The infamous “Murder Shell” gas station in downtown St. Louis is set to close this summer, in part thanks to a little-used state law that attorneys say could be a road map to remedying other nuisances in an expedited manner — and citizens taking action rather than waiting for city leaders.

For decades, the gas station on Tucker Boulevard near Washington Avenue in Downtown West has been a haven for violent crime and open-air drug dealing. According to court filings made in one of the lawsuits against it, the police have received more than 6,000 calls to the Shell since 1990, and the service station has been the site of at least 21 shootings. Last year, an argument that began at the Shell spilled down the street and resulted in an…