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Detroit Home Torn Down Months After Being Stripped By Artist

DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - The city of Detroit has finally torn down an eyesore left behind by an artist who had said he wanted to draw attention to the city's urban decry.

The shell of an abandoned Detroit home was left for six months in a west side neighborhood, after Ryan Mendoza stripped the home's facade for an art display in Germany.

A  city crew hired by the Detroit Land Bank Authority tore down the two-story home Monday, The Detroit Free Press reported. Mendoza, an American artist living in Europe, stripped much of the home's materials to build a replica.

Neighbors were unhappy about the home's skeleton that was left standing six months after Mendoza returned to Europe.

A mayor's office spokesman, John Roach, says the city would seek a judge's order to make Mendoza pay for the demolition. Mendoza says he had been willing to pay since the start and that a contractor he hired didn't deliver.

TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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