AUSTIN (KXAN) — Travis County commissioners said in a meeting Tuesday that even though many of the 85 residents who have been forced out of their apartments at The Rosemont at Oak Valley want the court to intervene, they don’t have much authority to do so.
In Tuesday’s meeting, Judge Andy Brown said that the apartment complex is owned by an LLC, the board members for which are the same as the board members of the Housing Authority of Travis County. Brown said while they appoint those members to the board, those boards take action independently of commissioners.
“While we recognize our authority is limited, we did want to take this opportunity to make sure the board is informed,” Judge Brown said of the agenda item Tuesday.
Patrick Howard from the Housing Authority of Travis County reiterated in that meeting that the winter storm was to blame for the removal of residents and said they’ve been working to secure places for residents to relocate. He said residents can break their leases without penalty.
Commissioner Margaret Gómez said she’s been meeting with the people who were displaced and has been given a list of requests from those residents which she called “reasonable.”
“The court ought to at least say we agree with these demands,” Gómez said. “It needs to bring about a big change in how we approach renters and their roles.”
“I don’t have the money to move”
Property management at the apartment complex in south Austin cited winter storm damage in a notice to residents as the reason they needed to relocate.
In the note, dated July 2, management says “While Rosemont at Oak Velley has taken steps in order to mitigate the effects of any damage, we have found that the extent of damage experienced in your unit will unfortunately require that we terminate your lease and you to vacate the unit so that we may make necessary repairs.”
The South Austin residents have previously told KXAN they had nowhere to go and didn’t have enough time to relocate.
Many people who had been displaced from the apartment complex called into today’s commissioners meeting to reiterate that sentiment.
“I’ve called around to quite a few other apartments, there’s nothing available but one bedrooms or one bedroom two bath, or we can’t afford it,” one of the residents said during the Tuesday meeting. “I don’t have the money to move, that’s all there is to it.”
This is a developing story, we will continue to update it throughout the day as we learn more.
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