The Brief
- Residents on the second through sixth floors of the Zahn Apartments on Wall Street in Joplin, have been ordered to evacuate by Nov. 30.
- Inspectors found code violations, including structural problems with the fire escape, that officials say create a life safety risk in the event of a fire.
- City officials say the owners have not made required repairs.
JOPLIN, Mo. (KOAM) — Several residents of the Zahn Apartments on Wall Street must leave the building by Nov. 30 after city officials determined it does not meet minimum safety standards, according to Joplin officials.
Joplin Chief Building Official Bryan Wicklund said the city uses minimum safety standards to determine whether a building is dangerous. He said the process is lengthy and usually starts with an onsite inspection triggered by a tenant complaint or a referral from another city department, such as the fire or police department.
“We come across these addresses. We’ll then inspect them to see if there’s actually a violation there,” Wicklund said. “And depending on how that inspection goes, and we start working with the owners.”
Wicklund said some cases move quickly once repairs are made. Others require a long legal process when owners cannot or will not make repairs. He said the building board considered the fire escape and several other factors when it issued the vacate order…