Earlier this year, a neighborhood group wrested control of an abandoned property in the heart of Cherokee Street from a notorious slumlord. They spent $173,000 fixing it up, with an eye on converting the property into a pair of sleek townhomes. But then, after a few months of work, the property was returned to its original owner, under whose previous stewardship the property had been condemned by the city and racked up a slew of code violations.
The saga of the two-story brick building on Cherokee Street’s Antique Row seems to demonstrate the extent to which accused slumlord Dara Daugherty is willing to go to retain her real estate holdings—a significant matter given that the city of St. Louis is currently trying to wrest control of dozens of properties away from her.
The city previously sued Daugherty in a wide-ranging complaint, alleging that she and her associates devised an illegal rooming house scheme in which they rented out rooms all across south city to vulnerable people in houses condemned for occupancy and unfit for human habitation…