Downtown Baltimore’s future depends on filling in the gaps

When Lynnette and Eric Dodson opened Cuples Tea House on North Howard Street three years ago, in a block that now boasts a plant-based creamery, a vegan juice bar and a couple of art galleries, they hoped customers might find their way four blocks north from events at the CFG Bank Arena or even Camden Yards and the Inner Harbor. But few do. The walk from the arena or elsewhere downtown can be less than inviting.