The eastern half of the 1000 block of Gimblin is devastated. It’s hard to imagine this when it was still occupied.
There’s also huge amounts of illegal dumping, and the streets are littered with trash.
A Blog detailing the beauty of St. Louis architecture and the buildup of residue-or character-that accumulates over the course of time.
Chris what can you attribute the high rate of abandonment in this neighborhood to?
A lot of the houses in the first couple of pictures are very old, probably dating to the years right after the Civil War, perhaps even built before Baden was annexed into the City of St. Louis. It is hard to get a home repair loan on a house that is structurally problematic, and certainly some zipcodes are next to impossible to get financing for home purchasing. I fear for Baden’s future.
So what do you see in the future for this area? Will there need to be full blocks redeveloped to a different use? When does a neighborhood lose all viability?
There really doesn’t seem to be any plan for arresting the continued decline of Baden. The past alderman and the current one, as well as City Hall, seems to be completely at a loss to combat the problems of this neighborhood. Expect more abandonment in the future.
I remember seeing Baden as an oasis heading north on Broadway. Cemeteries on the left; industry on the right. Go under that railroad trestle and like someone flipped on a light switch you were in what seemed like a well put together neighborhood. Sad to see Baden in this state.
I agree, Peter. I first photographed Baden a just under decade ago, and it seems like it has suffered much in the intervening years. My posts on Baden have probably gotten the most reader feedback expressing sadness on its decline than any other neighborhood.
I know what you mean about there being something dramatic about passing under the railroad trestle, almost like going through the gates of medieval city walls in Germany or something.