ST. LOUIS – One of the only gas stations in downtown St. Louis is officially closed after years of being prone to crime.
The Downtown West Improvement Association has made an effort for over two years to shut the doors to Shell, located on Tucker Boulevard just north of Washington Avenue. The property arguments to bring down a crime hotspot turned into a legal battle.
The court ruling stripped the gas station of its permits, creating grounds for a complete shutdown. A settlement was reached in April of this year between the Shell owners and the neighborhood association, officially setting a closing date.
And that day was Thursday.
The grounds of Shell have gained a reputation as a crime-ridden area, as there were over 6,300 emergency calls to the gas station from the span of 1990 to 2021. Within four years, from 2019 to 2023, there were 21 shootings at the location, according to court documents from October.
Additionally, records say the location has seen “frequent” assaults, shootings, carjacking’s, and even security assaults.
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department’s Lt. Scott Boyher, who is responsible for the downtown bike unit, called the gas station “the worst nuisance property downtown since 2017” in the lawsuit. The city continued to cite the property with this title in 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021.
Other serious incidents noted include an execution-style murder and a gun battle that injured three people. With the number of serious crimes taking place at Shell, many have referred to it as “Murder Shell.”
As the business is now forever closed, the property will be up for sale, with no opportunity of becoming a gas station again.
