On this week's Northwest Soapbox we speak to Germantown resident Julie Baranauskus about the blighted property adjoining her home. She and her neighbors in the Penn-Knox neighborhood have fought for years to get this rapidly deteriorating property restored or out of the hands of it's owner, Anthony Byrne. Julie explains how the property has impacted her home and community and why this fight has dragged on so long. The picture above is of the porch after it collapsed. It remained that way for close to two years. Click through below to see more images including one of the house in better times.

The property at 5357 Knox street currently has $6,672.56 in outstanding taxes and liens. A blight law passed in 2011 made each broken or sealed window and door subject to fines of $300 per day. This house currently has 24 such windows and doors. At $300 each that adds up to $7200 a day in fines. If this law was enforced the total fines in July, 2012 would be $223,200.

Read more about the city's blight law here. Want to know what constitutes blight? Visit this page for city laws on it.

The Northwest Soapbox is a platform for the people of Northwest Philadelphia to offer commentary, share news or make a call for action. Each week a different person speaks to issues affecting our community. Want to get on the soapbox? Contact us at: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it . In addition to the podcast page you can hear new installments of the Soapbox here on G-town Radio at these times: Mondays at 10 AM and 5 PM; Wednesdays and Fridays at noon and 5 PM.

This is what 5357 Knox St looked like approximately 50 years ago. This is one of the documenting shots from when house was put on the Philadelphia register of historical properties.

A bay of windows are sealed with metal sheets. The grounds were cleared by L&I of overgrown weeds and piles of debris two weeks earlier. The cost to do this will most likely be absorbed by the city.

The main door to the property was sealed earlier this year. The porch deck and surrounding wall were rebuilt by the city to slow the pace of decline.