A Denver judge issued an arrest warrant Monday for a CBZ Management landlord who failed to appear in court for a hearing about a neglected Uptown apartment complex, according to court records.
The management company, which is controlled by New York-based Shmaryahu Baumgarten and Colorado-based Zev Baumgarten, at one point owned seven metro area properties — including three in Denver and four in Aurora — but has since closed three of the buildings for persistent code violations.
Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman and Aurora City Councilwoman Alison Coombs have previously called out the pair of “slumlord” property owners for poor conditions in their buildings.
Zev Baumgarten failed to appear in court on Monday for a disposition hearing about the William Penn Apartments at 1644 Pennsylvania St. in Denver, which was forcibly closed earlier this year.
Denver officials filed a lawsuit in January to close the Denver apartment complex, which had collected nearly $280,000 in fines for property violations and unsafe conditions.
According to the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, which filed the lawsuit, those conditions included a lack of heat and water and frequent break-ins. In one case reported to the health department, residents described blood- and feces-like substances smeared on interior walls that went uncleaned for weeks, even after the city stepped in.
A court summons was issued last November to 1644 Pennsylvania Partners LLC, one of CBZ’s offshoot management companies, for the 18 residential health violations found in the Denver apartment complex, according to court documents.
When Baumgarten failed to appear in court on Monday for a twice-delayed disposition hearing, Denver County Court Judge Beth Faragher issued a warrant for his arrest. As of Wednesday afternoon, Denver County Court records showed that warrant was still active and Baumgarten also owed a “warrant fee” of $150.
Walter Slatkin, Baumgarten’s lawyer, also failed to appear in court Monday, Carolyn Tyler, a spokesperson with Denver County Courts, confirmed.
Neither Baumgarten nor Slatkin responded to requests from the Denver Post for comment on Wednesday.
Another of the company’s shuttered complexes, the Edge of Lowry apartments, entered the international spotlight last summer when a security video of armed men in its hallways went viral.
A municipal judge granted an emergency closure order for the Aurora complex in January after city officials cited “public safety and welfare” concerns. Residents had all moved out by mid-February, leaving behind an insect-infested building.
The closure order was partially fueled by alleged activity by the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. Aurora Chief of Police Todd Chamberlain previously said the gang used violence and extortion against apartment residents, including other Venezuelan migrants.
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