‘This was my last resort’: Single mom of 7 forced out after apartment deemed unlivable

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - Hundreds of people forced out of their apartments were given 48 hours to pack up and find a new home.

On Wednesday, the Cloverleaf Apartments after their annual inspection found “unsustainable living conditions.” Residents have until Friday afternoon to be gone.

Chief Michael Hopkins said for months they’ve been trying to reach the office to schedule their annual inspection. No one ever got back.

“It was brought to our attention that the property owner has been incarcerated,” Hopkins said. “Obviously, paychecks stopped going out to the property management team, so there was nobody here for these folks to call and report their maintenance issues to, so the buildings have just fallen into an incredible state of disrepair.”

Krystal Emmanuel, a single mom taking care of seven kids, invited KCTV5 into her unit.

“Nobody deserves this, nobody,” Emmanuel said.

Her unit needs dozens of repairs; there are mice droppings, roaches, and black mold.

“I could go on and on; it’s horrible,” Emmanuel said. “My bathroom was like the Titanic the other day, and I had to fix it.”

Despite these horrific conditions, Emmanuel said it’s better than living on the streets, where she was five years ago before moving in.

“Yes, bad and crazy stuff has been happening here for years,” Emmanuel said. “But this was my home. When I first got here, I was excited to be here, and I’ve been taking care of this place ever since I’ve been here.”

Now, she said all she can do is pray and pack up.

“This was my last resort, so now we are back at Square A,” Emmanuel said. “But I know that God’s got us.”

HUD was onsite working with families on relocation.

KCTV5 reached out to Lynd Management Company as they were listed online as the management in charge. They did not respond as of Thursday evening.

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