Abandoned Greenspoint-area complex not expected to be repaired, removed after residents complained

Tuesday, October 31, 2023
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- We know what will happen next to the Arbor Court Apartments in Houston's Greenspoint area. The answer: absolutely nothing.
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Although neighbors say it has been overrun by dangerous and illegal activity, there are no plans to tear down or repair it anytime soon, according to the complex's attorney, Kenneth Chaiken.

ORIGINAL REPORT: Neighbors say abandoned Greenspoint-area apartments are hotbed for illegal and dangerous activity

The City of Houston's Department of Neighborhoods also said it will not be involved.

"The City of Houston doesn't do anything about it," Nelson Salmeron, who owns a home nearby, said. "They don't care about us. Maybe because this is a low-income neighborhood, they don't care about it."

Because of residents like Nelson Salmeron, ABC13 is pushing for answers.



Just a few houses away from him, Candy Ponce is also desperate for help.

Of the nine fires the Houston Fire Department has responded to at the complex over the past two years, multiple have come within inches of her home.
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Ponce said emails to city officials have yet to be answered.

"We are really scared, really worried about those fires, and it's been constantly as well," Ponce explained.

Arbor Court was a federally subsidized housing complex for low-income families.

After extensive flooding during Hurricane Harvey, city officials refused to issue building permits, and complex owners say they were stuck, unable to make any repairs.



The complex has been abandoned since 2019.

"A lot of people feel like they aren't a priority," said Shantay Ligons, who runs a nonprofit nearby. "There are other areas that we go to, and we see that the funding is coming through. They're doing things with the trash that's been thrown on the street. This area here seems to stay in a stagnant state."

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