Abandoned house in The Woodlands to be demolished
From Houston Chronicle By Bridget Balch | April 27, 2015 | Updated: April 27, 2015 4:45pm
The abandoned house at the center of a heated three-way legal battle involving The Woodlands Township, Wells Fargo Bank and the property owner is set to be demolished later this week.
Set right in the middle of Wildwind Circle neighborhood, less than a mile from The Woodlands Resort and Conference Center, the property has sat vacant for five years. Neighbors have complained that the property poses various health hazards: raccoons taking refuge in the holes in the roof, mold visibly lining the windows and snakes and mosquitoes that have tested positive for West Nile virus breeding in the pool and pond.
In a master-planned community like The Woodlands, where covenants and deed restrictions are intended to hold the community to a high aesthetic standard and residents often receive letters of violation for minor infractions, such as leaving a garbage can out or allowing the grass to grow too long, some neighbors were incredulous that the property had been allowed to deteriorate into its current condition.
The township stepped in to address some public safety concerns by treating the property for mosquitoes and covering the pond and pool in the backyard with tarp, but beyond that, it struggled to hold anyone accountable for the property because the owner, Daniel Parks, and Wells Fargo Bank, the trustee representing the lender, disputed the ownership.
Parks, who abandoned the house in 2010 after discovering a mold infestation, claimed that the bank had taken possession of the property when they changed the locks. Michael Hord, a representative of Wells Fargo, however, said that the title remained under Parks’ name and the bank never officially foreclosed on the property.
The township filed more than a dozen notices of violation before filing a lawsuit against both Wells Fargo and Parks to force a resolution. A hearing was set for May 26 in State District Judge Cara Wood‘s court, but the parties were able to come to an agreement and allow a separate party to purchase the house. They expect to close on the property and demolish the house later this week. The contractor that will demolish the house will have to ensure remediation of any health hazards, such as mold, and acquire permits from Montgomery County before demolition occurs, said John Powers, general manager of The Woodlands Township.
