Westport, Baltimore

Westport is a neighborhood in south Baltimore, Maryland. It borders the Middle Branch River on the east, Cherry Hill and Lansdowne to the south, Hollins Ferry Road to the west, and Interstate 95 to the north. The Baltimore Washington Parkway (MD Route 295) runs through the middle of Westport and intersects with I-95.

History

The neighborhood is mostly brick row homes built in the 1920s. The neighborhood consisted of mostly blue-collar workers who worked at nearby businesses such as the Carr Lowrey Glass Company and the Baltimore Gas and Electric Westport Plant. Over the years, the industrial core of Baltimore faded and many residents moved to the suburbs, leaving neighborhood's like Westport to fall into disrepair. According to an article in the Baltimore's Department of Planning, in 2000, 22% of the homes in Westport were abandoned.

When the Carr Lowrey Glass company went out of business, the 16-acre property was purchased by Inner Harbor West LLC for $6.82 million. The prior year, Inner Harbor West LLC purchased the 12-acre power plant from Constellation Energy Group. The Carr Lowrey factory was leveled and there are plans for water-front development with a park. Westport has a picturesque view of the historic Hanover Street Bridge and the Baltimore skyline. As a result of the development, housing prices in Westport rose significantly.

ports

This neighborhood was the home town of Al Kaline, who graduated from Southern High School in 1954 and was recruited by the Detroit Tigers for the then-all-time high amount of $35,000.00. Al Kaline also coached the Westport Methodist Baseball League.

Transportation

Westport is served by Baltimore's Light Rail system. The Westport stop is just south of the Hamburg Street stop, which serves M&T Bank Stadium, and north of the Cherry Hill stop. The Maryland Transit Administration's bus line also run along Baltimore/Annapolis Boulevard (MD Route 648).

Geography

Westport is located at

[http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=baltimore&ie=UTF8&z=16&ll=39.262895,-76.633673&spn=0.007543,0.020556&om=1]

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 2,185 people residing in the neighborhood. The racial makeup of Westport was 9.8% White, 88.8% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.9% of the population. 32.4% of occupied housing units were owner-occuped. 22.0% of housing units were vacant.

34.6% of the population were employed, 17.9% were unemployed, and 47.5% were not in the labor force. The median household income was $16,250. About 45.7% of families and 43.0% of the population were below the poverty line.

References

External links

* [http://censusprofile.bnia.org/Westport%20Demographic%20Profile.pdf Demographics from Neighborhood Indicators Alliance]