As we first reported March 11, two restaurants in a building located at 22341 Marine View Drive South – Madi’s and Dana K’s Kafe – remain closed over 50 days later due to water damage and other issues.

Both businesses were yellow tagged and closed on Friday, Mar. 8, yet no action has been taken. Both businesses’ insurance will not cover any losses due to this being a landlord issue.

“Nothing has been fixed and NO permits have been issued on repair,” Dana Kristeen Johnson-Hannon, owner of Dana K’s told The Waterland Blog. “I think the community needs to know what is going on here.”

The City of Des Moines told The Waterland Blog that a scope of work for selective demolition to determine the level of damage was applied for and issued on April 11, 2019.

Through this permit, the owner’s contractor is attempting to determine how much damage was done as a result of the water damage.

Once the full extent of the damage is discovered, the building owner’s contractor will apply for the appropriate permit(s) for repair.

However, to date the city says it has not heard anything further from the owner or the contractor, and both restaurants in the building remain closed.

Both hair salons that were relatively unaffected by the water intrusion remain open.

Here are new photos that show some of the damage:

For further questions, please contact Bonnie Wilkins, City Clerk/Communications Director at 206-870-6519 or [email protected].
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14 replies on “FOLLOWUP: Dana K’s, Madi’s still closed due to lack of action by building owner”

  1. That’s a real shame. The city needs to demand an especially high level of compliance from property owners in the downtown core. It’s simply unacceptable for such key locations to remain unused for any length of time without a darn good reason and the public needs to be kept in the loop. If we’re ever going to have a thriving downtown we have to have, at a bare minimum, landlords that are willing to keep their properties up to code. If not? The city needs to act far more aggressively than it has done in the past.

    1. High level of compliance? Either they’re in compliance, or they aren’t. The arrangements between a real estate developer and their tenant really aren’t anyone’s business. As long as the property owner follows the codes, whether the building is occupied or not is no one’s business.
      The article indicates the owner is performing work to determine the repairs required. It’s been less than two months. People need to simmer down.

      1. Ya who cares if the small business is closed down while the landlord drags their feet fixing it. Certainly not the employees and patrons or the city that is losing out on taxes.Personally the city should fix it, get these business back to work and put a lean on the building for the repairs.

      2. Are you a landlord in town too? Either that or an apologist for a landlord that’s been ignoring major problems with that building for a long time. Give me a break. Simmer down? That’s why this town looks like it does. Too much complacency.

      3. “Less than two months”? You have a different idea of responsiveness than I do.
        By a “high level of compliance” I meant the amount of time that a property can be unavailable like this. The Des Moines downtown has suffered since the recessions. We just can’t afford to have -any- of our local businesses be out of action for months at a time–especially two of the newer dining options.
        Again, the downtown core needs to be a place that will be held to a high standard of availability, The area can’t live up to its potential unless all the properties recognise that they have an obligation to the community to step up.

  2. That’s a real shame. The city needs to demand an especially high level of compliance from property owners in the downtown core. It’s simply unacceptable for such key locations to remain unused for any length of time without a darn good reason and the public needs to be kept in the loop. If we’re ever going to have a thriving downtown we have to have, at a bare minimum, landlords that are willing to keep their properties up to code. If not? The city needs to act far more aggressively than it has done in the past.

    1. High level of compliance? Either they’re in compliance, or they aren’t. The arrangements between a real estate developer and their tenant really aren’t anyone’s business. As long as the property owner follows the codes, whether the building is occupied or not is no one’s business.
      The article indicates the owner is performing work to determine the repairs required. It’s been less than two months. People need to simmer down.

      1. Ya who cares if the small business is closed down while the landlord drags their feet fixing it. Certainly not the employees and patrons or the city that is losing out on taxes.Personally the city should fix it, get these business back to work and put a lean on the building for the repairs.

      2. Are you a landlord in town too? Either that or an apologist for a landlord that’s been ignoring major problems with that building for a long time. Give me a break. Simmer down? That’s why this town looks like it does. Too much complacency.

      3. “Less than two months”? You have a different idea of responsiveness than I do.
        By a “high level of compliance” I meant the amount of time that a property can be unavailable like this. The Des Moines downtown has suffered since the recessions. We just can’t afford to have -any- of our local businesses be out of action for months at a time–especially two of the newer dining options.
        Again, the downtown core needs to be a place that will be held to a high standard of availability, The area can’t live up to its potential unless all the properties recognise that they have an obligation to the community to step up.

  3. Just counting down the days till the owner gets their act together so I can start enjoying Dana K’s amazing sandwiches again D:

  4. Just counting down the days till the owner gets their act together so I can start enjoying Dana K’s amazing sandwiches again D:

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