East St. Louis Demolitions

chaifetz10 · PostAug 27, 2013#12013-08-27T18:35+00:00

Southwestern Illinois' St. Clair County has given the go-ahead to demolish dozens of East St. Louis buildings on county-owned property.

The Belleville News-Democrat reports that the county board on Monday hired Millstadt-based MS Mitch Consulting Inc. to raze at least 33 of the structures. It'll cost $450 per demolition.

The county acquired the properties from owners who were delinquent on their property taxes.

Craig Hubbard, a member of the board, says the county repeatedly has tried to auction off the properties, but there were no takers.

He says some of the buildings have become a haven for illegal drug use and homes for stray dogs in the financially struggling city of 27,000.

It's a real shame that the East side is as bad as it is. Maybe some of this land being converted back into farm land, gardents, or green space isn't such a bad thing. I have yet to find a map or list of the properties, but I'm interested to see what shape their in and where they're located.

jstriebel · PostAug 27, 2013#22013-08-27T19:04+00:00

I hope at some point ESL can start an ascension back towards being an active and vibrant city. Most of the attention in this region (especially if you are on the MO side) should be focused on strengthening the core that is St. Louis city right now, but it would be truly wonderful to have a strong sister city across the river.

I say all that, but I have to admit to not knowing much about East St. Louis beyond general things. What's the real status there. Is it better or worse off than 10 years ago? (And that doesn't have to mean population. St. Louis still lost population, but is certainly better off today than it was 10 years ago.)

Kevin B · PostAug 27, 2013#32013-08-27T20:47+00:00

^^ This tells me that the City of St. Louis is doing a crap job on its RFP process for demos. $450/strucure?! Holy moly -- that wouldn't take down a wood porch with the STL contractor(s) of record.

^ I too anticipate the day when East St. Louis is viewed as respectable again. It'd never pass because of reasons both legitimate and ignorant , but I would be behind an effort to annex East St. Louis into St. Louis. Again, it'd never happen, even if Illinois gave the okay -- the public opinion surrounding East St. Louis is just too negative for anyone to see any positives (and really, the Missouri side has its own house to get in order first).