Alerted to a recent demolition in Benton Park, which is rare due to its historic district status, I went by to take a look. The property, owned by an infamous slumlord, was once a corner store with an alley dwelling whose collapse I covered back in May of 2019. It was in bad shape before its destruction. With it gone, we can see the structure of the foundation of the house to the south.

Oh dear! There was a collapse! I think the 618 area code in the phone number on the “For Sale” sign (not shown) in the front yard sums up much of the frustration St. Louis residents have for properties such as this.