Houghton Center, Houghton Plaza, Houghton Village, and even the Shell Station on the corner of 6th Street South and Northeast 68th have nicely manicured and cared-for grounds. The same cannot be said for the empty lot across the street on Northeast 68th and the planting areas near 7/11. When the city made the right turn lane off Northeast 68th and widened the sidewalks, they defined some planting areas adjacent to the property by 7/11. Those planters are filled with weeds — no plants to speak of. The empty lot behind  7/11 is full of knotweed, Scots Broom, berry bushes, weeds, and lots of trash. There are orange traffic cones, a huge black plastic tarp attempting to cover some weeds, abandoned garage sale and food signs, and lots of miscellaneous discarded paper and trash. Weeds cover about two feet of the new sidewalk. That this is allowed to continue in such a state is disgraceful. Is no one responsible for the care and appearance of this property? Someone needs to step up and improve the appearance of this corner.