A worn apartment complex in St. Louis's Baden neighborhood has been declared unsafe by its own property managers, who say electrical problems, missing running water, open electrical lines and extensive mold have made conditions untenable for residents at 8440 North Broadway. The city's Building Division issued a condemnation notice in September after inspectors could not safely complete required safety checks. The notice gave the owner an opportunity to arrange inspection access and did not direct tenants to leave.
A listing described the 18-unit complex as a two-building property priced at $694,000. Marketing listings from earlier this year pitched the property as a high-performing investment, claiming it generated more than $100,000 in net operating income in 2024, according to a listing from List it for 1% Realty. That rosy financial picture has since collided with a building the city says its own inspectors couldn't safely enter.
As First Alert 4 reports, Brian Klarich, owner of A+B Acquisitions, described the building's safety issues directly, pointing to electrical problems, no running water, open electrical lines and extensive mold throughout the property. Klarich called the property dangerous in terms of crime and safety but said it could be fixed. Brandon Bridges, chief operations officer of A+B Acquisitions, said the pair manage the property together and that the paperwork tells its own troubling story: of the 18 units, just four have valid leases, while 14 do not.
City Gave Owner 10 Days to Arrange Access
According to a statement from the city's Department of Public Safety, the Building Division attempted health and safety inspections at the property on September 24 but could not safely complete the required checks because of conditions inside. That failure prompted the division to issue a condemnation notice to the property owner the same day, giving the owner an opportunity to coordinate and schedule the required inspections within 10 days. The notice sought inspection access and was not an order directing tenants to leave.
The Building Division said it is not currently directing tenants to vacate the property. Building Division officials and the city counselor's office met with property ownership on October 6 to discuss access and the required inspections, and the division said it is awaiting completion of those inspections before updating ownership on any potentially required repairs. If health and safety grounds ultimately require condemnation, the division said it will work with ownership to identify qualified residents and connect them with the Department of Human Services and community partner services.
Leases, Threats, and a Resource Packet
The gap between leased and unleased residents has made an already tense situation harder to manage. Klarich and Bridges said some residents have been unwelcoming during prior visits to the property, and Bridges said some residents have threatened to resist being moved and to physically harm property managers. Despite that friction, A+B Acquisitions said it will provide help to tenants with valid leases and plans to verify at its next visit whether other residents can prove they have active leases. The company said it intends to provide help to tenants regardless of lease status and has already distributed a resource packet to residents affected by the condemnation, containing city resources and programs meant to help people find alternative housing and support.
Property managers and the city's Building Department have an inspection scheduled within the next week, according to the article. For tenants without a lease on paper, formal city assistance can be harder to access. Under City of St. Louis Ordinance 71840, the city's Impacted Tenants' Fund, administered with Employment Connection, provides eligible displaced renters one month of fair market rent in cash assistance following a municipal condemnation — a program that typically hinges on proof of tenancy. Separately, Ordinance 71835 requires landlords to register rental units with the Building Division and secure a valid certificate of inspection at initial occupancy or any change in tenancy, according to St. Louis REALTORS®.
Whatever the lease status of individual residents, state law limits how aggressively a landlord can act to clear a building. Missouri Revised Statutes Chapter 441 bars landlords from using self-help eviction tactics, such as changing locks or cutting off active utilities, to remove occupants even after a building has been condemned, according to Missouri Tenant Help. That legal backdrop helps explain why A+B Acquisitions says it is working through leases and resource packets rather than simply forcing people out.
Nonprofit Steps in Where City Aid Falls Short
A&M Homes, described as a housing stabilization and workforce program affiliated with Almeta Washington, has stepped into the gap for some residents after an earlier First Alert 4 story on the complex. The organization provides jobs, transportation, meals and affordable housing paired with structure and rules, and it has already helped two people from the complex — a single mother with two children and a young man — move into affordable housing. A&M Homes has also offered employment and food donations to other residents, and its case managers have been talking with tenants about their future plans.
The situation at North Broadway is playing out against a backdrop of significant vacancy and poverty in the surrounding Baden neighborhood. A draft master plan for Baden and North Pointe, presented by city planning officials and local leaders in February, aims to revitalize housing stock, economic development and public space, according to KSDK. Point2Homes lists Baden's population as 3,845, with about 34.5% living below the federal poverty line and median household incomes ranging between $28,000 and $40,000 depending on the age of the householder.
A+B Acquisitions, headquartered in Bridgeton, is a private property management firm offering lease management and residential maintenance services across the St. Louis area, according to a company profile from Werecommend. For now, the inspection scheduled for the coming week will determine whether North Broadway's residents, leased or not, get more time to find somewhere else to go.
