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Residents say Knox box failures delayed emergency access at Campanile on Justice Park
Summary
Neighbors told council that first responders struggled to access a gated community because keys were not available in Knox boxes and concerns about key control persist; they asked the city to investigate and hold oversight entities accountable.
Residents of Campanile on Justice Park told the Houston City Council on May 13 that firefighters and emergency crews had trouble entering the property because keys were not available in the Knox box at a gated entry.
Anna Harris and Sherry Butler said the issue has persisted since last October and that mismanagement of key control created repeated access delays. "They got lost... they pounded on the doors to get in," Harris said of a recent response by Station 4. She told the council that an elderly resident pulls out of a driveway near a dense hedge and has nearly been hit multiple times because visibility problems coincide with gate and access failures.
Sherry Butler said a fire inspector told her that "in his 35 years, no one had ever needed more than one key in a Knox box," even though local firefighters and captains reported that some trucks carry dedicated keys because of ongoing problems. Butler said those captured on the ground noted emergency medical crews often do not have the same key control and that keys are sometimes missing after EMS calls.
Butler told the council: "If it happened one time and it was your mother, would that be too many times for one key to not be in a box?" She said she had filed repeated written requests to the property manager — identified in public comment as "Blazer" — and to the city's property‑management contacts without a resolution.
Council members and staff responded that the issue would be referred for follow‑up with the fire department and property management. No formal motion or vote was recorded at the May 13 session.
Background: A Knox box is a secured key box that allows fire crews to access buildings or gated properties without forcing entry. Residents asked the council to confirm key‑control procedures with the fire department and the property manager and sought an accountability path for repeated failures.
Next steps: Residents asked the council to inspect the property gate, confirm Knox box compliance and key‑control procedures with Houston Fire Department staff, and resolve the hedge/visibility hazard reported at a driveway exit.
