The Kansas City Fire Department put out 24 fires in eight months at Olive Park Village, a burned-out disaster

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Water was still dripping and the smell of smoke lingered Friday morning after another fire did more damage to Olive Park Village in Kansas City.

It was one of 24 fires the Kansas City Fire Department pit out at the property since the beginning of the year.

It's a pattern that has frustrated neighbors and firefighters, and cost the city tens of thousands of dollars.

Darryl McFadden, who has lived in the area for 25 years, could see and even hear the fire from his front door.

"It doesn't look good at all," McFadden said.

He said the repeated fires have taken a toll on the surrounding neighborhood.

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"It bothers us," McFadden said. "It drops the value of the whole neighborhood, really."

Shanae Johnson lived at Olive Park Village for seven years and raised her kids there. Her parents still live nearby. She said the property has changed dramatically.

"It's actually pretty sad, because I grew up in this area all my life, and actually at one point in time, this was a great community," Johnson said. "Now it's an eyesore. It's almost an embarrassment."

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Johnson said she hopes the situation leads to something better for the community.

"I hope that they tear them down and maybe build another community," Johnson said.

Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins of the Kansas City Fire Department said the repeated calls to the same address have become a source of frustration for his department.

"To come back time and time again to the same properties, it does become frustrating," Hopkins said. "At some point, after they've had multiple fires in them, it becomes dangerous for us to do the job."

Hopkins said it's costly, too.

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"Where it's costly for the fire department is the added wear on our rigs to come back to the same properties over and over," he said. "That risk of someone getting injured, even when we're in a defensive posture, the fire ground is a very dangerous place."

"The fuel costs to come over here, the wear and tear on our apparatus," Hopkins told KSHB News reporter Fernanda Silva at the fire scene. "Every time we put something into service and start flowing hundreds, if not thousands, of gallons of water through it, we run the risk of damaging it or wearing it out. And that's money we have to spend to replace it so that we can run," Hopkins said.

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He said, ideally, the property owner would step up and take care of their property.

The city says it has spent more than $46,000 on fencing and approximately $38,000 on demolition costs related to the property. An additional $92,000 in demolition expenses is expected upon completion of work at 759 Park Ave.

The property owner has not reimbursed the city for any of these costs. The owner did, however, privately demolish one of the emergency structures.

The Kansas City Neighborhood Services Department currently has two emergency demolition cases at the property.

One demolition has been completed and cleanup efforts are underway.

The second remains pending following a recent fire, and the city expects work to be completed within the next few weeks.

Another address, 805 Olive St., is a standard code enforcement case and is not currently ready for demolition.

The property is owned by a company called Millennia. I reached out to Millennia on Friday afternoon, but did not hear back. I also contacted the company's attorney, who said he has a motion to withdraw as counsel for Olive Park on file with the court

A hearing set for next week.

"Given that I am asking the court to allow me to no longer represent Olive Park, I do not feel comfortable speaking on its behalf," the attorney wrote in an email.

According to court documents, Olive Park is failing to pay the attorney for legal services. A filing cites the "hardship created by Olive Park's failure to pay for legal services rendered by Chartwell to Olive Park" as the basis for the motion to withdraw.

McFadden said he and his neighbors are hopeful the situation will eventually improve.

"Within the next couple of years, we hope that they get it all torn down and replaced, rebuilt, or level it out and turn it into a big park," McFadden said.

Read the City's full Statement:

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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