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Two St. Louis zip codes make list of 'ghost towns'

A new report out Tuesday places two St. Louis zip codes in the highest vacancy rates in the country. It said the high vacancy rate is partially attributable to the area's declining population.

ST. LOUIS — ST. LOUIS — A new report out Tuesday has listed two St. Louis zip codes as places with the highest vacancy rates in the country.

The zip codes are 63113 and 63133 and include areas just north of Delmar, and streets through towns like Pagedale and Wellston.

People who live in these neighborhoods told 5 On Your Side the areas were once thriving communities with well-kept homes, but as people started to move out, more and more the houses fell into disrepair.

"It's like this block doesn't exist anymore," Lamont Thompson, who lives in north St. Louis said.

Lamont told 5 On Your Side it's hard for him to look at his neighborhood. Since he moved to his neighborhood nearly 40 years ago, about a third of the homes have become vacant.

“It’s really really frustrating to see a nice community, neighborhood go to shreds like this," he said. "It's just like a dumpsite around here now." '

He said he bought a house on Paulian Place in north St. Louis years ago because of its charm and caring neighbors, but over the course of several years, he's watched it transform dramatically.

“They’re an eyesore in our community. They’re an eyesore," he told 5 On Your Side.

The new report called his zip code a ghost town. It said the high vacancy rate is partially attributable to the area's declining population.

"To see it like this now, I don't want to live on this block anymore, really. Something really needs to be done about," Lamont said.

James Clark with Better Family Life has been at the forefront of tackling this exact issue.

"If you have a block where you have vacant and abandoned property, that weighs on the esteem of everyone in the neighborhood," Clark said.

This year, he and other city leaders started an initiative to tear down a number of these vacant homes.

"We know that we're just scratching the surface. there's so much more work that needs to be done." Clark said. “We have to begin to focus more on our more decimated neighborhoods.”

Despite the efforts to bring the communities back to life, Lamont still found it hard to stay at his home.

"Nobody wants to buy over here. look at it, no one wants to live on this block," Lamont said.

However, he hopes big changes are coming soon.

"There's hope but it takes a village to raise a child, everyone needs to pitch in," he said.

So far this year, Clark said he and the city have torn down more than 50 homes in the St. Louis area. They hope to tear down even more next year.

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