Cedar Rapids closes Kiteville Minimalist Living Community

CEDAR RAPIDS — The Cedar Rapids Fire Marshal’s Office on Tuesday placarded a minimalist living community after it failed to remedy multiple safety violations, including fixing the building’s fire sprinklers and alarm systems, according to a news release from the city.

The Kiteville Minimalist Living Community, at 525 33rd Ave. SW, is now vacant and locked, with its patrons living elsewhere.

Kiteville describes itself as a “modern, technology-optimized solution to short-term and long-term stays,” according to its website. It opened in 2023 in a building that once was a Ramada hotel. Rooms were available there at $35 a night.

A request for comment from the Kiteville company went unanswered Wednesday.

“You have a perfect storm. You have no sprinkler system, no alarm system, a high combustible load and the exits are not operable because they’ve been blocked off,” Cedar Rapids Fire Marshal Stephen Mast said. “That situation was just too dangerous to allow people to stay in the building.”

City officials couldn’t say how many people were displaced by the building’s closure, though a little more than 60 rooms were rented as of Monday night.

The city provided the people staying there with a list of emergency housing and financial resources in the city and county, to help with their transition.

J’nae Peterman, the homeless systems manager for Cedar Rapids and Linn County, said service providers went to Kiteville on Wednesday morning to talk with people as they left and help them connect with housing services, if needed.

“I have not heard that there was a big uptick in people seeking shelter or housing support so I’m assuming people probably found units elsewhere,” Peterman said.

What happened

On Jan. 22, Cedar Rapids fire crews were called to Kiteville for a report of a sprinkler system malfunction. They found that fire suppression sprinklers were leaking after they had frozen and burst in the building’s former dining area.

The Fire Marshal’s Office inspected Kiteville the following day and noted several safety violations, including fire alarms and sprinklers out of service in key areas, missing ceiling tiles, building exits blocked or obstructed, and some areas open to the elements.

The fire marshal’s office worked with Kiteville staff over the next two weeks, during which the city almost placarded and closed the building twice. But city officials delayed action while they helped Kiteville find fire watch staff and also arranged to keep the electric service on, which was going to be shut off due to lack of payment.

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Two requirements the city set for keeping the building open were having electrical service and a dedicated fire watch staff. But the other requirement — proof of construction and HVAC service contracts that would address other safety violations — was not met by the Feb. 3 deadline.

A placard was placed on the building Tuesday, and patrons and staff were asked to be off the premises by 8 a.m. Wednesday. The city gave the residents and staff notice on Friday that the placarding might be coming and provided a 24-hour notice on Tuesday, according to the news release.

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Mast said the fire department went to the building Wednesday morning and went through the building, making sure no one was inside.

“The owner’s responsibility is to secure and maintain the structure secured. When we left today, doors and windows were all shut and secured as reasonably as a building could be,” Mast said. “We want to make sure people know not to go back in there. It has a sprinkler system that’s not operational.”

Mast said the building could be reopened if the owners work with the city to get building permits and licensed contractors to fix the safety issues, but for now it will remain placarded. Anyone who enters a placarded property can be arrested and charged with a simple misdemeanor.

Second time

This is the second time that Kiteville has had a sprinkler break due to frozen pipes.

In April 2024, the building narrowly avoided being placarded because of similar safety issues with the sprinkler and alarm systems.

“We gave them a deadline to meet, and they were able to meet that deadline to repair the fire alarm and the sprinkler system that brought their building back into compliance,” Mast said of the April incident. “This time, they weren’t able to present a plan to start telling us how they were going to fix it.”

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