A partnership of former Under Armour executive Scott Plank and Caves Valley Partners is the only bidder to submit a much-anticipated proposal to renovate and operate the Cross Street Market in Federal Hill.

Robert E. Thomas, executive director of the Baltimore Public Markets Corp., said the partnership submitted the only “full-blown design proposal” in response to a Request for Proposals, due last Friday, and will be “the only one to which the review committee will be giving its attention.”

Details on the group’s proposal are confidential under the city’s review process, Thomas said.

The partnership triggered the process last December by making an unsolicited offer for the 31,800-square-foot public market, located between Light and Charles streets on Cross Street, that anchors one of the city’s biggest bar and nightclub districts.

According to the RFP, the city is looking for a developer to renovate the market to “the highest quality of architectural/interior design” and attract “primarily food vendors” who are compatible with the neighborhood and adjacent properties.

Constructed in 1952 after an earlier building was destroyed by fire, the market is now considered outmoded and underutilized – and acts less as an asset than a barrier to shoppers.

The RFP calls on the developer to accommodate tenants currently in the market and expand the number and range of new businesses and services.

Also allowed: “on-site special events,” including live stage shows, and expanded days and hours of operation.

30-Year Lease to Operate Facility

The developer is expected to enter into a master lease with the market authority for no less than $275,000 rent a year for a 30-year period. The RFP states that “no city financial assistance is offered or anticipated for this project.”

Scott Plank, who does business as War Horse LLC, is the brother of Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank.

He has been acquiring properties in Locust Point and is an investor at Belvedere Square, a North Baltimore food complex that has undergone recent renovations.

Towson-based Caves Valley Partners, which includes investors Steven Fader, Steve Sibel, Craig Colton and Arthur Adler and whose public face is Arsh Mirmiran, has extensive holdings in South Baltimore, including Riverside Wharf and 1111 Light Street, an apartment building across Light Street from Cross Street Market.

Investor in Horseshoe Casino

Caves Valley, in partnership with the Theo Rodgers family, is also the major local investor in the Horseshoe Baltimore Casino, which is majority owned by affiliates of Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment and Midwest-based Rock Gaming.

Mirmiran and Caves Valley last year announced plans for Stadium Square, a sprawling apartment-office-retail complex to be sited west of Cross Street Market in Sharp-Leadenhall. Plans for the site are still in a preliminary phase.

According to Thomas, the review process for the Plank/Caves Valley proposal will begin in the final week of March and will include input from the Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC).

Other groups, including the Cordish Companies, were rumored to be interested in the market, which is surrounded by one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Baltimore.

The Federal Hill Hospitality Association, representing bar and restaurant owners, has been clamoring for a “world-class” food emporium at the market to make South Baltimore a destination for tourists and nightlife patrons.

Just as vehement are local homeowners who have complained for years about the growth of “mega bars” in the area and of early-morning crowds carousing on the streets.

One longstanding flash point, the proposed Crossbar beer garden, is located next to the market.

The amount of liquor allowed at the revamped facility – together with its hours of operation – are likely to be a matters of controversy.

Thomas said today that “additional presentations may be scheduled” about the proposal, but was not more specific about when or where there might be public meetings.