Frustration builds after mailboxes remain broken for months at west Houston apartment complex

Tuesday, November 22, 2022
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Bills, important documents, and, soon, holiday cards are what a lot of us find when we check our mailbox. But for months now, one Houston woman has not received a single piece of mail in her box.

It is not because she wasn't sent any, but because the mailboxes at her apartment complex are so broken, her mail cannot be delivered.

"This is where the lock was. They busted the lock just so they could get the mail," Valarie Roberson explained.

Roberson has lived at the Madison Park apartments on the west side since the fall of 2021. When she moved in, she noticed some of the mailboxes were broken.

"(Management) said they already actually ordered new mailboxes and that they would put the mailboxes in. I haven't seen or heard anything else about it," Roberson said.

She said since then, the boxes have gotten even more damaged, and now her mail can't be delivered, so she has to drive to the post office to pick it up.

According to the United States Postal Service, generally, it is the responsibility of the apartment complex to maintain the mailboxes.

"It's really inconvenient for us when we can usually just walk in here and check our mail, but now we have to drive to get it and I feel sorry for the people that don't have vehicles," Roberson explained.

After several unanswered calls to the leasing office, ABC13 stopped in to ask about the mailboxes. We were then referred to their corporate office in west Houston and were finally sent this statement from Mosaic Residential:

"We share the concerns that our residents and many across the Houston area have regarding crime, vandalism, and mail/package theft. We have notified law enforcement of this incident and are working to complete any needed repairs to the mailboxes. We support and cooperate with law enforcement and the District Attorney's Office as they investigate and prosecute those who are responsible for these crimes."

A week after we went to the corporate office, Madison Park residents received an email saying progress is being made with the mailboxes.

"We have obtained two proposals for the mailboxes and are submitting them today to request approval. More details will come," read part of the email Roberson received.

Roberson says at this point, more than a year into this mess, she's not getting her hopes up. But she said she would love to be proved wrong and would love to have a working mailbox.

If you are a renter and have an issue you would like us to look into, head to ABC13.com/RentersRights and fill out the form with as much detail as possible.

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