Baltimore photographer Ben Marcin, who lives in a well-kept rowhouse himself, has been documenting structures that haven't fared nearly as well. In "Last House Standing," started in 2010, Marcin shoots heartbreaking photographs that show neighbor-less rowhouses, its density-friendly architecture surrounded awkwardly by vacant lots.
Over the next two and a half years, Baltimore plans to spend nearly $22 million to tear down 1,500 abandoned houses, according to the Baltimore Sun. Previously, it spent about $2.5 million a year to demolish these symbols of urban neglect. What will replace these buildings is not always certain. One resident tells the Sun, 'We just don't want a lot of tracts of vacant land like Detroit." [...]
It is always with a touch of sadness when I find and stop to photograph one of the old, solo rowhouses struggling to hang on in some of the more distressed neighborhoods in Baltimore. I would guess that my original intention for photographing these rowhouses was to document the connection between our own house - still very vibrant and well cared for - with those on the other end of the spectrum. In a way, it makes me think what will become of our rowhouse after we are long gone.
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