Edge of Lowry apartments in Aurora will close in February

On January 14, 2025By Littum

Residents of the troubled Edge of Lowry apartments in Aurora will be forced to move out after a municipal judge issued an emergency order to close the complex, and the property’s long-term future remains in limbo as city officials pursue a criminal negligence lawsuit against owners.

Judge Shawn Day found that the property at 1218 Dallas St. poses “an imminent threat to public safety and welfare” after Aurora officials requested an emergency closure order to close the 60-unit apartment complex for a year.

In court documents, city officials described the property as “an epicenter of rampant violent and property crime” and cited the alleged kidnapping and torture of two residents by suspected members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang.

“The city is simultaneously working on a plan with Arapahoe County and other community partners that will provide relocation assistance to established tenants of the 60 affected apartment units,” city leaders said in a news release Monday.

Aurora officials plan to close the apartment complex in mid-February, City Attorney Pete Schulte said after a hearing in the criminal negligence case against property owners Five Dallas Partners. City leaders don’t know how many people live in the complex, and said sales of similar properties suggest there could be between two and 12 people per unit.

The city is working to hire an outside firm to manage the closing process, including going door-to-door to take a count of how many residents will need to be relocated.

Several attorneys for Edge of Lowry owners filed a motion to withdraw from the criminal negligence case late Monday morning and did not appear in court, although Day had not yet entered a plea.

“This is stall, stall, stall,” Schulte said at the hearing. “We see that with this group time and time again.”

Attorney Bud Slatkin appeared virtually on behalf of the complex’s owners and objected to Schulte’s comments.

“We are not in the process of stalling,” he said. “We are in the process of protecting these residents and being good citizens of the city of Aurora.”

Five Dallas Partners and co-owners CBZ Management have not filed a motion with the court to reconsider the emergency closure and had, as of the hearing at 15 failed to pay the $98 court fee to proceed with a jury trial in the criminal negligence case. Slatkin told the court he would pay it by the end of the day.

The Edge of Lowry became internationally known this fall after a viral video of gunmen forcing their way into apartments caught the attention of President-elect Donald Trump. The complex racked up dozens of code violations for graffiti, litter and weeds in recent months, along with 911 calls for assault, trespassing and more, according to Aurora city officials.

Nine people have been charged with kidnapping, assault and robbery in connection with the December kidnapping and torture of a man and a woman who lived at the complex. Aurora police said Monday, and seven people are still being investigated for their connection to the incident.

Debris piles up behind the Edge of Lowry apartments in Aurora on January 13, 2025. An Aurora municipal judge issued an emergency order to close the troubled Edge of Lowry apartments, finding the property poses “an imminent threat to public safety and welfare.” City officials said Monday. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

Police Chief Todd Chamberlain on Monday again blamed the apartment’s management for not fixing the problems at the complex.

“The problem is a mismanaged place that allowed this crime to flourish,” Chamberlain said at a briefing after the hearing.

Attorneys for the owners have previously argued that they could not retain a management team at the complex due to criminal activity, alleging in lawsuits that the problems were caused “by intentional, reckless or negligent acts by the city and its agencies.”

The case is due to return to court for a hearing in March.

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Originally published: 13 January 2025 at 12:24 PM MST