My colleague Jeff Wheeler snapped the photo above to accompany my colleague Steve Brandt’s story about the once charming, now decrepit little house on Park Avenue South in downtown Minneapolis. After 130-odd years, 816 Park Avenue has a few weeks left before demolition.

Over on the other side of the river, the St. Paul City Council is scheduled to decide this week on the city’s request to demolish 975 Minnehaha Avenue East in the Dayton’s Bluff neighborhood. On March 10, it was listed on a real estate web site for a mere $19,900, sold in an “as is” condition. It’s 106 years old and 1,869 square feet. The online slideshow shows a home with considerable charm, considering its vacant state. But should the council approve the demolition order, the owner will have to knock it down within 15 days. That’s the same fate awaiting 314 Bates Avenue, 770 Bush Avenue, 1035 Fremont Avenue, 127 Front Avenue and 57 Lyton Place in St. Paul. Here’s the way the city justifies these orders:

The above referenced interested or responsible parties shall make the Subject Property safe and not detrimental to the public peace, health, safety and welfare and remove its blighting influence on the community by demolishing and removing the structure in accordance with all applicable codes and ordinances.

127 Front Avenue, St. Paul

Meet the latest problem properties in Minneapolis that the city has ordered demolished:
2426 Plymouth Avenue (built in 1921, four dwellings)
2321 Fremont Avenue North (built in 1987, nine unit apartment building)

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