War zone or Ward 8 apartment complex? You decide.

If you have ever driven down Southern Avenue SE toward the Suitland Parkway and looked out of your window, you would be greeted by a shocking site. Perhaps you thought you had somehow stumbled out of the District of Columbia and into a foreign country in the middle of an armed conflict. Burned out cars (no less than four), broken windows, tall grass and balconies littered with toys, satellite dishes and household items are reminiscent of a family fleeing in the middle of the night. The main doors are open, nothing is secure and the feeling is that something horrible happened here. This isn't a village on the other side of the world, this is an apartment complex located in the nation's capital!

I don't know the story of 3072 30th Street SE but it has been in this state at least for ~~six months~~ a year, if not longer. I've often wondered what happened to the property, what happened to the tenants and why the DC government hasn't done something to clean up the property and secure it? I took a drive around the building and the front doors are open and unsecured, so despite the DCRA sticker on the front marking this as a vacant property, it's highly likely people are living inside. The idea that anyone could possibly be calling this place home terrifies me. How is this allowed?

I'm posting this along with some photos (that really don't capture all that is going on here) in hopes that someone can give me the story of what happened here and hopefully this place can be cleaned up ASAP. Please post in the comments.

UPDATE:
9 minutes after I tweeted about this property I received a response from Deputy Mayor Donahue! Yes!