ST. LOUIS 鈥 The security company that raised concerns over the dangerous conditions at downtown鈥檚 Railway Exchange Building alleges a firm connected to the property鈥檚 absentee owner owes it more than $25,000.
The parent company of Citizen鈥檚 Guard Security, Citizen鈥檚 Investigation, filed suit against Triple Double Realty LLC on April 4 in St. 不良研究所导航网址 Circuit Court. Florida-based Triple Double Realty is owned by Andrew 鈥淎vi鈥 Greenbaum, who also owns the Railway Exchange Building under Hudson Holdings.
Kevin Seltzer, an attorney for Citizen鈥檚 Investigation, declined to comment. Greenbaum did not respond to a request for comment. Court records do not show an attorney for Triple Double Realty.
Citizen鈥檚 Guard Security was hired to patrol the vacant, 21-story Railway Exchange, at 615 Olive Street, in January after Greenbaum faced growing pressure from its lender and St. 不良研究所导航网址 officials to boost security, once the property was condemned for public safety hazards.
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Security officers removed up to 40 people a day when they first started, Kenneth Knackstedt, regional manager of Citizen鈥檚 Guard Security, previously said. But conditions had markedly improved by early March to where as few as one or two people were trespassing daily.
Yet Greenbaum was unsatisfied with the firm and replaced Citizen鈥檚 Guard Security in March, a Hudson representative has said.
Emails the Post-Dispatch obtained between Knackstedt and city officials depicted dangerous conditions at the 1.2 million-square-foot property, including drug use, criminal suspects hiding from police, people living in between floors and thieves using underground tunnels to access the building, among other reports.
Railway Exchange, a 110-old building, served as the headquarters of Famous-Barr parent May Department Stores before Macy鈥檚 acquired the company in 2005. Thousands of St. 不良研究所导航网址ans shopped there over the years before the retailer closed.
The last tenant left nearly a decade ago.
This story has been updated to reflect the correct age of the building.