HOUSTON – Hundreds of residents at the Life at Jackson Square apartments in Meyerland are left without heat as the winter storm approaches this weekend. Families tell KPRC 2 News Reporter Corley Peel they are scrambling to make arrangements ahead of the storm.
“I am worried about the winter storm tomorrow and the lack of heat in my apartment,” said David Wald.
Houston Council Member Abbie Kamin expressed frustration with the apartment’s management and owners.
“How the hell do you allow 500 units to be without heat and we’re in the end of January?” Kamin said.
Inspectors have pressured management to make repairs, reducing the number of units without heat from 500 to about 200, but many residents remain without heat or hot water as the winter storm approaches.
Kamin also highlighted other serious problems at the complex, including rat and roach infestations and violent crimes.
An anonymous neighbor described management as unresponsive. “It’s like the only way you can get something fixed is if you actually stop the maintenance man and they’ll come do it. If you call the office, they’re gonna ignore you all day,” the neighbor said. “It’s basically like a money grab.”
Council Member Kamin also criticized faulty fire alarms that failed to alert residents during a recent fire.
“At the Red Cross shelter, about 40 displaced individuals were talking about how their little grandbabies ran back into the burning building to wake them up and save their lives because the alarms didn’t go off,” Kamin said.
When asked about the ownership of the complex, Kamin revealed the owners are absentee landlords based in West Texas.
“They’re absentee owners,” she said. “Pecos Housing Finance Corporation, from Pecos County in West Texas, now owns this as a tax shelter.”
Kamin called out the corporation and its members by name, questioning why resources are being taken away from Houston while the property remains neglected.
The city has taken legal action, filing a Chapter 125 lawsuit targeting public safety concerns at the complex.
Corley attempted to get a comment from the leasing office but was met with silence.
Neighbor David Wald said, “I would like to see them fix the problems so I can continue living here.” Wald is staying elsewhere during the storm while many residents remain in the cold.
KPRC 2 News reached out to management via email but has not received a response. Council Member Kamin said the city plans to distribute blankets to residents ahead of the storm and reiterated that warming shelters, including the Bayland Community Center, will be open.