Judge to appoint receiver for shabby St. Paul apartments

by Curtis Gilbert, Minnesota Public Radio

St. Paul, Minn. — A Ramsey County judge will appoint a receiver to take over managing two run-down apartment buildings in St. Paul.

The ruling came Wednesday during a foreclosure hearing against the buildings' owners.

Last year, inspectors found some 600 code violations between the two buildings, including rotting wood, electrical problems and bedbugs. St. Paul city officials are hopeful the receiver will fix those problems.

Attorney Peter Brown represents some of the tenants and described the ruling as a "bright beginning," but he wants to make sure the 60 families aren't displaced.

"The repairs will be done. We will see that they are done," he said. "We will see that no one is evicted because of housing code enforcement. Those remain our goals."

A lawyer for the current landlords, Randall and Peggy Chun, declined to comment. Randall Chun is a researcher for the Minnesota House of Representatives. Peggy Chun is a social worker.