The “Highway to Nowhere” wounded West Baltimore – and the current plan doesn’t heal it
We don’t need playgrounds, gardens and murals. We need a functioning commercial corridor to help us rebuild the safe and thriving communities we deserve. [OP-ED]
Above: On Baltimore’s Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Heritage Crossing residents Marit Eiler, Diane Lewis, Janet Allen, Simone Cruz and Logan Alderman stand outside an encampment that is partially obscured by a fence. (Fern Shen)
After nearly two years of meetings with our communities about how to invest millions of dollars in federal funds intended to help repair the damage caused by the Highway to Nowhere, the Baltimore City Department of Transportation DOT has released its plan.
Unfortunately, many residents remain deeply concerned that the priorities repeatedly voiced by the people most affected are still not reflected in the proposal.
The plan scheduled for submission on September 30, 2026, fails to include the very elements that community members and elected officials have consistently identified as essential to the long-term success of the Highway to Nowhere neighborhoods.
Most troubling is the absence of a true commercial corridor. A vibrant commercial corridor is not a luxury. It is a vital component of a healthy community.
• NOTE: The city has scheduled a meeting tonight at the Poppleton Recreation Center, 1049 West Saratoga Street, at 6 p.m. to get community feedback on the plan.
It provides residents with access to groceries, retail services, restaurants, healthcare resources, jobs, and opportunities for small business ownership. It creates daily activity, attracts investment, strengthens neighborhoods, and helps families choose to stay and build their futures in the community.
As currently proposed, the first phase investment of $85.5 million offers infrastructure improvements and recreational amenities, but it does not provide the economic engine needed to restore communities that were devastated when hundreds of homes and businesses were destroyed to make way for the Highway to Nowhere.
West Baltimore United Preliminary Concepts. BELOW: The Route 40 overpass with a fenced-off encampment at left, Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. at far right, and Heritage Crossing behind the truck. (Baltimore City DOT, Fern Shen)
An investment of this size – an initial $85.5 million, part of a promised $200 million Phase 1 initiative – must do more than improve the landscape.
It must help rebuild the economic, social, and cultural foundation that was taken from Black residents in West Baltimore decades ago.
That begins with:
• A functioning commercial corridor anchored by a full-service supermarket such as Harris Teeter and supported by local businesses
• Mixed-use development that creates jobs, business opportunities, and apprenticeship programs
• Housing that attracts and retains families across a range of income levels
• A Whole Life Community Center that serves residents of all ages
• A Community Benefit Agreement (CBA) that guarantees direct, measurable benefits for residents, similar to agreements associated with the Stadium Authority and Pimlico Racecourse developments
The inclusion of a commercial corridor as part of the September 30th Phase 1 investment is not optional. It is essential.
If this project is truly intended to reconnect communities, it must reconnect residents not only to each other, but also to the economic opportunities, services, and businesses that every thriving neighborhood needs.
Without a commercial corridor, this historic investment risks becoming another missed opportunity for the communities it was intended to heal.
• Janet Allen is the president of the Heritage Crossing Residents Association.
Previous Brew articles:
• Part 2: Land bridge over a block of the “Highway to Nowhere”? Not feeling it, community leaders say (2/10/25)