Residents at Northland apartments given days to move out after fire

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Frustration at a Northland apartment complex following a fire last Thursday night.

Tenants at one building within the Bennington Ridge Apartments near I-435 and NE Parvin Road tell FOX4 they were given just three days to move out, not including the weekend.

Not only that, they could only move out their belongings between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

“We’ve had a grand total of 24 hours to move our stuff, and, of course, that’s during work hours. It makes it really hard to get anything done, especially with availability of trucks,” said Augie Byers, one tenant displaced by the fire. He and his girlfriend missed work to move out what they could but couldn’t get everything. He feels let down by management, saying a little bit of empathy would have gone a long way in this situation.

As the 5 o’clock deadline loomed Wednesday, other tenants carried out the last of their belongings.

“Whatever you don’t get out you have to lose,” said Marsha Owens, who’s lived at Bennington Ridge for six years.

Her sons helped load the last of her items into a U-Haul truck, which was bound for a newly purchased storage unit using money provided by the American Red Cross.

“We were not offered any assistance [from the apartment complex]. There are vacant apartments here. We were not given the option to relocate or anything,” she said.

Owens said Bennington Ridge terminated her lease after the fire, telling her she’d have to re-apply for housing if she wanted to stay. Byers confirmed that information with FOX4 as did Victor Newman, another displaced tenant.

Newman said he did re-apply but was denied; he’s now trying to find a new place to live.

Not only that, but each tenant FOX4 spoke with said their security deposit has yet to be returned to them. In Missouri, it legally must be returned within 30 days.

Owens, Byers, and Newman said the only help they’ve received is from the Red Cross, which gave them a few hundred dollars. For Owens, it only covered a U-Haul and storage unit.

At 5 o’clock, management locked the fence surrounding the building. FOX4 asked several questions, including if tenants were offered a new unit and why they were only given three days to move, but like all of our questions we were told ‘no comment.’

Elevate Living out of Wayzata, Minnesota manages the apartment complex. We called and emailed them for answers but have yet to receive a response. The on-site manager took our information and told us we should hear something soon.

Meanwhile, tenants feel like they’ve been let down, especially when they’ve never missed a rent payment and have abided by the apartment’s rules for months and years.

“There was no human kindness,” added Owens. “There was no consideration for us not only being displaced but going through the tragedy of having a home and then two hours later you have no home.”

Kansas City Fire said it has yet to determine what caused the fire, saying the damage is too severe.

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