HOUSTON – The slow-moving high-speed train project, designed to link Houston and Dallas, is causing headaches for residents of a northwest Harris County subdivision.
Within the last four years, Texas Central Railway has purchased 41 homes in the White Oak Falls subdivision, according to county property records.
The subdivision, near 290 and Huffmeister Road, already borders train tracks on its eastern edge. The southern edge of the subdivision is bordered by Cy Falls High School.
On a day when KPRC 2 Investigates visited the neighborhood, which is a short walk from the high school, we saw a dilapidated home with the words “SEX HOUSE” scrawled on the front door with spray paint.
Texas Central Railway bought that home and others with an eye on eventually removing the structures to make way for the right-of-way needed for the high-speed train project.
But many of the purchased houses have fallen into disrepair, and squatters have moved into the homes, sometimes, without electricity, according to neighbors.
“I don’t feel safe for my family, for my grandkids, not even for myself,” said Maria Arzola, a 17-year resident of White Oak Falls. “It’s not fair for me. I pay my fees and I pay my taxes.”
Texas Central Railroad’s response:
Texas Central Railroad, which has a website that does not appear to be regularly updated, did not initially respond to KPRC 2 Investigates inquiries about the project.
KPRC 2 Investigates couldn’t find any functioning physical offices in the Houston area for the company.
Messages sent through texascentral.com were bounced back, and the media section of the website hasn’t been updated since August 2023.
Finally, after reaching out directly to the company’s chief officers, KPRC 2 Investigates got a short written response:
“We are aware of issues involving Texas Central-owned properties in the White Oak Falls neighborhood in Harris County. We have started and completed evictions on several properties. Texas Central is working diligently with local authorities to address these issues,” the unattributed statement read.
HOA’s role and response:
Eviction lawsuits in Texas originate with the property owner, so the Homeowners’ Association for White Oak Falls cannot simply remove tenants, even illegal tenants from homes, and neither can police without a specific court order.
HOAs do have the power to file both liens and lawsuits against homeowners who do not comply with neighborhood rules. In this case, White Oak Falls’ has pursued neither costly legal endeavor.
“We, as the HOA, have been ineffective in the sense that there are still squatters in the properties. However it’s not due to lack of effort,” Scott Woodard, HOA President, stated via text message.
Woodard said that his team was not happy about the situation and that a lawyer for the HOA and an attorney for the Texas Central Railroad are in contact about the problem.
Home values
Longtime residents of White Oak Falls are rightfully worried about their home values falling as a result of the situation.
One homeowner who was not ready to sell a few years ago to Texas Central Railroad because he had recently moved in, now wants to leave, but moving is too expensive.
“Yeah, when I said I was ready to sell, they weren’t buying any more houses,” Nestor Cortez said.
Cortez’s home sits between two Texas Central Railroad homes.