Abandoned Buildings

There are so many boarded up and abandoned buildings in the neighborhood that there's always talk about which ones are coming down and what's going on in them. There are a lot of empty houses all over Syracuse, but most are on the South Side. In the May 31st, 2009 Post Standard there was an article, Vacant Homes, Uneasy Neighborhoods, that claimed that 1 in every 5 Syracuse houses is empty. Last year there were 1370 just on the south side. That's not counting all the ones that have come down, leaving empty lots that sometimes give the neighborhood a rural feel. I went in to one vacant home after consulting with the neighbors, who were Puerto Rican.

There was something about the arched windows and the lacy that drew me to it. I went in a total of three times, once by myself, once with a photographer and once with my cousin, to show her the place. It was a little strange crawling in through the wall and under a kitchen sink that could have fallen on us it was so insecurely attached . There was evidence of people living there, chairs, beds, candles, silverware, old bicycles, a bible and a broken television. I fell in love with the way the light came through the shades and makeshift curtains. It had obviously been an elegant home once, then several apartments. It will, I think be torn down someday soon. For now, it' still standing with it's lacy trim and arched windows, and still fills up with light when the sun come out from behind the Syracuse clouds.