ORANGE, Texas — Orange city officials say another building is scheduled to come down at the troubled Sabine Park Apartments.
The city says during a substandard building hearing, an officer ordered Section 3 to be demolished. The section includes 11 buildings and a parking lot.
The city has already torn down parts of the building in 2023.
12News has been following this story at the apartments since January 2023. At the time, residents complained they'd spent months without running water when the 2022 December freeze caused the pipes to burst.
David Vonderheydan, one of the residents still living in Section 2 at the apartments is concerned his home could be demolished next.
"It's making me nervous because we don't have anywhere to go at the moment," said Vonderheydan.
He's been living at the Sabine Park Apartments for six years.
"Lately everybody has been stealing everything from these apartments," he said.
City officials say there's only a dozen people still living in Sections 1 and 2. Section 3 is slated for demolition.
"We actually took Section 3 to a substandard hearing and the hearing officer ordered them demolished," said Director of Planning and Community Development Kelvin Knauf.
Knauf says this comes just six months after Section 4, which included nine buildings, was torn down.
"We had that really deep freeze the pipes burst and that created flooding," Knauf said.
It could take two months to tear down Section 3 before the city turns their attention to Section 2 where Vonderheydan lives, according to Knauf.
"I just hope if they want to tear us down, that they help us, help us relocate. There are people here," Vonderheydan told 12News,
Knauf says there are plenty of affordable housing options available in Orange and the city is there to help.
"I think there is a lot of options for them with Orange Housing Authority. We did that with Section 4 with coordination through our contacts, we helped those people find other places to live," he said.
The city will be inspecting Sections 1 and 2 to see if the buildings can be fixed. If they can be, it will be up to the complex's new owner Saluda Grade who took over last November to make the final decision.
“We've thrown out some ideas for a student dormitory for the college or senior assistant living. We're very excited to redevelop that area to really become a nice area and be an asset to the City of Orange," Knauf said.
The new owners also reimbursed the city for demolition of Section 4. The city is hoping they will do the same for Section 3.
Knauf says Section 3 has similar issues to Section 4 like sewage and electrical wiring. Section 4 costs $140,000 to demo and Section 3 will cost $55,000.