Slow, Painful Collapse Of Mohamad Amro's Slumlord Empire, A Stark And Terrible Warning To Bad Actors Thinking About "Investing" In North Minneapolis Property...

Contributed photo, 2519 3rd St. N, blog post by John Hoff

Mohamad Amro, who earned lasting fame on this blog as "Mr. Slummy" and inadvertently helped to launch the independent blogging career of the Hawthorne Hawkman, hasn't been written about for a while. In order to create a decent one-post interval between Part Thirty-Six and Thirty-Seven of the Madness of Jill Clark, it's about time for an update about the slow, painful collapse of what once promised to be a sprawling empire of slum...

Mr. Slummy Keeps on Earning the Nickname

Post and photos by the Hawthorne Hawkman

Mohammed Amro of Amro's Properties Inc, has slowly but surely been progressing on his monstrosity at 2515 3rd St N. (Which has delinquent taxes, by the way.) The emphasis on slowly is apt, as I was informed over a month ago that he had been assessed for failing to complete the siding on the structure in a timely fashion. But yet, these recent photos indicate that the job STILL isn't done.

Recently, another organizer had stopped by to talk to the family living directly to the south of this property. From day one of his slumminess, they have had to deal with dirt from 2515 3rd spilling over into their yard, ruining their garden and fence. In response to THAT issue, Amro reportedly said...

...the fence is actually HIS fence, so it doesn't matter if it's bent out of shape. (Even if this is true, it does nothing to alleviate the grading issue.)

The organizer also noted large panes of broken glass strewn throughout the premises, but upon my inspection, I did not see them. As one can see from the laundry list of special assessments, this is one of the few times Amro has cleaned up his own mess.

The photos above also show that he's ripped off the front porch and used three colors of siding that don't quite match.

Once again, this blog wishes to remind readers that the area is zoned for a maximum of two residential units, and the anticipated finished square footage indicates a use of three or more units upon completion.

SOUND THE ALARM! MR. SLUMMY IS BACK TO WORK!

Post and photos by the Hawthorne Hawkman

As I was leaving town on Friday, I noticed a ladder up against the side of the house at 2515 3rd St N. I made a mental note to call 311 about it, but that slipped my mind until today. Clearly Mohammed Amro of Amro's Properties Inc., or as we call him on JNS, "Mr. Slummy," is back to work.

Back to work? How could THAT be? Last year, at a Heart of the City picnic, NoMi residents noted five bathtubs visible inside the property. After we called that in to 311 and CM Hofstede, we were told that a stop work order had been issued until Amro presents plans that are in compliance with the R2-B (two-unit residential) zoning requirements for the property.

But yet, when I called 311 TODAY...

...I was told that no such orders existed. According to this 311 operator, either the stop work order had never been issued, or the property owner met the criteria for being able to start work again.

If Amro does indeed have permission to do this work, then where are the plans? The first picture above shows roof work being done. The second shows ladders both on the exterior and in the interior of the property. The second-to-last shot shows a window that's been installed, and finally, he's cut open one of the bottom windows and once again left his property open to trespass.

A message was left with CM Hofstede's office today. Hawthorne neighbors expect to see either YET ANOTHER stop work order issued against Amro, or the plans that he presumably presented and the city presumably approved showing that this house will be a 2-unit structure.

Mr. Slummy Owes Some Money

Post and photos by the Hawthorne Hawkman (with one exception noted below)

Earlier this week, Hawthorne residents had noticed renewed activity over at "Mr. Slummy's" properties - 2515 and 2519 3rd St N. At this point, there doesn't seem to be much happening at 2515 other than pushing some dirt around. Given some unresolved issues and a stop work order at the address, a 311 call was made nonetheless.

Coincidentally, at a recent social gathering among "NoMi Homies," we were theorizing where "Mr. Slummy" (real name: Mohammed Amro, doing business as Amro's Properties) got his money from. After all, the work he's done, while lacking permits and being out of zoning compliance, can't be free. So I went down to Hennepin County to do a little digging--not as much digging as shown above, but digging nonetheless.

Before we get to that, however, I realize that since winning the City Pages best local blog in 2010, we may have some new readers unfamiliar with this story. So to summarize...

...Hawthorne activists such as Dyna Sluyter were posting about Amro's half-demolition of 2515 3rd St N over Easter weekend in 2009. Connie Nompelis posted about this on her blog and she and other Hawthornites contacted me while I was on vacation in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. As soon as I got back, I confronted a person I believe was Mr. Amro although I didn't get his name. His work was shut down on Easter Monday, and John blogged about it here. The first picture above is from that day, and the second shot would later become a visual metaphor for Amro's precarious financial situation.

In an interesting historic twist, the first comment on that blog post was an anonymous person who coined the name "Hawthorne Hawkman." I liked the nickname so much I changed my Google profile from "The Mortgage Geek" to what you see now. In this way, Mr. Slummy and the Hawthorne Hawkman are forever intertwined.

A very extensive photo gallery of Mr. Slummy's work can be found on my personal Facebook page.

But even with an initial stop work order, Amro applied for permits and resumed his work. This work included adding six egress windows and building an addition so large that nobody really believed he would comply with the residential two-unit (R2-B) zoning for the area. Those suspicions were confirmed when, at a 2009 Heart of the City picnic, five bathtubs were seen inside the property (which was flagrantly open to trespass, making such observations rather convenient).





We got the property boarded up, though. (photo below taken by John Hoff)



Fast forward to the present day. Work has been largely stopped at 2515 3rd St N, although Amro's white pickup truck is often seen in front of 2519 3rd St N. He owns this property as well, and even though he stripped off the siding and put in ugly windows, it appears as if most everything he's done at 2519 has been up to code, with permits, and in compliance with zoning.

What he HASN'T done, however, is actually PAID some of the people who did the work. Siwek Lumber and Millwork filed a mechanic's lien against 2519 3rd St N in October of last year for the amount of $14,841.06 for unpaid work from 4/4/09 through 10/8/09. The lien is filed against the property and against Mohammed Amro as well as Amro's Properties Inc.

There is also a second lien filed by the same entity for the same reasons at 2515 3rd St N in the amount of $12,216.11. Interestingly, there is no mortgage filed against either property. Amro either purchased with cash, or in some under-the-table way in which the holder of the debt has not filed a lien against the properties. Clearly the work done at both places far exceeds $27,000. So the next question is this: did Mr. Slummy pay for that work out of pocket, or does he owe more money in ways that haven't surfaced yet?

And speaking of surfaces, there is still an unresolved issue. Amro did not remove the mounds of dirt he created when excavating. He merely pushed it around and leveled off both of his properties. The problem with that, as evidenced below, is that the house to the south has had their fence damaged. And every time it rains, dirt washes into their garden. Amro needs to remedy this issue before even more fees pile up.

2515 3rd Secured, and not by the Owner

Guest post and top two photos by the Hawthorne Hawkman. Bottom two photos by John Hoff.

A heartfelt thank you goes out to the city of Minneapolis today. The house at 2515 3rd St N, which was reported as "flagrantly open to trespass," was very quickly secured and boarded. Not by the owner, mind you, who normally can't even be bothered to pick up garbage at his property despite owning a nice house next door.

I was driving around yesterday, when...

I saw a board-up crew just a block south of my place, and decided to stop by for pictures. A gentleman I'd met before who does artistic board-up work came up to me before I could even get out of my car and asked, "Are you the blogger guy?" (I get such a kick out of having THE as a formal article applied to this blog; like there's only ONE BLOG on the WHOLE INTERNET and this is it.)

So I said, "I'm one of them; I'm the housing director for the neighborhood and I do some blogging on Johnny Northside." He explained that the property was secure, but they were going to do some touch-ups, and asked that I come by the next day for photos.

So I obliged, and the photos above are from the crew putting the finishing touches on the board-up. Thanks again to all involved in making this structure and our neighborhood safe!

2515 3rd St N Flagrantly Open to Trespass!

Guest post and photo by the Hawthorne Hawkman

While I was on the road, leaving "Snowmageddon" to visit family in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (NOT an improvement in the weather department, by the way) I received a message about Mr. Slummy's house in Hawthorne...

This house - and I use that term loosely at this point - has first floor openings that anyone can just waltz right into. Area residents have seen what they describe as "small children enter[ing] the building through the unsecured openings."

The family living next door to 2515 has had numerous concerns regarding this property from the very beginning. An eight-foot hole covering an entire backyard was left with no silt fence and no protective measures to keep kids from falling in. The city did act quickly in this regard, but shouldn't have had to even lift a finger to get Mohammed Amro to apply at least the simplest regard for the lives and safety of children in the neighborhood.

The mounds of dirt ruined the fence separating the two properties, and reportedly Mr. Slummy even tried to bully the family into tearing down the fence entirely (despite the fact that these kind folks are renters and not owners). The dirt excavated from 2515 was mostly spread around on that site, leading to a 2-6 inch difference in the height of his yard in comparison to the neighbors'. They had a garden along the fence and that sudden change in levels, separated only by a chain-link fence, causes the dirt to seep across into the other yard every time it rains.

Furthermore, the family has children who play soccer together with kids who live at a house next to 3020 6th St N. So of course they rightly wonder not if but when 2515 will fall victim to arson if it is left unsecured. Frankly, I look at the amount of money Amro would have had to sink in to building this extension (got to be at LEAST $20,000, probably upwards of $60,000) and I think that a post-arson insurance payout is the most financially viable thing Mr. Slummy can accomplish with this structure. I wonder if it is being left open in a deliberate attempt to increase the chance of a fire. Even if the house must be demolished at this point, that needs to happen so that Mr. Slummy gets slapped with the demo cost as a special assessment, not so that an insurance company picks up the tab.

This blog would like to thank the city of Minneapolis and its departments and employees who have done a tremendous job in response so far. The fact that this abomination of housing was stopped in its tracks is a testament to the progress we're making in NoMi. But when his property is this wide open to trespass, it reminds us we still have work to do.

Hawthorne Housing Quick Hits

Guest post and photos by the Hawthorne Hawkman

I dedicated my weekend to taking pictures of every single Pamiko property this weekend. But on my way out to do that, I stopped by a few places of note in Hawthorne to check on progress. Here's what I found...

First up, 409 31st Ave N appears headed for demolition any day now. The water's been turned off at the street. This property was owned by Vicki Cox-Maxwell, the wife of convicted mortgage fraud felon Larry "Maximum" Maxwell. In what seems like a whole other era at this point, 409 31st was also a very frequent target of squatters breaking into the place. We'll finally see this structure get the fate it unfortunately deserves.

The next two pictures are of 2515 3rd St N. Those concrete blocks weren't there until recently. As far as neighbors are aware, Mr. Slummy has had a stop work order placed on that particular property (but not the adjacent one he owns at 2519). He's been seen doing plenty of work at 2519, but if anyone sees work being done at 2515, let's keep each other informed (and call 311).

The next picture is of a demolished house just off of 25th Ave N and 3rd St N. I don't have an address offhand. The house that was there used to be a beautiful, historic property. It went into foreclosure, fell into disrepair, and was deemed unsalvageable. I agree with the decision to demolish the house once it got to that point, but I lament the fact that it deteriorated at all in the first place.

Finally, the garage at 619 26th Ave N is now boarded as it was open to trespass. The city, and not the owner or Realtor did this, indicating the likelihood that this property will continue to be neglected. Let's hope it doesn't share a fate similar to the lot of the unknown property.

Coming up next, the Pamiko photo tour.

Mr. Slummy's Dream House Open To Trespass...

Photo By Jeff Skrenes

The disturbing saga of "Mr. Slummy's Dream House" has taken a new turn. The house at 2515 3rd Street North--which one reliable source says has FIVE BATHTUBS, and yet is SUPPOSEDLY a residence and not a rental in the making--has been unsecured and open to trespass for the past couple days. This according to Jeff Skrenes, Hawthorne's ubiquitous and hardworking Housing Director. The owner, Mr. Slummy, is "nowhere to be seen." Concerned neighbors are, however, keeping close watch.

Mr. Slummy's little buddy, Slummy The Squirrel, has reportedly been hanging out all the time at Uncle Lennie's store in Willard Homewood, waiting for a backhoe to show up and do all the difficult nut-hole digging for him.

(Do not click "Read More")

Mr. Slummy's Dreams Rise To The Sky (The Horror...The Horror...)

Photo By Jeff Skrenes

Residents of the Hawthorne neighborhood continue to watch in drop-jawed, horrified fascination as "Mr. Slummy" keeps fleshing out his disturbing residential vision at 2515 3rd Street N., a situation this blog has followed since Mr. Slummy's "dig to China" efforts put the neighborhood into an uproar.

Now, Hawthorne Housing Director Jeff Skrenes describes the latest development, in his own words, as follows...

After reading a post on the JNS blog about how the property at 2515 3rd St N is coming along, I went over for a few pictures myself. Now I grew up on a farm, and I know how to recognize a barn being built when I see it. The difference between this and a barn being built on the farm is that we'd involve THE WHOLE COMMUNITY when a farmer put up a barn.

I especially want to draw attention to the picture that shows just the BACK PORTION of this house as it DWARFS 2511 3rd St N. 2511 is no small place either, and just one half of this property makes it look like a cottage house where you keep your mother-in-law when she comes to visit.

REMEMBER, this place is zoned R2-B!!! Only two units allowed!!! If Mr. Slummy wanted to do things the legitimate way, he'd have come to the residents around him and the council and asked for a zoning variance BEFORE he built this monstrosity. Does anybody really believe that this structure, once complete, will have any less than four units?

Hawthorne members, be ready to hold our ground and make sure the city council does NOT grant a variance for more than two units at this site.

Other NoMi folks, come and stand at our side if need be, or Mr. Slummy and his icky friends will think they can get away with this in your neighborhood as well.

(JNS interjects: Oh, god, when the neighborhood leadership starts talking about "holding our ground" and "stand at our side" I just start drooling like a military police K-9 unit. Give me some sacred Hawthorne Neighborhood ground to hold, I say, and I will hold it like it was my very own lover. THIS IS OUR NEIGHBORHOOD! HE CAN'T GET AWAY WITH THIS CRAP!!! ALL WE NEED IS AN OUTRIGHT AND DOCUMENTED VIOLATION TO NAIL HIS SLUMMY ASS!!! LET'S WATCH AND LET'S NAIL HIM!!!)

Of course, there still remains the possibility that we're wrong and he will live in the property as advertised. And if that indeed does happen, I reiterate my commitment to buy him the aforementioned steak.

(JNS says: And, Mr. Hawthorne Housing Director, I *iterate* my offer to virtually and metaphorically bite a hunk out of his slummy ass and serve it to you on this blog, raw, as human steak tartar)

(Actually, that goes for all North Minneapolis slumlords. Send me pictures, send me facts, and this blog will print that stuff along with an open forum for free and fair comment. Down with slumlords, up with NoMi!)