MANKATO — A business property in the heart of Mankato’s downtown entertainment district is about to be locked down after city officials determined it was vacant, accessible to trespassers and possibly the site of drug use.
The property at 410 South Front Street, just outside Mankato Place and adjacent to Rounders Sports Bar, is one of numerous properties involved in a dispute between the city of Mankato and local landlord Shawn Clow. South Front Street Condos has at various times been the site of Burrito Express, the Hazzard bar and Daisy’s Soul Food restaurant, along with residential units. But it is currently without legal tenants, according to city staff, who received permission from the City Council Monday night to control access to the building until it passes inspections and is once again occupied.
“The building is a hazard because it is vacant, unsecured, is routinely accessed by unauthorized individuals, and evidence of drug use has been found by City staff during building inspections,” according to the resolution approved by the council.
The resolution goes on to order the property’s owner to take action to ensure the building is “secured against entry by temporarily boarding up all windows and either boarding up or locking all doors, so as to prevent access by trespassers, children, squatters, and thieves.” In addition, prominent “No Trespassing” signs must be posted near every entrance to the building.
Once served with the order, Clow or his representatives have six days to comply. The only alternatives are to request a hearing before the City Council to challenge the order’s validity or reach an agreement with the city for more time to complete the required action. Failing that, the council resolution authorizes staff to secure the building and charge the costs back to the owner.
The developments are the latest in an ongoing legal case by the city against Clow. Working with a pair of residential tenants, the city filed a civil action in November alleging Clow and various limited liability companies associated with him had allowed their properties to fall into a state of disrepair. Safety issues were allegedly widespread at a dozen apartment buildings, hotels and commercial properties in Mankato.
“As part of the work, it was determined that 410 South Front Street is both vacant and hazardous,” according to a staff memo prepared for Monday’s council meeting. “This property was also one of the properties that was ordered by the court to be transferred to administration by Lighthouse Management. Based on the status of the building being vacant, this property was released from the administration.”
Twin Cities-based Lighthouse Management has a history of being assigned by courts to take over management of troubled properties, and that occurred as part of a December settlement agreement. Under the settlement, Lighthouse was given control over operations, bank accounts and revenue, including rent payments, at three of the properties: River Bluff Suites, a 28-unit apartment building at 123 N. Fourth St.; Meadow Rivers, a 24-unit building at 1251 Pohl Road; and South Front Street Condos.
But when it was learned there are no tenants associated with the building at 410 S. Front St., Lighthouse successfully petitioned District Court Judge Mark Betters to be relieved of responsibility for the parcel. Betters’ order also prohibits anyone from occupying the building until it meets fire and building code standards and is granted a city rental license.
“The property shall be secured until it passes all city inspections and is no longer vacant,” Betters ordered.
The actions taken by the City Council Monday night are authorized under a provision of Minnesota law stating that vacant and unsafe properties can be secured by “installing locks, repairing windows and doors, boarding windows and doors, posting ‘no-trespassing’ signs, installing exterior lighting or motion-detecting lights, fencing the property, and installing a monitored alarm or other security system.”
The latest moves by the court and the city now leave Clow and his LLCs with a tenth property that needs to be brought up to code. The earlier settlement, along with assigning Lighthouse Management to take control of operations at River Bluff Suites, Meadow Rivers and South Front Street Condos, gave Clow until March 1 to make repairs at nine other properties and then submit to city inspections to verify that he has remedied “any outstanding City Code and State law violations or safety and habitability issues.”
The other nine — totaling 221 units of various types, ranging from apartments to motel rooms to retails spots — are Riverside Suites at 111 W. Lind Court; Riverfront Studios at 1708 N. Riverfront Drive; Riverfront Suites at 1727 Riverfront Drive; Cray Mansion at 603 S. Second St.; Echo Rivers at 115 Echo St.; Swan Rivers at 221 E. Walnut St.; a single-family home at 112 W. Liberty St.; River Crossing Townhomes at 230-270 Hubbell Court; and a storefront at 634 S. Front St.
An attorney listed in court documents as representing Clow did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Free Press on Monday.