Implosion topples 2 towers that were Indy eyesore

INDIANAPOLIS — Hundreds of people watched from nearby as explosives brought down a long-shuttered Indianapolis apartment tower near the Indiana State Fairgrounds that had become a neighborhood eyesore and a haven for crime.

The Indianapolis Star reports that about 750 pounds of explosives brought down the Keystone Towers’ 15-story apartment building and 8-story office building in about 15 seconds Sunday morning. The apartment building’s elevator shaft remained standing, as demolition crews had expected.

Project estimator Frank Burdick of Denney Excavating said crews would begin removing debris Monday and then draft plans later in the week to raze the elevator shaft.

The complex was built in the early 1970s but had long been empty and had become a haven for squatters, drug dealers and illegal dumping.