Demolition began Monday at the former Longfellow Junior High School in southwest Yonkers.

The Mulberry Street building has been vacant since the early 1980s. For years, it's only been home to stray animals, and the structure is falling apart.

The building became one of two projects involved in the federal corruption probe that landed former Yonkers City Councilwoman Sandy Annabi behind bars.

Annabi was convicted of accepting bribes to approve a plan for the Longfellow site and the mall now located at Ridge Hill. Despite the conviction, Ridge Hill moved forward while Longfellow continued to sit vacant.

Neighbors say they are hoping affordable housing will be built at the Longfellow site, but no final decision has been made.