‘Some of it is worse than your words.’ Congressman reacts to Independence Towers tour

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II gazed up in horror at Anna Heetmann’s living room ceiling on the fourth floor of Independence Towers on Tuesday morning.

A three-year-old dark, gaping hole stared back, filled with exposed rusty poles and sheet metal framed with peeling paint and what Cleaver believes to be asbestos.

“Some of it is worse than your words, I don’t know how I’m going to describe it to people, “ Cleaver said.

Cleaver, the U.S. Congressional representative for Missouri’s fifth district, was interested in taking a tour of several apartments occupied by residents of the Independence Towers high-rise apartment at 728 N. Jennings Road after a toddler fell eight stories to his death from a reportedly unsecure window , which made headlines in July.

He continuously shook his head in dismay as he saw both abandoned and occupied apartments with fire damage, broken appliances, bent blinds, heavily stained carpets, wet hallways, gaping ceilings, water damage and a rusty elevator.

He listened to tenants talk about their steep energy bills caused by their new window units, as well as their plumbing problems.

“I’m concerned about the management and who’s getting paid,” Cleaver said. “I want to find out who all is getting paid for (managing), or not (managing).”

Tenants unionize, demand change

Earlier this year, tenants formed a union with local organization KC Tenants , recounting poor living conditions in the building, which until this spring was managed by Tango Management, owned by FTW Investments. The company, owned by Parker Webb, also managed a complex The Star reported on in January 2023 for leaving tenants for days without heat in the winter.

A Jackson County judge in May appointed Trigild Inc. as receiver of the property, after FTW Investments allegedly failed to pay back Fannie Mae for the loan and maintaining the building according to the loan agreement.

But since Triguild took over, residents say things haven’t gotten much better.

An alleged arson fire in June displaced 27 residents across three floors of the apartment building. As of Tuesday morning, the unit where the fire originated remains the same — charred debris and melted paint fill the now-uninhabited space.

Several units on the floor are still labeled as condemned and abandoned.

KC Tenants report they have not been able to get in contact with Nancy Daniels, vice president of Trigild, for three months.

“I knew someone was gonna die eventually because of something going on in here,” said tenant Elliot West about the toddler death in July.

“Whether it was from heat stroke because of an elderly person or somebody that’s too immunocompromised, or a kid, which is unfortunately what happened,” he said.

‘Our reality for years’

When Trigild took over, residents said inspections were done of some apartments — Heetman’s hole was noted — and one meeting was held between vice president of Trigild Nancy Daniels and the union.

Both the tenants and Justin Stein with KC Tenants agreed there has been a decrease in pests and an increase in the number of window air conditioning units, but said that many issues persist.

West said their energy bill used to be $70, but now with the window unit provided by Trigild this summer, their bill has increased to roughly $200 a month.

In Heetmann’s apartment, the kitchen sink didn’t work for eight months. She still has to scoop out the water from her bathtub when she finishes showering, she said.

“It sounds unbelievable because it should be,” Heetmann said. “ But this has been our reality for years.”

After the tour, Cleaver said he was committed to holding those responsible accountable, and would call Fannie Mae right away Tuesday afternoon to get someone to tour the building. He also said that gaining support from other politicians in a public hearing down the line wouldn’t be an issue.

“Even the people who are not politically akin to me would think this is unacceptable,” Cleaver said. ”I don’t know anybody who would think this as acceptable, except maybe Kim [Jong-un], the head of North Korea.”

Members of the tenant union said they have had ongoing discussions about the possibility of going on a rent strike if living conditions don’t improve. Cleaver said he would gladly back them.

“I would have to be mentally ill to say, oh, no, please pay your rent,” Cleaver said.

Justin Stein with KC Tenants said they expect to come to a decision towards the end of September.

Nancy Daniels, vice president of Trigild, did not immediately respond to The Star’s requests for comment on Tuesday.