(Mary Carole McCauley, The Baltimore Sun) When seven former college friends first ventured inside the former shoe factory at 306 W. Redwood St., it was filled with junk and there were holes in the floor.

There wasn’t an electrical outlet to be found, let alone the remnants of the former heating and cooling systems. Each footstep unearthed more rats. And everything, including the ceiling, was covered with grime.

No wonder they fell in love with the place.

“As soon as we walked in the door, we could see the potential,” says Brad Leroy Cartwright, a local writer and member of the EMP Collective, an energetic group of young artists, musicians and actors.