In this KC-area apartment building, residents live with cold water, roaches and mice

Michelle Paylor, 63, recently caught her 28th mouse in her studio apartment in Independence.

There are cockroaches on the walls, evading the bug traps she set. Mouse traps line her bed, with two right next to where she sleeps. In the summer, there’s frequently no air conditioning, and in the winter, no heating.

That describes some of the poor living conditions she and several other residents told The Star they’ve endured at Independence Towers, located at 728 Jennings Road. Then, for two weeks starting March 1, residents lost access to hot water.

After concerns were raised by residents and KC Tenants, a local tenant union, which reached out to FTW Investments on March 7 for an update, the tenant union stated they’re willing to tag the building as uninhabitable, which would displace all residents in the building if fixes aren’t made soon.

The next day, an email was sent out by the management team, saying they ordered a new hot water tank from out-of-state, and that an arrival date was not yet known. On March 15, a technician went into the building to make a temporary fix.

Paylor told The Star the next day her hot water returned after the temporary fix was made. The new water heater was installed Thursday, and will be switched on when the city inspects it, she said.

But the issues don’t stop there.

Many tenants told The Star they were afraid to come forward to city officials or to get help related to other issues with living conditions because of the possibility of being hit with a non-renewal release.

Paylor received one after reaching out to KC Tenants, and now has to move out by the end of March. That’s when she decided to come forward and speak publicly.

“I don’t want to be afraid anymore,” she said.

Independence Towers is managed by Tango Management, which is owned by FTW Investments, a company which also managed a complex which The Star reported on in Jan. 2023 for leaving tenants for days without heat during the winter.

Parker Webb, FTW’s chief executive officer and manager of Tango Management, did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and neither did FTW Investments. The property was recently listed for sale by Friedman Real Estate, which also did not respond to requests for comment.

Paylor is disabled and terminally ill. She walks around her tiny studio with her oxygen cord behind her. She’s lived in the building for 24 years, and in that time has seen it decline into what she said is now unlivable.

“Newly renovated? No, ma’am. No, it’s not. There ain’t nothing newly renovated about this place. There are dangerous ovens, there’s dangerous [air vents]. My mice live in my air [vent]. So when that air comes on and I’m breathing in mouth poop and dander,” Paylor said.

Paylor is struggling to pack, and doesn’t know where she will go at the end of March.

“It’s a nightmare to live here, it’s a nightmare to move out of here,” she told The Star.

Dakota Robb, 27, moved in March 8. It wasn’t until he signed his lease and paid the first month’s rent that he was informed there was no hot water. He learned about the water damage, mice infestation and that the heating and air conditioning don’t work from his neighbors. The basement, he said, is not in good state, looking like something out of a horror movie: lights flickering, weird smells, missing walls, rusty pipes and leaky ceilings.

Robb also wasn’t told that the building was up for sale before signing the lease.

“It’s really a raw situation here at Independence Towers,” Robb said.

At his first meeting with KC Tenants, Robb heard residents voice concerns over being shut down and threatened after filing complaints with the property owner.

The citywide tenant union, KC Tenants, assembled in 2019 to organize tenets to fight for affordable, accessible, safe and healthy homes. They began working with Independence Tower residents after being informed of the water issues there.

“I think that the Tango Property Management is not here for the sake of the community. They’re more here just to take the community’s money and use it as much as they can and to just make a horrible living environment,” Robb said.

Another resident, who did not want to be named for fear of retribution, was given a non-renewal release after leaving a negative review online about maintenance not coming to fix part of his ceiling that collapsed. The resident said he also had a mold problem in his apartment that he believed negatively impacted his health.

“The only reason I posted the review was because I felt I had no choice. I posted it in hopes they would actually fix the problems, which they didn’t,” the resident said.

Latest inspection results

The Rental Ready program, which is run by the city of Independence, began in 2017 with the goal to protect health, safety and welfare of residents, as well as maintain desirable neighborhoods. It requires all properties to be licensed and pass a health and safety inspection every two years, according to the program’s website.

An inspection of the building was last done in December 2023. The program is only required to inspect 10% of all units. At Independence Towers, the property has 130 units, meaning 13 were observed.

The building passed inspection despite two active cases in units, 111 and 112, which have been labeled as “unsafe to occupy” since Jan. 1, 2023 because of holes in walls and ceilings, according to the city of Independence. No permits have been submitted to fix the issues, according to the city, and no formal complains for Independence Towers have been filed.

The program is part of the Community Development Department, which is responsible for making sure that properties are healthy and safe for tenants.

Justin Stein, an organizer with KC Tenants, went and canvassed the building, handing out vouchers from local nonprofit Community Service League so people could get hot showers elsewhere.

“Tenants are frequently threatened with lease non-renewal notices. They’re told that they should just move. They are told that the city’s gonna shut the building down if people complain too much. So people are very scared,” Stein said. “They’re very scared to speak out even about really unjustifiable conditions like no hot water for two weeks, because their property management company and their landlord are constantly telling them, we just won’t renew your lease.”

If at least a week goes by and the landlord hasn’t taken action on a complaint expressed by a tenant, then an official one can be filed to the Regulated Industries Division through their complaint form. Within 14 days, a notice will be sent to the defendant, who then has 10 days to respond. After receiving the defendant’s response, a hearing date is set.

The city has the power to inspect the property at any item if we believe there is a safety issue.

If a landlord fails to make repairs within a “reasonable time”, tenants can file a civil suit. To do so, tenants must have the building owner, regulated industries division, the fire department or all three inspect the entire building. If, after receiving a notice of repairs that go unrepaired by the landlord, and if over a third of tenants are willing to be plaintiffs, they may sue. The court will order repairs and not allow those living in the building to face eviction for a year.

Riley Newton, the head of communications in Independence, said they have had a back and forth discourse with Independence Towers. But, she noted, there is no inspection notice on file, or open code violations.

“We encourage anyone having issues or who might be confused with this process to reach out to our Development Department directly,” she said in a statement. “We can only resolve issues we are aware of.”

The city has taken action in three cases without a formal complaint at Independence Towers, all related to air conditioning or heating issues in June 2023, September 2023 and November 2023. In these cases, a tenant called the city to complain, and on each occasion, staff followed up with property management and the issues were fixed, according to Newton.

The building is set for auction from March 25 through the 27th on rimarkerplace.com, according to a flyer.