UPDATE: Demolition Starts On Salisbury's Thrift Travel Inn - WMDT 47 News - Delmarva's Choice

SALISBURY, Md. - In Salisbury, a building, notorious for housing prostitutes and drug dealers is a pile of rubble tonight. Contractors started tearing down the Thrift Travel Inn on Route 13 today. City officials condemned it three times and ordered the current owners to raze the hotel. All this after the former owner pleaded guilty to charges of human trafficking. Not to mention, the many times, the police and fire department have been called out to the property.

Chief Barbara Duncan, of the Salisbury Police Department, says "What this mans for us is we will no longer be dedicating police resources to respond here to investigate runaways, robberies, serious assaults, and domestic violence incidents." Officials say it will take about a week to demolish the entire building. Then, the owners, United Central Bank of Garland, will continue waiting for anyone interested in buying the land.

Before the demolition, Mayor Ireton released a statement saying "the Thrift Travel Inn has been a thorn in the City's side for years. It's been condemned multiple times and year after year it's been a huge draw on our City services, constituting 1500 calls for service to our city departments over its history. Departments that need to be focusing their efforts elsewhere throughout the City are relieved to see finally this property come down. I thank our Neighborhood Services and Code Compliance office for the fortitude that has gone into removing this blight from our City."