A mother living at Oak Park Townhomes in Kansas City says she no longer feels safe inside her own home after her residence was struck by gunfire multiple times in July and then broken into last week. The resident described the back-to-back incidents as the reason she now feels unsafe where she lives.
Gunfire in July, a Break-In in November
According to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, the Oak Park Townhomes resident said her home was hit by gunfire multiple times in July before it was broken into on November 3.
The report also does not specify what kind of response, if any, the resident received from police after either incident. What is clear, per the same account, is that the combination of the gunfire and the break-in has left her shaken enough to describe her own home as a place where she no longer feels secure.
A Neighborhood Already Stretched Thin on Patrols
The Oak Park area falls within Kansas City's East Patrol Bureau, a division that has seen its staffing shrink in recent years. The Kansas City Star reported that the bureau had 151 officers filling 154 positions as of January 1, 2021, but by 2023 that number had fallen to 128 officers, leaving 22 positions open.
That staffing gap has shaped how some residents in the area respond to emergencies. Oak Park neighborhood association president Pat Clarke told the Star that some residents call him directly instead of police because they feel safer or more comforted doing so. Clarke also said some residents have alleged waiting 15 or 20 minutes for police to respond to calls.
Clarke pointed to the aftermath of a May 21, 2023 fatal shooting at an East Side nightclub that killed three people and injured two more as a turning point, saying the incident underscored a need for more officers serving Oak Park. The Star's reporting does not say whether staffing levels have changed since 2023, and the evidence available does not provide current figures for the division.
Not an Isolated Complaint Among KC Apartment Residents
Concerns about safety and maintenance at Kansas City apartment complexes have surfaced elsewhere recently. Neighbors of the Olive Park Village apartments filed a lawsuit, as reported by yahoo.com, seeking court-ordered repairs over conditions they describe as dangerous. That lawsuit alleges poor security at the complex has led to regular break-ins, with makeshift plywood coverings over broken windows and doors failing to deter intruders.
The Olive Park Village lawsuit also alleges flooding in multiple units caused substantial water damage and mold, and claims people continued entering and living in a building that was severely damaged by a fire in September. The suit asks a judge to order improvements and to consider sanctions of $100 per day per unit, along with appointing a receiver if the owners fail to make repairs. Separately, HUD has said it issued a default notice to the property's management company, Millennia, over its Section 8 housing contracts, and is providing special vouchers and relocation assistance to eligible households.
Residents in Kansas City apartment communities have voiced concerns about safety at home, whether from gunfire and burglary or from building conditions landlords have allegedly failed to address.
