Travis County property owner cited for homeless encampment he can't remove himself

Man cited for homeless camp on his property

A man who owns property in Travis County says he's being fined for health violations due to a homeless camp he can't remove. FOX 7 Austin's Angela Shen has more in this 7 On Your Side.

AUSTIN, Texas - A man who owns property in Travis County says he's being fined for a homeless camp on his property that he can't remove. 

The backstory:

Aiden Johnson, who lives in Dallas, owns a property on Veldt Drive in East Travis County. He's owned it for several years and had hoped to build something on it. 

However, shortly after he bought it, a homeless encampment moved in. There are trailers, trash, and things burning. 

"It just seems to be completely out of control," he said.

Johnson has been cited by Austin Public Health for a health violation and has received a court summons. He says he isn't able to remove the encampment himself.

"I really don't feel that I should need to go down there armed with an army to remove, forcibly remove people, which is kind of what needs to happen because otherwise nobody's going anywhere," he said. "It's not really something a citizen should be doing. I'm not Batman."

He says the departments he's reached out to essentially direct him to other agencies.

"I'm very confused on the front between the police, the Constables, and Public Health, why it is that they've been completely unwilling to help and that they expect me to somehow resolve this on my end," he said.

The Travis County Sheriff's Office says the public health violations are civil, which they're not involved in, but they're willing to work with the landowner to lawfully issue criminal trespass warnings. 

Johnson says he has had some communication with TCSO.

"I've had a little bit of luck where they have stated that they will come up with a plan and get people off the property," he said.

He says he can't get workers to go do cleanup or fencing, because they're nervous about the encampment.

He also doesn't want the encampment to keep getting worse.

"I am happy to do the cleanup if someone can get the people off the property. It's just the longer it goes, the worse it becomes, because the cleanup will be more and more expensive. It's kind of getting to the point where I might have to abandon the land, because it's going to cost more than the land is worth," he said.

What they're saying:

Austin Public Health released the following statement:

"Under the Texas Health & Safety Code, the Austin Public Health Environmental Health team issued a notice of violation, and this matter is currently part of ongoing litigation in Precinct 1.

This is a multi-agency effort, and Austin Public Health’s role is focused on protecting health and safety by enforcing state law as part of an interlocal agreement with Travis County.

We remain committed to working with our county and city partners to support community health."

What's next:

Johnson has a pre-trial hearing on Sept. 16 for the health violation.