Overview
- Mayor John Whitmire and the Houston Housing Authority said the Second Ward complex is safe for residents and will begin opening next week.
- The Housing Authority says a recent Texas Commission on Environmental Quality letter deemed the apartments up to standards and the buildings and soil directly beneath pose no safety risk.
- TCEQ fined the city $175,000 for remediation still needed near the site and had previously cited four violations tied to ash handling and documentation.
- The 800 Middle Street project, intended to deliver nearly 400 affordable units and costing about $140–$146 million, had been paused after an October 2024 federal sampling operation.
- Results from the FBI, EPA and HUD OIG soil probe have not been released, and records showing HHA and its developer knew of contamination risks before construction continue to draw scrutiny.