BALTIMORE — Amtrak is going to court to acquire four small pieces of land in West Baltimore it says it needs for the project to replace the aging Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel, one of the most significant bottlenecks on the Northeast Corridor.
The Washington Post reports the company has filed suit to acquire the properties ‚ all 0.025 acres (about 1,089 square feet) or less, through eminent domain, and that the company deposited about $267,500 with the court, saying that was the combined value of the properties and “just compensation” based on fair market value.
The suit outlines Amtrak’s efforts to buy the properties, including a purchase agreement for one property that fell through. News reports do not indicate why Amtrak needs the land, but project maps place the property near the South Portal of the new tunnel.
The Baltimore Banner reports that the City of Baltimore and state of Maryland are named as defendants because of the possibilities that city or state entities might have liens against the properties involved. It says Amtrak values the individual properties at amounts ranging from $52,000 to $85,000.
The project to replace the 150-year-old B&P tunnel — actually three separate tunnels totaling 1.4 miles — began with preliminary work in March [see “Amtrak set to start early work …,” Trains News Wire, March 9, 2023]. The new Frederick Douglass Tunnel is expected to cost about $6 billion, and will triple capacity while eliminating sharp curves that currently limit top speeds to 30 mph. President Joe Biden said earlier this year the federal government would contribute more than $4 billion toward the project [see “B&P Tunnel to receive more than $4 billion …,” News Wire, Jan. 30, 2023].
Am wondering if the realignment will enable somewhat faster trains going south out of the present southernmost tunnel? However, the curve just north of West LaFayette Ave & north Michigan may be limiting while still using the old tunnels?
Would have been so much cheaper if the PRR had followed through with their tunnel plans almost a century ago.
For Amtrak, this is an arduous and long process that needs to be resolved in a positive way.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
oh bother! Cheaper to fly!
No mention on why these owners refuse to sell. Some reasons may be spurious, others more valid.
Don’t know about Amtrak but many/ most states have “quik take” eminent domain. If someone won’t sell, the public authority helps itself to the land, the court decides on the compensation later.
That’s a hell of a lot of money just 1089 square feet. That translates to almost $10.7 million per acre. Didn’t think any land in Baltimore (or any other city for that matter) could be worth that. Oh, FORGOT government money is involved.
Actually, the properties involved are each 1089 square feet or less, for a combined acreage of 0.1 acre. That equates to $2,675,000 per acre. For comparison, the modest 3 level townhouse, on 3200 square feet I used to own in urban Northern Virginia sold last year for the equivalent of $6,507,000 per acre.
Let’s be realistic: they’re paying $267,500, not millions. Stats can make things sound pretty absurd at times but in this case we’re talking about four slivers of land and the price per acre is irrelevant. If a residential developer were trying to build a condo complex on that site, that would eventually fetch millions, they would gladly throw a quarter-million at some lucky schleb to get out of the way, too.