HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – A southeast Harris County home in the Kirkmont subdivision has been the target of multiple complaints. The home off Glenkirk near Blackhawk was damaged by a fire earlier this year and large of amounts of debris and trash can be seen in the backyard and driveway.
“When that house first burned, we assumed soon after it would get torn down or something would be done,” said a resident who asked not to be identified. “It’s a big concern for us, we don’t want to have to worry about our own safety when we don’t know what’s going on over there.”
Those concerns come from someone still living at the property, which has no working utilities, who appears to have other people visiting the home.
“As the months, weeks started going by and we started seeing more people coming in and out, and then rubbish was just starting to get taken out of either the home or things were being brought in and just being spread out in the driveway," the resident said.
Neighbors said the’ve filed multiple complaints with law enforcement and Harris County Public Health, but have not gotten clear answers as to what’s being done to address the issue.
“Now they went as far as putting up tarps to sort of block some of the rubbage that’s there. So I mean, it’s not a pleasant scene," another resident said.
2 Investigates then reached out to Precinct 2 Constable Jerry Garcia, Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia and officials with Harris County Public Health.
Constable Garcia said the man living on property is the son of the deceased owner. Garcia said since he is the next-of-kin he has a right to be on property and anyone he invites to the house is not considered trespassing.
Garcia said the man is homeless and he has offered to help relocate him several times but he has refused. Harris County Public health officials said they have also offered to connect him with services to help him relocate.
Officials with Harris County Public Health said, unlike the city of Houston, the county does not have an ordinance prohibiting people from living in uninhabitable conditions. Therefore, county health officials don’t have the authority to remove the man from the property until Commissioners have approved the structure for demolition.
Health officials said getting a property deemed a public nuisance and approved for demolition is a process that can take four months or longer.
County health inspectors have visited the property three times since June, but inspectors said they can only issue citations to the owner of the property, not the man living at the house. Constable Garcia said the home has been foreclosed and is scheduled for auction next week. Public Health officials said they are still waiting on paperwork to confirm the house is up for auction.
On Oct. 1 Harris County Public Health placed a sign in the front yard of the home stating the structure has been deemed a public nuisance and they are seeking an abatement order. Commissioner Garcia said he will make sure the property is on Commissioner’s Oct. 16 agenda to be approved for demolition.
“In Texas, counties have no ability to make law or set ordinances. However, its local governments are best suited to respond to the public safety needs of the communities we serve. We ask that the state loosen the reigns on our ability to deal with the threats of nuisance properties and keep our communities safe,” Garcia also wrote in a statement to KPRC 2.