St. Louis Mayor shuts down building stabilization program

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - Mayor Cara Spencer announced this week that the city’s Private Building Stabilization Program is shutting down.

The announcement comes after several First Alert 4 investigations into the program that exposed property owners were being billed thousands of dollars for work that was shoddy or not done at all.

Mayor Spencer said the program is deeply flawed, and it’s been adding stress to communities already battling blight.

Spencer pointed to multiple cases where property owners were charged for work that was never done. The Private Building Stabilization Program was supposed to help by repairing private properties and then billing the owners.

The city said it is working with the assessor’s office and the city counselor’s office to lift remaining liens and clear up any clouded property titles.

First Alert 4 began digging into the program and uncovered the city inspector who was over the program – Adebanjo Popolla had ties to three of the construction companies dating back years. Popolla resigned late last year.

Spencer said it is all in an effort to get effective and community-focused investments in North St. Louis.

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