DES MOINES, Iowa — The Market District hopes to become Des Moines’ newest neighborhood, but the old buildings must go before new construction begins. Crews started dismantling those old buildings shortly after the calendar turned to 2023.

The former City of Des Moines auto repair building is the most notable demolition currently in progress. The building on the 200 block of Raccoon Street is halfway through its deconstruction leading into February.

Nearly all of the buildings within the former Des Moines Public Works campus will eventually come down. Public Works moved to a new facility on the 1700 block of Maury Avenue at the end of 2022.

The Market District hopes to build high-rise housing with shops and restaurants between the East Village and East Martin Luther King, Junior Parkway.

Market District developer Paul Hayes previously told WHO 13 that he anticipates breaking ground on the district’s first new development by the end of 2023.