St. Louis is at the point where abandoned, historic buildings are now just simply collapsing, not in out of the way places where the whole street is vacant lots and it’s the last house left on the block, but rather in the heart of one of the densest neighborhoods in the City, Dutchtown, and on one of the busiest thoroughfares, South Grand (with the busiest bus line in the region).
But these things just happen, right?
As a boy, I would be taken to my father’s printing plant on St Louis Ave.. All of Old North was, if not beautifully kept up, not at all rundown. On returning to visit in 2011, I saw whole blocks in only grass and weeds. Here is my theory of what caused this. As manufacturing was moved offshore, the Republicans got what they wanted, cheaper labor and the Democrats got what they wanted, no environmental waste. So, with no jobs, no tenants (or home owners), the neighborhood rotted. We can cry over the loss, but we should simultaneously be angered at the politicians, the root of this problem.
Oh, I know of plenty of people angry at the politicians.
Has to make one proud…not!
The lowest common denominator in St. Louis just got a lot lower.
I seriously doubt environmentalism or environmentalists had anything to do with the abandonment of North St. Louis. The so-called ‘captains of industry’ didn’t decamp to China because of environmental regulations, it was just pure greed. Why manufacture in America when you can go overseas and exploit poor people in foreign lands? White flight, redlining, disinvestment, lack of political will, and just old fashioned racism all combined to be the death knell.