05:53 PM CDT on Tuesday, June 6, 2006

By Amy Tortolani / 11 News and Staff Reports

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Tuesday, Houston Mayor Bill White made good on his promise to continue to rid the Bayou City of unsafe buildings, which have also become eyesores.

Targeting other properties for demolition has proved to be an uphill battle.

With each crunch of the bulldozer the city of Houston closed another chapter in the saga of the Hilton Town Apartments in the 2200 block of Wirt Road near Hammerly.

Legal battles have gone on since the late 1980s between the city and the foreign investor who city officials said has refused to keep the Spring Branch apartment complex up to code.

A year ago, crews contracted by the city tore down parts of the complex.  The remaining 23 building units were razed Tuesday.

Mayor White said if the building owner doesn’t pay for this demolition, the city will sue yet again.

The Hilton Town Apartments were arguably one of Houston’s biggest neighborhood nuisances.

This is not the only property.

Mayor White said he hopes a north Houston motel is foreclosed upon by August.  The owner owes more than $200,000 in back taxes.

The problem is there are still about 20 people living in the building.

“There is hope, because I am mad about this where people don’t pay their tax, haven’t paid there taxes in years and years and years,” said Mayor Bill White.

And now there are health concerns too.

There is no running water in the building and the people who claim they own the complex said they have told the tenants to get out.

“When we took it over we were giving them a chance to get out so we could renovate it because there is some stuff wrong at the hotel,” said Roosevelt Robinson whose family owns the property.

According to the city there are no renovations planned, only a demolition.