton Mansion redevelopment exemplifies architecture as a civic process, anchoring memory, nurturing culture, and helping communities envision a resilient, inclusive future.