SYRACUSE -- A vacant lot now sits on the corner of Midland and Bellevue Avenue. Demolition crews have torn down a building that used to house the “A. Shack Market”. The mini-mart was known as one of Syracuse's most notorious criminal hangouts.

From January 1, 2004 until the market was shut down on July 21, 2006, police were called to the scene 187 times for anything ranging from drug activity to weapons use. 61 arrests were made in that span of time. Neighbors worked hard with the City and the Syracuse United Neighbors group to have something done about this hangout. When the bulldozer took its first swing at the roof, cheers rose out of the crowd.

“I am so happy that this store is going down. We fought really hard for this store to go down,” says Joanne Stevens. She played a very active role in getting this market shut down. When she saw the first chunk of the building come crashing down this is what she had to say, “I got butterflies in my stomach. I am so happy to see this place torn down. I am so tired of coming down here; cars parked all over, drug activity, prostitution. I am so happy this store is going down.”

With a bright, crime-free future, the vacant lot will be developed into five new single-family homes and a community garden. "This corner here had been a nuisance to the city and this neighborhood for years, so it’s a great day for the City of Syracuse" says Rory McMahon of the Coty of Syracuse Corporation Council.

Getting the A. Shack shut down did take some time, but once its doors were boarded up things began to change right away. “Since our nuance abatement hearing calls went from 187 to 8. It just shows that the owners, who are facing federal charges for welfare fraud, were attracting a criminal element and letting crimes, go on” says McMahon.

The market demolition was a collaboration of the Mayor’s office, community groups, and an arrangement with a federal judge. The store has been closed under the city nuisance abatement ordinance since July 21, 2006.