For 20 years a vacant apartment building was the worst thing in the neighborhood, constantly squatted and constantly visited by cops who weren’t allowed to do anything.
This situation was NOT understandable. The property was owned by an LLC who could afford to fix things if they wanted to.**
In 2017 the squatters burned the garage, which finally triggered a very slow cascade of very slow actions. In 2021 the apt was completely renovated and two new houses were built across the street.
After the apt was fixed, a large property just south of the apt took the role of worst place. The back yard was constantly full of trash and occupied RVs. The owner hauled off trash fairly often but the quantity stayed the same. He must have been hauling things in and out at the same rate. About a year ago the house burned, but nothing changed.
This situation, though generally awful, was understandable. The owner was poor and ill and couldn’t do much about it.
Googlestreet was taken in Aug 2025, showing the results of the fire. At the right edge of the side view is the previously burned garage of the apt, which was never renovated.
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Personal: My weird eczema that started in June is fading out, and my feet are more skinny and comfortable. None of the diagnoses or treatments helped; it simply decided to go away in the same mysterious way that it decided to appear. Some combination of seasons and stress, no doubt. I’m always worse in summer.
With calmer feet I’ve returned to daily walks and enjoying life. The longer walks reveal that the bad house is suddenly being cleared out and demolished. The fence and trash and RVs are gone, the trees have been cut down, and today an Avista truck is turning off the power, or perhaps making new connections for more houses.
The property is big enough for three houses facing the side, so I’m guessing that the same developer who did the apt is handling this one. As yet I don’t see a ‘short plat’ in the city’s website.
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** I always wondered why the LLC was holding onto the apt for a decade, paying property tax and insurance every year with no rent coming in. Looking at the pattern now, the answer is clear. They must have been in the loop with Wall Street devils like Larry Fink. The LLC knew that Fink and friends were buying up half the houses in the country to jack up prices, and they knew when the peak was scheduled.
Polistra's Mill 