Hole Lot of Nothing

Eight years ago, when the Mercantile building, in the background, was under "renovation" (all that was retained was the brick façade), it caught fire and pretty much burned to the ground. The building across the street from it caught fire, too, and wound up being completely destroyed.

The Mercantile building was rebuilt, and is now a reasonably high-end apartment building. The building across the street is the hole in the foreground of the picture.

It's a shame and somewhat confusing, as it's not like this isn't valuable real estate. A grocery store here, even a small one, would do great guns; as it would be the only full-service grocer within walking distance of the entire downtown. Even more housing would be welcome, given how high local costs are. But here it sits, still empty, with no sign of anything being done.