JHZR2
Staff member
As I recall the Hilton in downtown SF was abandoned not too long ago. It’s a shame - I went to a few conferences there.
Tallest building in Oregon sold for pennies on the dollar.
- Thread starter Finklejag
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I recently drove through Gary. Not near enough was razed.Gary, IN met its urban decline decades ago, with downtown abandoned and dangerous as well. Their solution: raze anything that had been vacant & in disrepair longer than X amount of time. Yes, it was a shame to lose some of those historic buildings, but nothing was going to change without drastic measures.
These days, it’s still blighted, but at least it’s not the murder capital of the world anymore (per capita, of course). Even nature eventually burns everything down so life can begin anew. St. Louis will likely need to follow suit, and for the same reasons.
Yes I read about that. They literally just jingle mailed the keys. Its a whole city block I think?
https://www.thestreet.com/travel/huge-hotel-chain-shuts-iconic-property-as-major-sports-team-exits
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Agree. But in the early 1990s before any of it was razed, the Governor had to deploy like 350 state troopers to Gary fulltime for awhile to get the murder rate under control. In a city of ~60,000.
Back in the 1960's, wasn't St. Louis the poster city for the "Beautify America" campaign figure-headed by Lady Bird Johnson?
I recall seeing lots of cleared lots in downtown neighborhoods there 40 years ago.
Were those just real old relics from the late 19th Century?
Maybe building condemnation has different math now-a-days?
I recall seeing lots of cleared lots in downtown neighborhoods there 40 years ago.
Were those just real old relics from the late 19th Century?
Maybe building condemnation has different math now-a-days?
I know some people are entertained by bashing certain large cities. Post from 8 years ago from me. My wife is currently working with policy advisors and has to often travel to DC. I can tell a lot more when I get time. https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/do-you-want-a-job-here.264415/post-4300494
Well it’s not bashing when the truth is really told. It’s always been so - don’t enforce property crime laws and areas go in the hopper
Yeah...and who exactly would it be housing given the entire reason it was sold at a deep discount is because there are no jobs to fill the spaces.
THis article from NPR more or less says St. Louis did it to themselves. If NPR says that, it must be worse than we thought.
https://www.stlpr.org/news-briefs/2025-05-16/st-louis-city-population-loss-faster-2020-2024
News For Reasonable People on YouTube talks about stuff like this all the time.
edyvw
$50 site donor 2025
Cities that fail to reinvent themselves. Pittsburgh is an example that a city can have a new, different life.
That started in the late 80's with the advent of the PC. So many bookeepers and accounting staff became obsolete overnight. Then lowly programmers wrote code that replaced analysts and their spreadsheets.
You are right; AI is a game changer. There will not be enough jobs for people.
Winners and losers. Yesterday's winners are tomorrow's losers.
Change is the only constant.
To retrofit the Capitol Park Hotel in Sacramento to house the homeless cost $567,000 per 280 square foot unit. That works out to just a bit over $2000 a square foot to retrofit a building designed for human habitation. I shudder to think of the cost if California or Oregon, or the local municipalities take over these buildings to provide housing.
Up until now, governmental agencies on the West Coast seem to be part of the problem rather than the solution to the problem. The adage that with a democracy you get the government you deserve seems to apply.
Up until now, governmental agencies on the West Coast seem to be part of the problem rather than the solution to the problem. The adage that with a democracy you get the government you deserve seems to apply.
Given what has been going on in that city, not surprised. Actions have consequences.
Me too. I have family there. Portland has effectively destroyed the rest of Oregon.
We moved for all the good it did in 1990
Yup. But for some reason homelessness has become a cottage industry for some, well connected individuals/corporations, and all of the sudden we don’t know where all the homeless came from and how to fix it, except throw billions at it.
The Homeless Industrial Complex on YouTube by How Money Works
One of the top comments:I literally just spoke to a lady who's worked with the homeless for the last 10 years. She told me it's a business designed to extract the tax dollars and that she wants out of her job once her kid is a little older. She said she took the job wanting to help people but told me she feels like she hasn't been able to help one single person the whole time.
Seattle is not a large city by world standards. It’s big but not huge. Billions and billions of local, state and federal dollars have been spent on the homeless. The problem continues to worsen.
It’s a complete racket.
The St Louis issue is a unique one as the City is not located within the county. They have 2 separate governments and the City has been poorly managed for decades.
St Louis city population ~275,000
St Louis county population ~ 1MM
St Louis MSA population ~2.8MM
The City schools stink and the city has a 1% earnings tax for businesses and individuals that hasn’t helped retain jobs there. The downtown is a ghost town unless the Cardinals or Blues are playing. Crime is overwhelmingly committed within the City limits which then looks terrible based on the low population. I’ve lived in the County almost my entire life and watching the City decline is sad. We do have a new Mayor who, on the surface appears to want things to improve and doesn’t look to be in it for herself. Time will tell. I’d say now is the time to buy some buildings if you like to gamble as I don’t think the values can go much lower and you might just make some money, someday.
St Louis city population ~275,000
St Louis county population ~ 1MM
St Louis MSA population ~2.8MM
The City schools stink and the city has a 1% earnings tax for businesses and individuals that hasn’t helped retain jobs there. The downtown is a ghost town unless the Cardinals or Blues are playing. Crime is overwhelmingly committed within the City limits which then looks terrible based on the low population. I’ve lived in the County almost my entire life and watching the City decline is sad. We do have a new Mayor who, on the surface appears to want things to improve and doesn’t look to be in it for herself. Time will tell. I’d say now is the time to buy some buildings if you like to gamble as I don’t think the values can go much lower and you might just make some money, someday.
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