Proposals for either "high-quality" apartments or a "modern office building" are competing to be chosen by Baltimore County for redevelopment of a former Department Recreation and Parks office building in the middle of downtown Towson.

Pikesville-based ROC Realty Team has submitted a bid of $462,500 to buy the former county office building and .395-acre property at 301 Washington Avenue, while the Lutherville-based Mid-Atlantic Properties bid $251,000 for the property.

The county announced last month that it would be selling the building and property as surplus land.

"This property is a key development parcel," said 5th District County Councilman David Marks, "and I hope we can bring a quality project into the Towson core."

After a 3 p.m. Nov. 21 deadline for proposals, the sealed bids were opened Tuesday, Nov. 22. Marks said the ROC Realty and Mid-Atlantic bids were the only two made for the property.

Whichever developer gets the building, the purchase could be considered something of a bargain.

According to Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation records, the land was valued at $412,800 as of Jan. 1, 2011, while the building and improvements were valued at $567,600, for a total of assessed value of $980,400.

County spokeswoman Ellen Kobler said the county is in the process of "reviewing and evaluating the bids for price, as well as for proposed uses"

She said there is no timeline for a final decision.

Choice for redevelopment

"We were the higher bid," said Roland O. Campbell Jr., president and CEO of the ROC Realty Team, "but that doesn't mean they're going to accept our bid."

Campbell said that if the county does choose ROC's offer, he plans to raze the building and develop it in the mold of surrounding buildings in Towson.

"Our approach to it will be to eliminate the building, and go in there with a structure that will be suitable for downtown Towson, that will generate more foot traffic," Campbell said.

He said he envisions first-floor retail, some parking and "high-quality apartments, consistent with what is found at The Palisades," an apartment building one block down Washington Avenue.

Campbell, a former chairman of the Baltimore County Chamber of Commerce, said his intentions are in line with the widely-accepted vision that downtown Towson should be a place for people to live, work and play.

Meanwhile Wayne R. Gioioso Jr., president of Mid-Atlantic Properties, said his proposal reflects that he's "bullish on Towson."

Mid-Atlantic Properties already owns six buildings, as well as a few pieces of land, in downtown Towson, and manages the building at 305 Washington Avenue for First Mariner Bank. Gioioso said his own company will be moving its office downtown Towson as well.

His plans for the 301 Washington Avenue building are to renovate the existing building to "make it a modern office building, and add architectural features that update it and make it interesting on the outside."

The zoning on the property — Business Major-Commercial Town Center Core — would allow construction of a high-rise structure.

Vacant since 2007, the building once provided office space for 26 Department of Recreation and Parks employees, according to Kobler.

While Marks suspects the amount of the bid "will be the biggest factor," he added that, "the potential for developing a quality, attractive project is most important, as we seek to bring new residents and customers to downtown Towson."

Reporter Loni Ingraham contributed to this story.