Building Standards Board orders demolition of 510 Brookview Drive after finding life‑safety violations and public‑safety concerns

The San Antonio Building Standards Board voted unanimously on May 1 to demolish the main structure at 510 Brookview Drive, a property the city found in multiple violation of local property‑maintenance and dangerous‑building rules and tied to repeated police calls and a 2024 homicide investigation.

The 6‑0 vote ordered the property vacated, secured, utilities cut and all trash and debris removed within 30 days. Earlier in the same hearing the board separately found related apartment‑maintenance code violations (overhangs, windows and electrical hazards) for an accessory structure on the same parcel and ordered repairs under a 45‑day timeframe.

Why it matters: City staff and police said the property poses an immediate risk to residents and neighbors. Officers described repeated criminal activity and life‑safety hazards at the site; neighbors and family members urged the board to act after a homicide investigation and other violent incidents linked by police to the vicinity. The owner disputed some of the factual claims and said she was pursuing funding to make repairs.

Code findings and timeline Ramiro Guerra, code enforcement supervisor for the Development Services Department, told the board the San Antonio DART (Danger Assessment and Response Team) inspected the property on May 14, 2024 and documented violations under the San Antonio Property Maintenance Code including section 304.9 (overhang extensions), 304.13 (window, skylight and door frames) and 604.3 (electrical system hazards). Guerra said inspectors found exposed wiring, evidence of unpermitted electrical work and deteriorated overhangs and window frames. Staff recommended the electrical work, windows and overhangs be repaired with required permits and that the structure remain vacant until electrical hazards were corrected.

Police and neighbors describe recurring crime and a homicide San Antonio Police Department officers described years of complaints tied to the address. Officer Thomas, a central‑substation safe officer, said the DART inspection followed multiple calls and that city Public Service had reported an electrical meter and box “running hot and could catch fire at any time.” Officer Flores, also a safe officer, told the board the property had been the subject of repeated nuisance and criminal calls, and said investigators found evidence connected to a homicide; “the body was found at this property,” Flores said. Multiple neighbors and relatives told the board they had long been troubled by drug activity, trespass and the presence of encampments in the heavily wooded rear portion of the lot.

Owner’s response and repair plans Property owner Peggy Mullins, who said she lives on a separate structure behind the front building, told the board she intends to bring the property back to code and said she was pursuing an equity loan. Mullins and family members told board members they had sought contractors and assembly of repair estimates; Mullins asked for time to complete electrical work first and said she expected major elements could be done in about one to two months but that financing remained pending.

Board action and votes at a glance - Finding and partial repair order (San Antonio Property Maintenance Code sections 304.9, 304.13, 604.3): The board found violations and ordered repairs with permits (45 days). Motion record: motion filed on the record as a violation of SAPMC 304.9 (overhang extensions) and related sections; chair/board motion language and a friendly amendment removed a vacate requirement for that specific overhang order. Vote: 6‑0 (Robert Tapia: aye; Anne Weiner: aye; Paul Hernandez: aye; Doris Solis: aye; Robert Behnke: aye; Bridal Andes: aye).

- Dangerous‑building/demolition order (City Code, Article 8, Chapter 6): After a separate presentation by dangerous‑premises staff documenting multiple accessory structures, significant water and structural damage, evidence of occupancy in accessory buildings and repeated code violations, the board found the property a public nuisance “not feasible to be repaired” and ordered demolition within 30 days, with vacate, securing of the site, cutting of utilities and removal of trash and debris. Vote: 6‑0 (Robert Tapia: aye; Anne Weiner: aye; Paul Hernandez: aye; Doris Solis: aye; Robert Behnke: aye; Bridal Andes: aye).

What the board heard about hazards and occupancy - Staff and photos: Dangerous‑premises officer Crystal Towne showed photos of the front main structure and multiple accessory buildings that staff said were rotted, had missing siding, exposed ceiling joists, holes in roof decking and large amounts of trash and debris. Towne recommended demolition for the main and accessory structures and a clean‑up order for the lot. - Police testimony: Officer Thomas said five occupants were removed from the front structure during the DART enforcement and that at least one veteran who had been living in a mobile unit on the lot was relocated with assistance. Officer Flores said the property attracted drug activity, prostitution and homeless encampments and that the site’s condition posed fire and public‑safety risks, including children walking past the site to nearby schools. - Neighbors and victims’ family: Multiple speakers from the neighborhood and family members of a homicide victim urged demolition, described a long history of encampments and criminal activity, and said the property’s wooded rear abutted Olmos/nearby creek drainage and local schools, increasing safety concerns.

Limits, appeals and next steps The board’s order allows the owners or other interested parties to appeal according to the procedures explained by staff. Development Services staff said code officers will coordinate demolition scheduling, abatement and any required public‑works clean‑up; the board instructed staff to notify officers about a threat reportedly made in the hearing so staff can coordinate enforcement and follow‑up.

The board’s unanimous votes addressed separate legal findings—one under the apartment/property maintenance code for overhangs, windows and electrical hazards and a second under the dangerous‑building provisions for the main structure and several accessory structures—so the record includes two distinct orders and timelines for compliance or removal. The owner and family will receive the board’s written orders and information about appeals and any available city assistance, and staff said they will make the owner’s submitted documents part of the hearing record.

(Article compiled from Development Services presentations, sworn officer testimony and public comment at the May 1, 2025 Building Standards Board hearing.)