Cross Creek Residents Join Austin Officials in Lawsuit Against Landlord

AUSTIN, Texas -- Families who live in Cross Creek Apartments will take their landlord to court Wednesday.

They say the apartment complex, which is located near Rundberg Lane and North Lamar Blvd., has been falling apart for the past five years with virtually no upkeep. That includes broken windows and vacant apartments with no doorknobs to secure them, but residents say the list goes on.

"They stopped basically maintenance completely," said Jorge Menchaca, who moved into the complex six years ago.

Menchaca and his neighbors are joining the City of Austin in suing the property owners. Attorney Robert Doggett says the city almost never takes property owners to court, but this is a deserving exception.

"We are talking about unsafe walkways," said Doggett, who is part of Texas RioGrande Legal Aid. "We are talking about leaky roofs or in walls with mold. You name it. There are problems out there."

The City of Austin gave Cross Creek $2 million last year to fix a hot water problem and other safety problems. However, residents said neither have been fixed.