Under Armour founder pitches US$5.5b plan for Baltimore

Baltimore

IN THIS city, Under Armour's logo is everywhere. Founder Kevin Plank has built a US$27 billion empire here of sweat-resistant T-shirts and super- light sneakers. And its success inspires triumph in a city where social and economic scars run deep.

Yet as the titan of athletic apparel nurtures ever grander ambitions for Baltimore, some look on warily.

In the spring, Mr Plank announced that he had acquired more than 100 acres in the Port Covington industrial area, along the Patapsco River in south Baltimore. He has plotted a US$5.5 billion development project, one of the largest in the US, comprising 45 city blocks and more than two miles of riverfront.

One fruit of this venture opened recently - a manufacturing and design centre with a body scanner, 3-D printers and dozens of workers in white lab coats tasked with …