Tentants Told To Vacate
Get out! River Oaks apartment tenants told to vacate to clear room for megadevelopment
Residents at Westcreek at River Oaks Apartments were given a 60-day evictionnotice.Westcreek at River Oaks
The eviction clears the way for the new River Oaks District, a 15-acre, $275million mixed-use plot developed by San Diego-based OliverMcMillan.OliverMcMillan
UPDATE 09/16: A representative for OliverMcMillan contacted CultureMap with the following statement: "The apartments at the center of your story are located near OliverMcMillan's River Oaks District, but have no affiliation with our development in any way. OliverMcMillan does not own this property nor do we have any plans to purchase it."
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The last thing tenants need after a day at work is to learn that they have 60 days to clean out their belongings and evacuate their property.
That's the notice residents at Westcreek at River Oaks Apartments, located between Westheimer Road and San Felipe Street just east of the West Loop, found taped to the inside of their front doors this week.
The official letter issued by Kaplan Management Co., the management division of M. Kaplan Companies, offered little explanation, although one leaseholder tells CultureMap that the eviction notice has to do with the pending sale to developer OliverMcMillan, which will teardown the 1960s complex to clear the way for more land for the new River Oaks District, a 15-acre, $275 million mixed-use plot that will boast 650,000 square feet of high-end commercial and residential space.
All that was offered as a consolation prize was the full return of the security deposit.
"There's no termination clause in my lease," says a resident who's lived at Westcreek for two years. "It's creepy that they thought it would be OK to enter my apartment and leave the letter."
According to Harris County courts, notices to vacate can be delivered by affixing them to the inside of the main entry door. Changes in ownership, however, don't give license to disregard existing lease agreements.
When residents asked the in-house property manager for options, they were told that disagreements with the demand would best be addressed by hiring a real estate attorney. All that was offered as a consolation prize was the full return of the security deposit.
The handling of Kaplan Management's expulsion proceedings is different from how other jettisoned apartment residents were treated in a similar situation. When residents of 4444 Westheimer received their "pink slip" in November, San Diego-based OliverMcMillan provided moving concierges and an incentive plan that included a one-month rent rebate.
Michael Kaplan's enterprise is based in Houston. Repeated attempts to reach Kaplan Management for comment were not successful.
