Northeastern Supply, a Baltimore-based distributor of plumbing and HVAC equipment and supplies, has donated its West Baltimore, Sandtown Store & Warehouse, valued at $2.2 million, to the resurrection Sandtown Project in support of the community revitalization effort.

A transfer-of-property ceremony took place at the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Baker Street in an empty lot and boarded up row homes in Baltimore. With many people attending from and around the community, remarks were given by Bishop Latrell Miller Easterling, Episcopal Leader of the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church; Steve Cook, CEO of Northeastern Supply; State Senator Antonio Hayes; Comptroller of the state of Maryland and Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate, Peter Franchot; as well as from residents, community and business leaders who work and live in Sandtown. They all gathered to celebrate the cook family and their donation and talk about their plans for the new space.

The Cook family’s donation of the 26,000-square-foot retail building, and two nearby properties totaling 10,000 square feet, is a historic expansion of the Cook Family’s commitment to family, service, and community involvement and represents an enormous boost in support of the resurrection of Sandtown’s revitalization efforts in the Sandtown community.

Founded in 1945, Northeastern Supply began in a group of converted “row houses” in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. As the company grew, it hired John H. Cook III in 1964. He was a branch manager until 1971, when he decided to purchase Northeastern Supply. John has since left a lasting legacy, as evidenced by the third generation of Cooks now involved in the family business. John’s son, Steve Cook, took over as President in 1987 and propelled Northeastern’s growth from four to thirty-six branches in addition to a state of the art central distribution center that opened in 2001.

Northeastern has been invested in Sandtown for over 23 years with its Pennsylvania Ave location, providing jobs and job training. Employees have be encouraged to support and participate in local community events throughout their time in Sandtown.

“It’s about becoming involved and doing the right thing. This was the right thing,” Cook said.