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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:

00:00:01

Alix McCabe: It's a story that's been covered extensively by the media.

00:00:04

Clip: Financial problems in many cities across the nation are taking a toll on basic infrastructure and property values.

00:00:10

Clip: An army of citizen journalists who've been documenting a city in decline.

00:00:14

Clip: How is it possible that a city that was once one of the richest in America ended up looking like an impoverished ghost town? What does it tell us about the decline of other American cities today?

00:00:24

Alix McCabe: Many cities across the nation like Detroit, New York, Portland, San Francisco are struggling with what's typically called urban decay or urban blight.

00:00:33

Clip: Cincinnati, Toledo, Buffalo, Baltimore, Birmingham, and Baton Rouge are expected to lose between 12% and 23% of their population.

00:00:43

Alix McCabe: But there's one city on that list that's especially important to us here at Allianz Trade in the U. S. because it's where we're based.

00:00:49

Clip: It's Baltimore, gentlemen, the gods will not save you.

00:00:54

Alix McCabe: Of course, we had to use a clip from The Wire, but we definitely want to show our hometown a little love today on this very special season finale of-

00:01:02

Crowd: Wheel of Risk.

00:01:06

Alix McCabe: Welcome to Wheel of Risk, proudly presented by Allianz Trade. I'm your host, Alix McCabe. On every episode, we spin the wheel to choose a topic, then provide expert insights and actionable advice to help you keep your business solvent, secure and well ahead of the competition. I can't believe I'm saying this, but we are almost at the end of Season 3 already, and I am really proud of how the podcast has evolved and I hope you've all enjoyed being part of that journey.

 

Today, we have something quite special in store. It's my honor to welcome two leaders from Baltimore City Hall to the podcast. Charlyn Nater is the director of Main Streets in the Mayor's Office of Small Minority Business Advocacy and Development, and Christopher R. Lundy is the director of that office. Welcome both of you to Wheel of Risk.

00:01:51

Christopher R. Lundy: Thanks for having us.

00:01:52

Charlyn Nater: Thank you. Thank you. Excited to be here.

00:01:54

Alix McCabe: We are so glad that you joined us today. Thank you so much for making the time. I know you both have super busy schedules. I'm really excited to shine a spotlight on our city. I'm a Baltimore native myself. Before we go any further, I do have a request. Do you see the giant wheel over there?

00:02:12

Christopher R. Lundy: I do.

00:02:12

Charlyn Nater: Yes.

00:02:12

Alix McCabe: Okay. I would love for one of you to spin that wheel. You can decide between the two of you who gets the honor.

00:02:20

Christopher R. Lundy: Charlyn has designated me as our wheel spinner today.

00:02:22

Alix McCabe: Okay, let's give it a spin.

00:02:24

Christopher R. Lundy: All right. Big money, big money, big money.

00:02:27

Charlyn Nater: Good job.

00:02:29

Alix McCabe: Yes. Isn't that an incredible coincidence you guys? We have landed on bringing Baltimore back.

00:02:37

Charlyn Nater: Nice.

00:02:38

Alix McCabe: Okay. We may have fixed the results of this one a little bit, but it's a topic near and dear to all of our hearts so let's dive in. Charm City, The City that Reads, The Monumental City. Baltimore is known by many nicknames, but for better or worse, many folks are probably familiar with it. Thanks to David Simon's groundbreaking drama series, The Wire.

00:03:01

The Wire: We are in Baltimore, Lamar. Baltimore, Maryland.

00:03:07

Alix McCabe: Of course, the other thing that put Baltimore on the map for a lot of people more recently was the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge back in March.

00:03:15

Clip: A stunning bridge collapse at the Port of Baltimore. Francis Scott Key Bridge plunging into the water overnight after it was hit by a cargo container ship.

00:03:25

Alix McCabe: Here are some other notable facts. Baltimore is the most populous city in the state of Maryland, and it's also an independent city which means it's not in the territory of any county or counties. It's also famous for the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812, during which Francis Scott Key, the bridge guy, wrote a poem that would later become the lyrics to, yes, The Star- Spangled Banner.

 

Speaking of the home of the Brave, Baltimore is also home for us here at Allianz Trade in the U.S. It's where our head office is located. We know firsthand that a lot of the work being done here can serve as a positive example to the rest of the country. But before we learn about some of the inspiring initiatives underway, let's get to know our two guests a little bit. Charlyn, could you tell us a little bit about yourself?

00:04:14

Charlyn Nater: I am originally Afro-Latina from Puerto Rico. I was born in Puerto Rico and I moved to New York City when I was about five years old. I was there for pretty much my entire life until I came to Baltimore, and that was about 13 years ago. I love Baltimore. I love what Baltimore represents. I am honored to serve the city of Baltimore in the capacity that I do as the Director of the Baltimore Main Streets program. Coming into this space and working with businesses and helping small businesses have a voice and be amplified is the core of what I love to do.

 

At the moment, I oversee nine Main Streets within the city. We have Fell's Point, Federal Hill, Pigtown, Highlandtown, Belair-Edison, Waverly, Pennsylvania Avenue, and Hamilton-Lauraville. We just onboarded our ninth Main Street: Park Heights, back in May. So pretty busy, but I do have a phenomenal dream team that helps me to get the information out and do the work and be the boots on the ground.

00:05:18

Alix McCabe: That's great. Thanks for sharing that. Christopher, what about you? Tell us about your background and your current role. What's that all about?

00:05:24

Christopher R. Lundy: Okay, yeah. I'm from Baltimore, went to school in the area and moved away after high school for college at Temple University in Philly.

00:05:33

Alix McCabe: I went to Penn.

00:05:34

Christopher R. Lundy: Oh, wonderful. Yeah, Philadelphia is a phenomenal place. It has a lot of similarities to Baltimore.

00:05:38

Alix McCabe: I agree.

00:05:39

Christopher R. Lundy: Really enjoyed the people there. Loved my time there. Began law school at Barry University in Orlando and finished up at Widener University in Wilmington, Delaware, and came back to work for the city. I've been a public servant personally my whole career. Practiced with our Baltimore City law department representing all of our city agencies on a host of varieties. I did a lot of police liability work, so worked on some notable things. Another TV show with the Gun Trace Task Force, worked on the discovery and depositions and document production in those cases. Additionally, worked on some of the first videotape and the police activity, the first case when it wasn't a clear constitutional right.

 

The second one when it was clear that you could always record the police in public. Got a lot of perspective and my work really with our prior office, the Minority Business Opportunity Office was on their certification appeals board looking at what local small minority and women-owned businesses should be certified as an MBE or WBE.

 

I did that for seven years prior to taking over that office, and now we just celebrate our one-year anniversary as our new agency with SMB A&D, servicing businesses throughout the city, still operating a minority and women's business programs, but also operating a lot of race and gender neutral programs like Baltimore Main Streets and the work we do at the Small Business Resource Center.

00:06:52

Alix McCabe: We are certainly lucky that you made your way back to Baltimore and that, Charlyn, you made your way here as well for the work that you're both doing. Now let's talk a little bit about Baltimore, especially for members of our audience who may not be familiar. How would you describe our fair city to people who haven't been here or who only know about it from what they've seen on the news or TV?

00:07:14

Christopher R. Lundy: It's a really, really interesting place. It's really, really rich with the history and you get to feel it when you walk around, when you're still walking on cobblestones in Federal Hill and Fell's Point. We always have that rich history that's all around and you see it in the diverse neighborhoods and the way the city has developed. It's a lot larger than you think.

 

It's not the biggest city in the country, but it definitely is a lot larger than people think it is. It stretches out and encompasses a lot of area. Our neighborhoods really show a lot of great architecture as well. It's just a fun place to visually experience and to take in all that history on a daily basis.

00:07:47

Alix McCabe: Charlyn, what about you?

00:07:49

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. For me, my perspective is pretty unique coming from New York. I would say that one of the things that I recognized right away is the camaraderie when it comes to sports. The Ravens and the Orioles are supported. You have to be there. You have to go to at least one game, be in the presence of how everyone just has a passion for that. You can just see it in the community and the buildup. I love that about Baltimore.

 

Something else as well is every community is extremely unique and there is a richness in every place that you go. There are all these hidden gems and these restaurants and have these organizations that are doing phenomenal work for the city. When you are boots on the ground, you get to see a lot of that happen.

00:08:39

Alix McCabe: You mentioned the neighborhoods and the restaurants. My family, my grandparents actually immigrated through Ellis Island in the 1930s from Italy to what is now Baltimore's Little Italy. My grandfather was a stonemason and my grandmother was a homemaker. She started cooking meals for people in the neighborhood. Over time, more and more people came by to eat the meals that she would cook, Italian food. Our family had the first Italian restaurant in Baltimore's Little Italy. It was called Velleggia's. It was in operation for over 80 years.

 

We sold in 2005, but I paid my way through college by waiting tables there. The small business community and the restaurant community in Baltimore is so vibrant and something that is very personal to me.

00:09:27

Charlyn Nater: That's special.

00:09:28

Alix McCabe: Yeah.

00:09:28

Charlyn Nater: I'm a visual person and for me I can see that. I can see you as a young woman doing that work and working with your family, and seeing the fruits of your labor come to where you are today. Thank you for sharing that.

00:09:40

Alix McCabe: Yeah, absolutely.

00:09:40

Christopher R. Lundy: That's a phenomenal historic restaurant, too. That's definitely impressive.

00:09:46

Alix McCabe: It was a great place. It was a great place. I can't cook at all. I didn't take any of that away from the family. I did not get the cooking gene, but I can wait tables. I can definitely do that. My dad always said to me, "You learn things when you're in service that you don't learn when you're in a university classroom." I really agree with that.

00:10:01

Christopher R. Lundy: A hundred percent.

00:10:02

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. That's where the lessons really happen.

00:10:04

Christopher R. Lundy: It also gets to show diverse aspects of the folks that are in your community. I waited tables through college and law school as well, and even once I got back to Baltimore very early in my career. You really get to see and meet a lot of different types of people. It gives a lot of great lessons about not always judging a book by the cover, really realizing that all the diverse people that are in the community and they come in and they're not always what you would imagine, but a lot of great relationships from that.

00:10:31

Alix McCabe: Absolutely. I completely agree. Christopher, what's your favorite thing about the city?

00:10:36

Christopher R. Lundy: I really enjoy the history. I'm a big fan of City Hall. We have a very, very old and historic City Hall. When I first started working... I was working in the basement of City Hall, not even in an office. They used to call it the cubbyhole off of the library because I didn't have a door. It was quite the setup. One of the first things I worked on responding to a public information request that they had my letter on the news that night and they did the spinning letter that showed my signature, and I was like, "Oh."

 

I always have enjoyed the work that I do being consequential and being in the mix of what's happening in the city and knowing that if I see something on the news midday, this evening that that may be something that we're already working on or we're going to be working on upcoming.

00:11:15

Alix McCabe: That's very cool. Charlyn, what is on your list of must-see destinations or must do activities for tourists that come to Baltimore?

00:11:30

Charlyn Nater: I'm going to have to be a little biased. I just ask everyone to show up and just come into the nine Main Streets. Any, you have nine to choose from. They have their own unique look and feel and things that you can do in all of them and activities. I would say one of the nine Main Streets, and I might sound a little cliché, but I'm going to promote what I do and the people that we serve.

00:11:53

Alix McCabe: I was thinking when you were speaking earlier about it because geographically, they're not all so far apart from each other, but there is a distinct feel in each of those areas and different things that you can do. It's very culturally diverse and each main street area has its own vibe which is something I appreciate.

00:12:10

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. Literally, I'm a seer. For me, visualizing things is so crucial. I am looking at the Baltimore City Main Streets map now and the whole city. There's different areas where there is a main street, so you won't be bored. It's somewhere to go and something to do.

00:12:26

Alix McCabe: This is a question I have actually for both of you. Christopher, I'll go to you first. What is the one stereotype or cliché that you hear about Baltimore that you'd like to dispel?

00:12:36

Christopher R. Lundy: That we're still in The Wire times.

00:12:39

Alix McCabe: Right. How many times do people ask you that?

00:12:42

Christopher R. Lundy: I mean, people ask about it a lot. It's starting to definitely die down, but it's still what a lot of people associate with Baltimore. For me, the show was out when I was in college. A lot of that was depictions of things that were happening while I was out of state. But I think that's really the biggest thing is that we're still in that time period that there's still prolific open air drug markets everywhere, and that that's what we're avoiding day in and day out.

 

We surely still have our challenges like any major city, major urban city especially, but we've really changed that dynamic. We've really improved. One of the best ways we can show that is with our drop in homicides to be at a 10- year low.

00:13:20

Alix McCabe: That's great. At Allianz Trade, our offices for the past 10 or so years, were located in the county in Owings Mills. When our lease was coming up for renewal and we, as a management team, we were looking at, “Okay, where do we be based?" This is for our U.S. headquarters. We have offices across the country, but this is our largest one in the United States. A spot came open in Harbor East. It's beautiful. It's vibrant. We can walk to restaurants now.

 

But picking up on what you were saying earlier, Christopher, when we made the announcement, we did have some concern initially from employees who hadn't been to the city in a number of years who were maybe harkening back to images from The Wire, saying, "Wow, is it safe?" We had a lot of conversations with employees about that.

 

What we found when we moved is that even our employees who had a concern now are really embracing the city, really embracing the location. It's been an amazing transition for us.

00:14:12

Christopher R. Lundy: That's really great to hear. We love bringing businesses back to Baltimore.

00:14:15

Alix McCabe: Charlyn, I want to hear your answer to the stereotype question. Is there any stereotype that you hear about Baltimore that you'd like to dispel?

00:14:23

Charlyn Nater: I would have to piggyback off of Director Lundy, but even give a little bit more emphasis to two points that I personally have experienced and I've seen that it's not what people say it is. You walk into some of these road homes and they are the most beautiful, historically rich locations that you will ever step foot in. You're like, "Yeah, this is Baltimore." There aren't enough people that get to see. Also equally the people, they're very passionate about Baltimore and there is this synergy that when you go to a game or even a restaurant, a bar, you're like, "I want to be a part of this." You get excited.

 

The business owners, they have a passion for Baltimore. They're in the city because they love what they're doing. When you really get into those small intricate places in the city and you meet these dynamic individuals that are creating history and doing the work, you will fall in love with the city as well.

00:15:23

Alix McCabe: That was a great summary of the city. I live here and I'm getting excited listening to you.

00:15:28

Charlyn Nater: That's a good thing. I'm speaking from the heart. I promise, I am.

00:15:32

Alix McCabe: Switching gears a little bit. I mentioned the Key Bridge a few minutes ago and it was a big shock when it collapsed after being struck by a cargo ship this past spring. We can actually see it from the window of our building here in Harbor East. I would love to find out how you're supporting all the affected businesses because I know that's an area of focus.

00:15:51

Christopher R. Lundy: One of the ways we originally were tapped was with the SBA, Small Business Administration Disaster Recovery Centers, we were able to get our staff there. A lot of Charlyn's Dream team from Main Streets were there helping to assist and support anybody that needed any help, getting access to resources immediately following the tragedy. I was fortunate enough to take part in a couple of the SBA roundtables with business owners and really hear about their concerns, what they needed, ways that we could support further.

 

The collaboration was really what was amazing because it was obviously something that severely impacted the city, but we were able to work with our partners in Baltimore County, Anne Arundel County, and then also at that federal level to really get a lot of resources out there to the businesses. Now we're really trying to continue that recovery, how to mobilize some of those funds and continue to be there for the business community as they try to normalize.

The biggest issue initially, of course, was the port being open. Now the port's open, that's really allowed a lot of businesses to recover. Now the focus transitioned. Although the port's open, there's still a lot of folks that their business is heavily impacted by an extensive commute. Sometimes people are adding 40 minutes to an hour just to be able to move their goods for patrons to come to their business.

 

We want to try to continue to help our local economy as much as possible.

00:17:06

Alix McCabe: Thank you for that work. I'd like to zero in now on the Main Streets program specifically, Charlyn. Let's tell our listeners, what is it all about?

00:17:22

Charlyn Nater: Baltimore Main Streets, this is when I get really excited.

00:17:25

Alix McCabe: I can see you smiling already.

00:17:27

Charlyn Nater: I know, right? I think we need to create a song to intro it, but it's not going to come for me because I'm not a singer.

00:17:35

Alix McCabe: We can work on that next.

00:17:37

Charlyn Nater: If I may, I just want to piggyback a little bit on what Director Lundy shared because that will take me into our office, the Baltimore Main Street dream team and what is Main Street. With everything that took place with the Key Bridge collapse, it was really unique to see how Baltimore stepped up quickly. Everyone just began moving, deploying, doing whatever was needed behind the scenes because these are generally things that you do not see. You may not see it on camera, you may not see it on the news, but Baltimore City, they got up and they just began to do the work.

 

For my office specifically, we have six of us on our team and they had only been in office with me for... I don't know, maybe two months. We all just were boots on the ground. We were at the recovery center. We were just like, "What's needed? How can we help?" Just all city agencies, it was really all hands on deck. I love to see that and it, again, made me proud to be a part of this work that we do for the city.

 

With that being said, I have to give credit to the nine Main Streets and their dream team, so to speak, because they all have executive directors and managers. Every main street, the nine that I mentioned, they all have an executive director and manager. They're 501(c)(3) organizations and they have all of these great things that they do for their specific boundary corridor.

 

We follow a national Main Street approach, and it is a four- point pillar that we adhere to to make sure that we help businesses get the most of what they need within those nine corridors. The four-point approach is design, and that is historically the architectural look and the facades and how that corridor looks physically.

 

Outside of design is organization. As you can imagine, some of them are larger than others and there is this very important piece of making sure that there are city agencies, stakeholders, community leaders. We make sure that we pay very close attention to that. Also, promotion. If you're not promoting it, if you're not sharing it, then how do people know that it is happening?

 

Within our office, we take pride in making sure that every single main street has a voice. Lastly, economic vitality. If something is not vital, it's dying. That is one thing that I always say, "We want to make sure that vacancies are filled." There are people in the communities, there's life. When you see more, you do more, it decreases crime. That is who we are and what we do.

00:20:20

Alix McCabe: Design, organization, promotion, and economic vitality. I love it. What do you have, Charlyn, in terms of upcoming projects?

00:20:28

Charlyn Nater: I don't think we have enough time for that. No, I'm joking. One of the things that we have going on right now is celebrating Baltimore Main Street, 25 years in existence. We are looking to host a 25-year celebration from raising gay love. It's really cool because it's like 25th year, 2025. We're looking to host it on the 25th day of a month. We have a lot of activation and promotion and things that we're doing to really kick this off. The biggest thing, two things. Number one is to celebrate the specific Main Street offices. They do phenomenal work to push out what's happening within their specific corridor, but also the businesses, the ones that don't get to sit at those specific tables.

 

We are looking to help promote them and get them what they need and bring a bigger voice. Everyone should know about the Main Streets program. That 25th anniversary, we're going to do everything we can to amplify that as best as possible.

00:21:31

Alix McCabe: That sounds like an amazing event. Director Lundy, what accomplishments are you most proud of?

00:21:36

Christopher R. Lundy: I'm most proud of the number of things that we were able to accomplish just even in this first year. We're still staffing up the agency, but we've really been able to now have a revised application for the Main Streets process, revised reporting from our partners in the neighborhoods about the work they've been doing.

 We've completely revamped the MWBE certification process, so that's now all digital. We moved to a directory that's new and improved. It's digital and allows even more enhanced searches and particularized searches for different parts of the city or different zip codes. We've grown our webinars over that time. I believe we started at about 95 webinars and now we have over 136, I believe, that we're offering throughout the year.

 I'm really excited about what we're going to do as we finish out hiring and getting everybody on board and then as we move forward.

00:22:23

Alix McCabe: I have just a couple more questions before we move to our final segment. There are plenty of cities in America that are struggling with some of the same issues that we experience here in Baltimore. What would your advice be to those cities?

00:22:43

Christopher R. Lundy: I try to be really transparent and straightforward, and I think one of the things that's benefited us with the community and the business community especially, is just being honest, taking some accountability for where we are. One of the challenges is it's difficult sometimes to do that because then you have to acknowledge you're not where you want to be, and that there are some shortcomings of where you are. But I think being disingenuous and dishonest when there are problems loses that credibility and connection with the community.

 

I think being able to acknowledge those problems have, of course, the plan to solve the problem or how you're going to improve on that situation and just being very open and transparent with folks. We speak to them about things that we do need to improve on as a city and with our process, that's been really, really helpful. We've been able to forge much, much stronger connections with the business community.

 

When I took over, we had folks that had protested in front of City Hall about the way they felt about the treatment of the business community and the prioritization of businesses by the city. We've just gotten to a point where we're on the other side of that. Folks very much see our efforts, but it's all about being open and transparent.

I also say being available, I make myself a little bit more available than some folks have in the past and currently in the structure. But I think people are able to trust you so much more if they know they can have a conversation with you, they can bring something to you, they're going to see you at events.

 

It becomes much less of a, "We are doing something" as opposed to "I do things in the shadows of my office and you never see me and I just tell you what it's going to be". Saying when I first started out, "I have a lot of great ideas and I know I'll be able to solve one of your problems, but I don't want to solve your fifth or your sixth problem."

 

But in order to be able to be effective in that, I've really got to talk to you and listen to what you actually are experiencing and what you actually have going on to be able to do better than just something on the list, but one of the top things on your list.

00:24:31

Alix McCabe: Those are great pieces of advice for any leader really.

00:24:34

Christopher R. Lundy: Thank you.

00:24:35

Alix McCabe: Charlyn, any advice?

00:24:37

Charlyn Nater: Yeah, I would say support your local businesses. It's one thing to shop online and get that instant gratification of having a package delivered to you within 24 hours. But it is a completely different feeling to walk into a business and support that business physically. That's going to give you the best instant gratification because you're walking out the store with the item. As Director Lundy mentioned, you can't fix everything, but small businesses need the support of their community. After the pandemic, there seems to be a larger gap and divide of seeing that happening.

 

If I would give any advice, I would say it’s, "Go out and support your local businesses and buy and be a consistent customer." I go into every one of my main streets. I just went on Sunday at church to a main street to support them because they have these natural products in the Park Heights area, that I love. It was a little bit more of a drive for me, but I'm putting my money where my mouth is. I'm not just saying it, I'm actually doing it.

 

When you do that and you support locally, you start to see more of an impact than these companies that are receiving money and you really don't even know who you're giving it to. Locally, you know who it's going to. It's going to benefit that places where you live.

00:26:07

Alix McCabe: Coming from a family-owned business, that resonates a lot with me. What about business owners in Baltimore or beyond Baltimore, what lessons have you learned that you could share with them?

00:26:17

Christopher R. Lundy: I would say just be open to learning. A lot of folks, as they say, don't know what they don't know. One of the things is not to, like, "Well, that's something that somebody, of they've been in business for this long, they've got to know that, or I'm sure we've got... All of our owners know this." You've got to not necessarily make the assumptions on their behalf and really start at a level where sometimes you may find that to be very basic, but it's really the information that business owners need.

 Sometimes our most successful businesses, you'd be surprised at the things that they're unfamiliar with. One of the things we try to focus on is connecting businesses that help businesses and really making sure they're aware of those services and some of those services, just folks that are busy with their business don't think about. They just don't take time to think of, "Oh, I could get a consultant to assist me with analyzing my bookkeeping."

 

It's something that maybe they just look at as like, "Well, I've already got a program and I'm just plugging this stuff in. I've got to figure out how to make more cash flow." You're just not going to naturally figure it out maybe. You really may need a webinar on cash flow. You may need to learn about business finance basics.

 

A lot of that is sometimes letting go of the ego that, "Well, I'm a successful business owner," or "I already make this much," or "I bought my house on my business." You may have success, but it's all about what level you want to get to. I think that sometimes is lost in the business side because we get a lot of mantras about grinding and to staying after it and all those things.

 

Hard work is important, but it's just not enough to work hard. You got to educate along the way and put some of that same grinding mentality towards seeking out resources and knowledge about what you didn't know when you started your business.

00:27:47

Alix McCabe: Working smarter, not just harder.

00:27:48

Christopher R. Lundy: Yes.

00:27:49

Alix McCabe: Anything to add, Charlyn?

00:27:50

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. I think that one of the most important things that business owners should keep in mind is, ‘Who is their audience?’ A lot of the time, they may want to focus on things that they see other people are doing especially with this phenomenon of social media and what people are doing on there. But you have to know who your audience is. Once you know your audience, then you can create this plan to be able to cater to the people that are going to give you the money that's going to sustain your business so that it can grow.

 

Secondly is you cannot be the expert in every area. Do the thing that you do well and become the expert in that. Make sure that your finances are in place and that you bring in the experts in the other areas. Some people are good enough to do all the jobs, but a lot of people are not. Find, even if you write it out, what you're good at, what you're not good at, source out the areas that you know you don't do well. If you're financially responsible, then that's going to help you get there.

 

Lastly, I would say get in the right rooms. Be a part of that conversation. Rub elbows, meet the right people. Well, a lot of the time, it's really who you know. If you're not in that room, people don't know who you are. Take that time and go into those spaces so that you can get more resources that you may not have known about.

00:29:22

Alix McCabe: Excellent, thank you, both.

00:29:23

MUSIC: Baltimore.

00:29:29

Alix McCabe: That music from the artist, formerly known as Prince, means it is time for our final segment. Charlyn, Christopher, I have here a handful of trivia questions about Baltimore. I would love to pit the two of you against each other to see who comes out on top. No pressure. Are you game for this?

00:29:49

Christopher R. Lundy: Yeah.

00:29:49

Charlyn Nater: Yeah, let's go.

00:29:51

Alix McCabe: Okay. Question number one. Which private research facility in Baltimore has the number one ranked public health program in America according to U. S. News?

00:30:03

Charlyn Nater: Can we just blurt it out, is that how we-

00:30:05

Alix McCabe: Yeah. I feel like you both know this one.

00:30:07

Christopher R. Lundy: Yeah, I would think this would be one of our partners that we deal with quite a bit.

00:30:11

Charlyn Nater: Yes. Johns Hopkins.

00:30:12

Christopher R. Lundy: Johns Hopkins.

00:30:13

Alix McCabe: Correct. Johns Hopkins University, named after the entrepreneur and philanthropist, whose $7 million bequest to establish the school in 1876 was the largest philanthropic gift in the U. S. history at that time.

00:30:28

Christopher R. Lundy: Yeah, that is an amazing fact. That is an absolutely significant amount of money for that year. Wow.

00:30:34

Alix McCabe: Yeah, very significant.

00:30:36

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. Speaks to where they are today.

00:30:37

Christopher R. Lundy: It does.

00:30:38

Charlyn Nater: We partner with Johns Hopkins. We do a lot of work with them in their Carey Business School.

00:30:42

Alix McCabe: We actually are in the building with the Carey Business School. That's our Allianz Trade building.

00:30:47

Charlyn Nater: Oh wow.

00:30:47

Alix McCabe: Yeah.

00:30:47

Charlyn Nater: We love that building.

00:30:49

Christopher R. Lundy: I didn't realize that.

00:30:50

Alix McCabe: Yes.

00:30:51

Christopher R. Lundy: Awesome.

00:30:51

Alix McCabe: We're neighbors.

00:30:52

Charlyn Nater: The view is spectacular, sure.

00:30:54

Alix McCabe: It is very good. We'll have to have you come by.

00:30:56

Christopher R. Lundy: Love to.

00:30:57

Charlyn Nater: Yes.

00:30:58

Alix McCabe: All right, question number two, which legendary writer and poet lived and worked in Baltimore for a significant chunk of his life?

00:31:06

Christopher R. Lundy: Edgar Allan Poe.

00:31:07

Charlyn Nater: I have that answer as well, and I did not cheat, I promise. I think I'm right.

00:31:11

Alix McCabe: Both correct. Edgar Allan Poe.

00:31:13

Charlyn Nater: I guess I know Baltimore a little bit better than I thought. Okay, sure, it is.

00:31:17

Alix McCabe: Yeah. As a New York native, you know your stuff. Edgar Allan Poe's grave can be found at Westminster Hall and Burying Ground, which is now part of the University of Maryland School of Law. He also wrote The Raven in Baltimore which our team is named after our NFL team.

00:31:35

Christopher R. Lundy: Yes.

00:31:36

Alix McCabe: Question number three. Baltimore is home to the oldest continuously operating market in the country. What's it called?

00:31:43

Christopher R. Lundy: Oh yeah, Lexington Market.

00:31:45

Charlyn Nater: Yeah, yeah. I wanted to give Christopher that one because I keep answering them right. But yes, Lexington Market.

00:31:52

Alix McCabe: Lexington Market which began as an informal meeting place to exchange goods in 1782 when America was still fighting the Revolutionary War. Today, it's part of the Baltimore public market system, which operates six city-owned markets across Baltimore.

00:32:08

Charlyn Nater: We have some of those markets in our Main Streets.

00:32:11

Christopher R. Lundy: Fun thing about Lexington Market, one of our local MBE contractors who oversaw the renovation there just the other year, his grandfather had been a gentleman that rang the bell every day at Lexington Market to open up business and he was able to do the renovation. Jason Williams from Mayson- Dixon Companies, one of our pillars of the business community that does a ton of great work for the community and for other business owners.

00:32:32

Alix McCabe: That's really cool. All right, moving to question four. Which railway also featured in the board game Monopoly is the oldest railroad company in the United States?

00:32:42

Christopher R. Lundy: Do you have that one, Charlyn?

00:32:43

Charlyn Nater: I don't have that one.

00:32:45

Christopher R. Lundy: Okay. It should be B&O.

00:32:46

Alix McCabe: Yes. Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, a. k. a. B& O Railroad, ran from 1830 until 1987 and was founded to serve merchants from Baltimore who wanted to do business with settlers crossing the Appalachian Mountains.

00:33:00

Christopher R. Lundy: We still have the Railroad Museum that we do some events at and try to highlight. It has a lot of great history.

00:33:05

Charlyn Nater: See, why didn't I know that?

00:33:05

Alix McCabe: It's all right, but there's a lot of pressure, I mean, here on the Wheel of Risk. Okay, last question. I didn't know this one. Okay. Baltimore is known as the birthplace of which beer-related innovation? I can give you a hint if you need it.

00:33:25

Charlyn Nater: Yeah, because the question, I mean, when I read it, I thought of the beer, but it's a beer-related innovation.

00:33:33

Alix McCabe: Correct. It's not the beer itself.

00:33:35

Christopher R. Lundy: Yeah, I went to Natty Boh.

00:33:36

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. I thought Natty Boh, National Bohemian Beer.

00:33:39

Christopher R. Lundy: But the actual innovation?

00:33:41

Alix McCabe: Well, you're on the right track. Here's a hint. The term for this innovation has also come to be used to describe tight abs, like abdominals.

00:33:50

Christopher R. Lundy: Shredding?

00:33:51

Alix McCabe: No. That was good, though.

00:33:53

Christopher R. Lundy: Okay. I can't think of what this could be. I was thinking of something that helps but-

00:33:56

Alix McCabe: Six pack. I did not know this. Now we are all learning something today. Baltimore-based brewing company, National Bohemian, put out the first six pack of beer in the 1940s stemming from the very sensible idea that four beers would be too few, but eight would be too many.

00:34:16

Christopher R. Lundy: I guess you could argue with them on the eight being too many, but interesting.

00:34:20

Alix McCabe: Right. Well, they might be heavy to carry around, the eight, but I did not know that as a Baltimore native. Now we can tell people that.

00:34:27

Christopher R. Lundy: Good innovation there.

00:34:28

Charlyn Nater: That is some history.

00:34:30

Alix McCabe: All right. It looks like it was very close, almost a tie. Let's see. I'm tallying up the scores. Christopher, I think you came out on top by one, by one because you got the B&O Railroad. Congratulations to you. I would love to say that I have a giant prize, I don't. We don't give any prizes away here on Wheel of Risk. But I will take you up on the opportunity to come and visit us in our office. We would love to host you both here.

00:34:59

Christopher R. Lundy: Oh, we would love to come see you guys, see the operation, and just see another great Baltimore business. We really appreciate everything you guys do in the area.

00:35:07

Alix McCabe: Thank you so much.

 

Sadly, that music now means we have reached the end of our time together. It also signals the end of season three of our podcast. Director Nater, Director Lundy, thank you both so much. I know you're super busy. You took time out of your schedules to be here, and I have really enjoyed our conversation.

00:35:26

Christopher R. Lundy: Thank you so much for having us. It has been a wonderful conversation. Definitely hope we can do this again sometime.

00:35:31

Charlyn Nater: Yeah. I've learned a few things and we were able to share all the work we do, so that's always a plus. Thank you, Alix, for having us.

00:35:41

Alix McCabe: My guests today have been Charlyn Nater, Director of Main Streets in the Mayor's Office of Small Minority Business Advocacy and Development, and Christopher R. Lundy, Director of the Mayor's Office of Small and Minority Business Advocacy and Development at the City of Baltimore. I'm Alix McCabe and this is Wheel of Risk.