The Downes Motel honorably held its position along the Tussey Mountain ridge for more than 60 years. But, in 2001, the motel’s 97-year-old proprietor died and her grandson Mark C. Downes had to close its doors. The “O,” “E” and “S” have fallen from the motel’s roof; the white paint has peeled from the room doors, and the flowers no longer bloom under a fading sign that reads: “Downes Motel #1 — We accept all major credit cards.”

With the mountain backdrop framed by a perfect blue sky, the old place exudes nostalgia for a more innocent time, beckoning you to imagine what it was like to stay overnight in its heyday. And it begs the question: Why would this family abandon their business? Who shuts the doors one day and never goes back?

It’s not just here. Abandoned businesses and homes slowly decay everywhere across this country, in urban neighborhoods, suburbs, exurbs and rural areas — grand old mansions, more modest brick houses, ranch homes, practical farmsteads.

Businesses are not immune to this ghosting of property: Empty restaurants, florist and auto-body shops, beauty salons and motor lodges like the Downes Motel line main streets and rural roads in cities, towns and boroughs across this country, like scenes out of an apocalyptic-zombie movie.

Read the full NY Post piece here: This is why there are so many zombie buildings in America now