Taxpayers on the hook to clean-up or demo damaged buildings in St. Louis

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - While many were impacted by the tornado, the single biggest property owner affected is you, the taxpayer.

Nearly 3,000 of the properties in the tornado’s path are publicly owned, part of St. Louis City’s land bank. Others had just been part of a program that used pandemic relief funds to allegedly stabilize private properties.

Now, First Alert 4 Investigates has new numbers on the financial toll this storm could take on everyone.

“I’m not aware of a situation where we’ve gone through this kind of trauma or stress with the program,” said Otis Williams, interim president and executive director of the St. Louis Development Corporation, which oversees the city’s land bank, known as the LRA.

The division manages thousands of previously abandoned or foreclosed properties. It has always faced challenges, but Williams said he never expected nature’s wrath to be chief among them.

“We were hopeful that we would be able to get these properties back onto the tax rolls. That’s our goal, and that’s our mission. But, as you say, nature had a different plan,” he said.

Williams told First Alert 4 Investigates that as of May 16, nearly 3,000 properties were in the tornado’s path.

Most were vacant, but about 370 had buildings on them before the storm, in various states of repair. Now, Williams said 182 of them, or 49%, are severely damaged or completely leveled.

“We’re talking about having to demolish those properties. So that is really the scope now, to look at how to get those down,” he said.

He said demolitions of those city-owned properties could begin in the next few weeks. First, the city has to identify funding and then hire contractors.

“It’s definitely in the millions. It is. But we don’t know, I can’t quantify it for you and give you a good number that we can rely on, but it’s excessive,” Williams said.

Adding to the price tag: money the city already spent to stabilize public and private buildings.

The city has been pumping tens of thousands of dollars into LRA-owned buildings through the Prop NS program, hoping to make them more attractive to buyers.

Williams said 38 of the 75 buildings in the Prop NS program were damaged or destroyed by the tornado.

“It’s certainly a complete disaster,” said attorney Bevis Schock.

He said the city isn’t off the hook for another controversial program, one that used federal pandemic funds to fix up private properties without the owners’ consent.

First Alert 4 Investigates has been following that story for months.

We showed you this building on Cates Avenue. The city paid private contractors $220,000 last year to “stabilize” it. The tornado reduced it to rubble, but brand-new lumber now sits atop the pile.

“The comedy of the thing is that the city said they had stabilized it,” Schock said.

There’s a similar story for Schock’s client on Fountain Avenue. The city had just spent $250,000 on the building. Its once-grand façade is now flattened.

“I mean, we can see the pile of bricks that used to be on top, where they were supposed to be. It’s... It’s awful,” he said.

The city had just put a new roof on the one next to it, too, but the new shingles peeled off like paper.

First Alert 4 Investigates uncovered connections between the city inspector overseeing the program and the contractors doing the work, prompting state and federal investigations and audits.

That inspector, Banjo Popoola, has since resigned.

Schock’s lawsuit, which alleges fraud and potential kickbacks, will continue despite the devastating damage.

“What happened to him before that is still wrong. His property rights were affected, his constitutional rights were harmed, and we’re going to continue this case regardless of the condition of that house,” Schock said.

The city, of course, may also have to foot the bill for private buildings ultimately condemned or considered dangerous if their owners don’t take immediate action.

Williams said if there’s an LRA-owned property creating hazardous conditions, residents should call them immediately.

Sales of LRA-owned properties have been temporarily suspended while damage assessments continue, but Williams says they hope buyers can still come in and either fix up the buildings or reimagine newly vacant lots.

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