Amtrak's Frederick Douglass Tunnel impacts in West Baltimore

By Melissa Gerr,

Ashley Sterner

Published August 20, 2025 at 10:23 AM EDT

Out Tahera Arrington's front door there used to be neighbors who 'had a sense of community.' Now she stands in front of her home that faces an Amtrak construction site. She and her family had to move out due to water damage, bug and rodent infestation months after construction started. Photo: Melissa Gerr

Amtrak’s multi-year Frederick Douglass Tunnel project moves forward, but folks in affected neighborhoods feel frustrated from unanswered questions, like relocation plans and appraisals for their homes. We talk with Amy Petkovsek, director of the nonprofit Community Law Center. Her organization represents ten neighborhoods affected by the construction. Then we visit Tahera Arrington, who had to move out of her West Baltimore home due to water and foundation damage she says was caused by construction happening out her front door.

Links: Community Law Center, Frederick Douglass Tunnel project, Baltimore Banner reporting.

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Melissa Gerr

Melissa Gerr is a Senior Producer for On the Record. She started in public media at Twin Cities Public Television in St. Paul, Minn., where she is from, and then worked as a field producer for Oregon Public Broadcasting in Portland. She made the jump to audio-lover in Baltimore as a digital media editor at Mid-Atlantic Media and Laureate Education, Inc. and as a field producer for "Out of the Blocks." Her beat is typically the off-beat with an emphasis on science, culture and things that make you say, 'Wait, what?'

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Ashley Sterner

Ashley Sterner is the co-host of WYPR’s On The Record. With co-host Sheilah Kast, Ashley interviews artists, scientists, community leaders, and others.

See stories by Ashley Sterner