Update: I revisited the street in October of 2020 and the summer of 2021.
Cote Brilliante Avenue starts out nice enough just northeast of the intersection of Kingshighway and Dr. Martin Luther King Drive, but it quickly turns bad the further you go east.
You might recognize the street’s name from the nightly news, as it passes through some of the most troubled portions of the city.
But past those nice two-family apartment buildings above, it goes downhill fast, as I documented back in April of 2013, when I investigated out-of-town land speculation on this long block.
Update: The house above has been demolished.
This beautiful brick house above is still there that I photographed back then, but I was shocked at how many houses were now gone; it was practically unrecognizable from six years ago.
I don’t even remember these two houses the last time I was here.
At the end of the block, at Marcus Avenue, I remember the houses that used to be here; they had been hit hard by brick thieves, and I suspect they were finally put out of their misery recently.
The new grass is just starting to come up above the straw laid down after demolition.
The two story house with the half-timber gables and faux-stone stucco (Formstone, Permastone, or some other trade name) cladding has recently been for sale. Its address is 4807 Cote Brilliante Ave. One can see from a photograph of the back that it was originally brick and shingle-sided before the application of faux-stone. The outside retains its original windows, and the inside has some remaining woodwork, but none of the original doors and all the mantles were replaced by the same faux-stone as the exterior. I can’t say I wasn’t tempted to put in an offer, but I (unfortunately) can’t buy every neat house I see for sale. Plus, that type of stucco tends to hide and exacerbate problems such as water damage and deterioration; there could be nasty and expensive surprises lurking underneath it.
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/4807-Cote-Brilliante-Ave_Saint-Louis_MO_63113_M83358-41125?view=qv
Good catch! As I was looking through the pictures, I was thinking to myself, “So where is the picture of the dirty toilet?” And I was not disappointed!
The current owners, hiding behind a fake name not registered properly as an LLC with the Missouri Secretary of State, foolishly bought the house out of foreclosure for $35,000 (way more than the house is worth), and are now trying to sell it for $11,000. They will not find a buyer. And now one more house in North St. Louis has been abandoned, fall into disrepair and be demolished.