By now a working class milieu (according to "Patron," large apartment buildings gradually shed doormen, porters and other conveniences following the 1975 New York City fiscal crisis), a handful of affluent areas remained. Prospect Park South continued to attract a sizable number of wealthier homeowners, while doctors still resided and practiced on a stretch of Parkside Avenue immediately adjacent to Prospect Park. By the mid-1980s, however, the neighborhood had numerous abandoned or semi-abandoned buildings, many of which had fallen into a state of disrepair. While crime generally had long been prevalent in the community, it worsened significantly during the 1970s, '80s and '90s. A number of stores on Flatbush and Church Avenues fell victim to looting during the 1977 blackout, and a subsequent drug epidemic ravaged Flatbush during the 1980s and early 1990s.