The Chronicle‘s Christina Wright reports that the site of a one-time attraction has become an eyesore:
For many Houstonians, AstroWorld was a place of fun and memories. Now, the 104 acres that once were home to the Serial Thriller, the Dungeon Drop and the Texas Cyclone have been replaced with 3-foot weeds, grass and unkempt shrubbery.
This week, the city gave the owners 30 days to clean up the former AstroWorld location or possibly face fines up to $1,500 as well as a cleanup bill.
Angel-McIver Interests, a Conroe-based land development company, bought the site for $77 million in 2005 from Six Flags Inc. when the property value rose and attendance began declining.
“It’s been too wet to mow,” said Michael McIver, president of Angel-McIver. “As soon as the weather clears up, we will mow it.” He added that the property has been mowed twice since his company bought it.
This week, an inspector from the Houston Police Department’s Neighborhood Protection Corps left a notice on the north entrance fence that said the owners are in violation of the “neighborhood nuisances” article in the city’s Code of Ordinances.
The code exists to keep up appearances but, most importantly, to keep pests away, according to Jodi Silva, a spokeswoman for the corps.
“When you have high weeds, you are making a breeding ground for mosquitoes, and snakes can live in there, and rats,” she said. “It’s just a potential health hazard.”
Private property owners are required by the city to keep grass or weeds to 9 inches or less and remove any obstructions of the sidewalks and streets bordering the property.
Angel-McIver has mowed the place twice since 2005? Wow, line them up for a corporate good citizenship award!
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