By Michael Bushnell

Just after 9 p.m. on Saturday evening, firefighters responded to a two alarm blaze at a long-abandoned house near Sixth and Gladstone. The house was fully involved on the upper two stories of the house with flames roughly 20 feet high shooting through the roof and windows.

Firefighters rescued two people from the blaze, both believed to be squatters who jumped from a second floor window to the ground. One man fled the scene on foot while another was detained by police after being called out by neighbors as one of the people who started the fire.

As the Northeast News has reported before, the house has a long history of codes and dangerous buildings cases dating back almost 20 years. Cases include a multitude of property violations such as trash, rank weeds, holes in the roof, abandoned vehicles on property and failure to register an abandoned property.

Neighbors on the street are understandably frustrated by the lack of action by the absentee owner. In addition to the litany of City Code and Dangerous Buildings cases against the homeowner, residents have secured private legal counsel and have filed a civil action.

“We filed a civil nuisance case against the homeowner back in October of 2020,” said Independence Plaza Neighborhood Association board member Megan Morgan. “The owner, who lives in Olathe, has not been responsive over the past year even though there are sanctions against him.”

According to Kansas City Fire Department (KCFD) records, the department responded to the home three times in 2020 for structure fires, including a fatality fire in February of that year. In 2021, they responded to the address eight times for structure fires, half of those coming in a 30-day stretch in November and December, including two fires on subsequent days in December. Saturday night’s blaze was successful in completely destroying the roof and upper floors of the property.

The house was placed on the dangerous buildings list again in December of 2021 following the two fires. No demolition permit has been issued after the latest fire, according to city records.

“This most recent fire on Saturday night not only severely damaged the home, but neighboring houses that are occupied by families with young children,” Morgan said. “We are not going to let this slide, we love our neighborhood and care for our neighbors and we want Independence Plaza to be a safe place for families to live.”