Google taps local contractor for $600M project

Good morning Baltimore and welcome to Wednesday.

I sat down to type my introduction this morning, but I was at a loss. It truly feels like nothing city-altering has happened this week.

Oh, well — these newsletters can't all be winners.

Now for the news.

Whiting-Turner scores $600 million contract with tech giant

Baltimore-based Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. has been tapped to build a $600 million data center for Google in Oregon, Construction Dive reports. The facility in Wasco County is not the first in the state for Google, which has invested almost $2 billion in Oregon since 2006, per Construction Dive. The facility is planned for 290,000 square feet and will be the latest in a string of similar investments in Ohio, Iowa, Missouri and Arizona. Whiting-Turner notched $8.62 billion in revenue in 2022, according to Baltimore Business Journal research, making it the second-largest private company in Greater Baltimore.

Boston’s Faneuil Hall Marketplace sold by former Harborplace, Cross Keys owner

Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp. is letting another urban landmark go after more than a decade as owner. The group has sold the iconic Faneuil Hall Marketplace in Boston to an arm of The J. Safra Group, our sister paper the Boston Business Journal reports. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. It’s the latest asset Ashkenazy has sold off after uneasy relationships with cities and tenants. The group previously owned Baltimore’s Harborplace, which went into receivership in 2019, and the Village at Cross Keys, which sold to Towson developer Caves Valley Partners in 2020.

Report: John Angelos agrees to sell Orioles for $1.725 billion

Baltimore Orioles owner John Angelos and a Baltimore-born billionaire are close to a deal to sell the team, I wrote last night. John Ourand of Puck News reported that multiple sources told him that John Angelos has agreed to sell the team to a group led by billionaire David Rubenstein, a Baltimore native and founder of the Washington, D.C.-based Carlyle Group. A source familiar with the deal confirmed the sale agreement and the original reported price of $1.725 billion for the team. Rubenstein's group also reportedly includes a man by the name of Cal Ripken Jr., if that rings a bell. Learn more about the deal shaking up the Baltimore sports scene, and be sure to follow BBJ coverage for more details on the blockbuster sale as they emerge.

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Why Under Armour decided to create an alternative to spandex

Under Armour Inc. has partnered with a chemical company to develop a recyclable replacement for spandex as part of the apparel company’s push to be more sustainable, our Garrett Dvorkin reports. The Baltimore sportswear maker (NYSE: UAA) and Celanese Corp. (NYSE: CE), a Dallas-based chemical and materials company, have created a new performance stretch fabric dubbed Neolast that could replace elastane, a decades-old material better known as spandex. Follow my colleague as he guides you beyond the hard-to-pronounce names of fabrics and into what this really means for the company's business-to-business product.

Google joins Maryland tech and life sciences trade association

Maryland’s largest trade group is getting even bigger. Google is joining the nearly 800-member Maryland Tech Council, the association announced Tuesday morning. The tech giant is joining the group soon after Baltimore was named a federal tech hub, opening the region to the potential for tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds through the designation. “We are thrilled to have Google as our newest member and look forward to working with them to build a strong, diverse, and resilient innovation ecosystem in Maryland,” council CEO Kelly Schulz said in a statement.

St. John’s College president becomes first female schoolwide head

St. John’s College has appointed the president of its Annapolis campus, Nora Demleitner, to oversee collegewide operations, including those at the school’s New Mexico campus. The appointment expands her purview over both campuses, but Demleitner will retain her duties as Annapolis campus president, according to an announcement from the school. She is just the second president appointed to oversee collegewide operations at the Annapolis and Santa Fe campuses and the first female to hold the role. Demleitner took the role of Annapolis president in 2022 and completed a $300 million capital campaign in 2023. The college also appointed J. Walter Sterling as president of the Santa Fe campus. Both appointments are effective July 1, 2024.

Two Broadway national tours to kick off at Hippodrome in 2024-25 season

Broadway is coming to Baltimore again this fall, and two North American tours are launching from the Hippodrome Theatre. President Ron Legler of the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center — the theater’s home — announced late last week that “& Juliet” and “The Life of Pi” will run this season as they begin their North American tours. Both of those shows are using Maryland’s theatrical production tax credits to bring cast and crew into the area to stimulate local business, according to the theater. The Hippodrome will also show “Annie,” “The Lion King,” “Shucked,” “Some Like it Hot” and “Chicago.” You can find the full lineup here.

Ravens vs. Chiefs AFC Championship game sets NFL TV record

Cable TV may be on its way out, but the NFL is very much alive. CBS Sports reports that the Ravens' loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday was the most-watched AFC Championship game in NFL history, according to TV ratings. The matchup drew an average of 55.5 million viewers and peaked at 64 million, surpassing the previous record set by the Jets vs. Steelers game in 2011, which drew roughly 54.9 million viewers on average. It was also the highest-rated non-Super Bowl program on CBS since the 1994 Winter Olympics, per CBS. The Ravens and Chiefs weren't the only teams to draw millions — the NFC title game also had 56.3 million average viewers. It's the first time both title games have topped 50 million viewers since 2014.

Questions or comments about today's newsletter? Email BBJ Digital Producer Joe Ilardi at jilardi@bizjournals.com.