A Ramsey County judge on Wednesday ordered an emergency receivership be put in place for the management of the Lowry Apartment building in St. Paul. This would temporarily take away responsibilities from the owner, Madison Equities.

The St. Paul City Attorney’s Office told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that a company named Frauenshuh will be managing the building until the next hearing, which is set for Sept. 10. The company is already working with the city to address issues.

The St. Paul Department of Safety and Inspections conducted an emergency abatement to remove the garbage and furniture blocking emergency access in the basement, elevator, stairwell and other public areas.

City officials said in a statement housing for over 100 tenants has not been stable since the property fell into foreclosure.

Several units in the Lowry are uninhabitable and many of them were already condemned by the city’s Department of Safety and Inspections, according to the city.

The mayor’s office said officials will work with Frauenshuh, Inc. and its partner Halverson Blaiser Group to develop a comprehensive plan and next steps that prioritize safe and stable housing for remaining tenants. 

“Madison Equities has abandoned the families that rent from them, but we are a community that cares for one another, so those tenants are not on their own,” said St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter in a statement. “City employees walked the walk today: we will stop at nothing to ensure our residents have safe, stable places to live.” 

KSTP reporter Bailey Hurley listened in on the hearing, where a St. Paul Police Department (SPPD) spokesperson testified that since the beginning of the year, there have been over 200 calls for service at or near the building — which police say is significantly higher than any other residential building in the city.

This building alone takes up the majority of the department’s resources.

Officers also don’t go inside the building alone due to safety concerns. The SPPD spokesperson at the hearing called the building “lawless.”

A spokesperson from the city’s Fire Department testified that on its inspection on Monday, many doors were blocked by 2x4s, which causes safety concerns in the case of a fire. There are also significant fire hazards everywhere in the building due to the buildup of trash and furniture.

A letter from the fire ladder captain to the fire chief on Sunday suggested that fire crews shouldn’t enter the building without a police presence. However, the chief said this would delay response time and “severely impact” the residents.

Both the police and fire departments said there’s no one from the management agency to speak with about these concerns.

This news comes after Mayor Carter met with building residents on Monday evening to witness for himself the conditions tenants have been living in.

Carter said what he saw was some of the most disgusting things he’d ever seen, claiming to have witnessed trash, flies, insect infestations, rodents and feces on the floor of the building.

“The living conditions that Madison Equities has their tenants living in is one of the most disgusting things I’ve seen in my entire life,” Carter said.

Mayor Carter and city crews spent Wednesday morning cleaning out the Lowry Apartments.

“I’m happy that it’s getting done, but it also is sad that the mayor, out of all the people that I know, has to do that,” Jaelynn Hoggard, a Lowry Apartments tenant, said. 

“I’ll be surprised if they don’t find a body in there. There’s so much stuff going on in there,” Larissa, another Lowry tenant, said.

When the city did a walkthrough this week, they noticed overflowing trash, insect infestations and human waste on the floor.

“It’s very nasty, disgusting. No one should live here,” Hoggard said. “It sucks. You never know when there’s going to be a break-in. You never know when there’s going to be a shooting outside.”
Some residents said they feel trapped and fixing the building is the only way out of the situation.

“It’s a lot easier said than done to move out. I’ve been trying now for a few days to try to find a place, but not everyone’s circumstances are the same,” Hoggard said.