Morgan State University is staking a bigger claim in downtown Baltimore, planning to lease One Calvert Plaza and convert part of the office tower into student housing. The deal would bring about 254 new beds online by the fall 2026 semester, a crucial boost as surging enrollment continues to squeeze the university’s existing dorms.
Lease terms and timeline
The arrangement is laid out in the Maryland Board of Public Works agenda for its May 6 meeting. Morgan would lease One Calvert Plaza at 201 E. Baltimore Street from PLAZA1S, LLC under an initial term running from Aug. 1 through July 31, 2029, with four additional three-year renewal options. The filing lists 254 beds at an annual rent of $3.6 million, a 3.5% yearly rent increase, and a base-term obligation of about $11.18 million, according to the Maryland Board of Public Works.
Why Morgan says it needs more beds
In documents submitted to the state, Morgan says the lease is “required to maintain the University’s current housing capacity plan of 5,400 for on and off-campus sponsored housing” and warns that fall 2026 enrollment “may exceed 12,000,” figures the school reported in the same filing. The university’s Office of Residential Life pushed to add beds in spaces that Morgan can directly control, arguing that doing so will support a safer, healthier housing environment for students, according to the Maryland Board of Public Works.
A tower with a recent ownership shakeup
One Calvert Plaza itself has not exactly had a quiet couple of years. Industry reporting shows the property, once a piece of developer Brandon Chasen’s portfolio, was sold out of receivership in late 2025 and is now controlled by new owners preparing a redevelopment plan. The Baltimore Business Journal first reported Morgan State’s move to lease the tower and detailed the late-2025 transfer along with the building’s conversion prospects.
What this means for students and downtown
State filings and local reporting indicate the One Calvert lease is just one plank in a broader off-campus strategy as Morgan races to add hundreds of beds while it advances on-campus projects and renovations. Coverage earlier this week described additional housing agreements the university is negotiating in both Towson and Baltimore to keep pace with demand. WMAR-2 News summarized the larger student housing packages approved by state officials, while industry trackers have continued to note the downtown tower’s recent sale and evolving conversion plans.
