Memphis, TN (abc24.com) - The fight against Memphis blight has hit ground zero, with the old Greyhound bus station in downtown Memphis now boarded up and vacant.
"It makes downtown look bad, because it ain't doing nothing," said Deroy Robinson, as he surveyed the building.
Greyhound moved to a new terminal near the airport in early November, 2011 leaving the decades-old building vacant. The building, on Union Avenue, is now boarded up.
The building, which still has a passenger waiting area, restaurant, and shop, lists for $2.3 million according to the broker managing the sale of the property. He said he's fielded a handful of calls about the property.
"I think with the economy the way it is now, and putting together a big deal like that, I think it is going to take some time," said Paul Morris, president of the Downtown Memphis Commission.
Morris told abc24.com the commission asked Greyhound to remove the boards covering the windows, but the bus company declined, citing company policies.
Mayor A C Wharton said he'd like to paint a mural on the building in the short-term. Several real estate experts told abc24.com they expect the building will be torn down by a new owner to make way for redevelopment.
"I'm inpatient in the sense I want it to happen as soon as possible, but I'm realistic in realizing it is not going to happen very soon," Morris told abc24.com.
