When the rowhouse at 2417 E. Biddle St. came tumbling down recently, a congregation praised God, a grandmother breathed a little easier, and a neighborhood felt things were just a bit safer.
The decrepit Formstone building in the heart of a blighted East Baltimore neighborhood known as "Zombieland" has been razed, and city workers are clearing the rubble from the lot where it once stood.
"We're all elated here now," said Donna Money, president of the Lakewood Chase Community Association and a member of the Bibleway Missionary Baptist Church.
The two organizations badgered the city over the past year to demolish the rowhouse.
"We were hoping and praying in church that the building would be taken down, and when we found out about it we rejoiced," she said.
"Our prayers were answered."
Concerned for children
The building, which stood around the corner from Dr. Rayner Browne Elementary School and about 50 feet from the Bibleway church, was more than an eyesore.
Residents pointed out that most of its roof and second floor had given way, and the rest could follow, endangering the children who frequently play nearby.
The building was condemned in May 1998 and again in October.
Despite this, officials at the Baltimore Department of Housing and Community Development said last month that the rowhouse was not on the emergency demolition list of 25 to 50 buildings, and there was no telling when it might be added.
`Getting into heavy weather'
After an article appeared in The Sun, housing inspectors were sent back to the building and decided to demolish it immediately, said housing department spokesman Zack Germroth.
"We were getting into heavy weather, which could have caused problems with 2417 Biddle, so we flipped it over to the emergency list, and the job was done," said Germroth.
The city is building a retaining wall to ensure that the adjacent rowhouse has adequate support, he said.
The flurry of activity put a smile on the face of Venus Knox, the 65-year-old grandmother who lives at 2415 Biddle.
Knox had complained repeatedly to city officials about the condemned building, fearful that her grandchildren would be hit by fall- ing bricks.
"The city finally got around to doing what it should have done early on," she said.
The people living in the neighborhood are "feeling a bit more secure, just knowing they don't have to worry about that building any more," Knox said.
