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My wife and I are considering purchasing a home in the Kingwood area. The Kings River subdivision may save a few minutes on the commute and have newer homes.
It would be appreciated is someone could advise....
1.) Is Kings River actually (oficially) part of Kingwood?
2.) Is it true that....although the kids living in Kings River now go to Kingwood HS....but in the near future will go to Atascocita HS?
3.) Is there any bennifit to living nearer to the core of Kingwood vs the outskirts such as Kings River subdivision. (South of the bridge.)
1.) Is Kings River actually (oficially) part of Kingwood?
Yes. It is part of Kingwood.
2.) Is it true that....although the kids living in Kings River now go to Kingwood HS....but in the near future will go to Atascocita HS?
Haven't heard that.
3.) Is there any bennifit to living nearer to the core of Kingwood vs the outskirts such as Kings River subdivision. (South of the bridge.)
Depends on your preferrence. I'm in BearBranch, which is uber convenient to everything AND my home surrounded by a larger nature preserve. KingsRiver has cheaper water, but also yearly assessments. Though Kings River is in Kingwood, too me, it feels less Kingwoodey. KingsRiver is nice and close to the lake.
Hi, LJM. I just found your post and wanted to reply because we just went through this same thing ourselves. Last month, we fell in love with a house in Kings River, as well as with the neighborhood itself. We moved here from another state a few months ago and have been renting while we shop for a house. Being new to the area, we had the same questions as you about whether or not Kings River is "officially" part of Kingwood. I also wanted to know why the elementary-school kids in part of KR are zoned to Greentree Elementary on the other side of Lake Houston (I will be driving my kids to school, and I was concerned about traffic on Lake Houston Parkway while getting them to school in the morning).
I spoke to a LOT of people about this, and BOY did I hit a sore spot with a lot of people! Apparently there is a lot of animosity regarding the issues of school zoning and whether or not KR is part of Kingwood. Some say it is, and some say it is either Humble or Atascocita. For what it's worth, I have a map of Kingwood, and it does include Kings River. I can tell you that KR is not currently incorporated into the city of Houston like the rest of Kingwood, so maybe that is where some of the controversy arises (a benefit here is that taxes are lower in the unincorporated sections). This could change, of course. There is also a small part of Kingwood closer to Hwy 59 that is not incorporated into the city, and is part of Montgomery Country, not Harris (I know this because we are currently living in this part).
My only concern about being "across the bridge" was that both of my kids would be going to school on the other side of that bridge (my son is in kindergarten in public school, and my daughter is in a private preschool), and will have different drop-off and pick-up times for the next 2 years. Also, all of their after-school activities are in the "main" part of Kingwood. That would be a lot of driving back and forth for me. It's really not THAT far if you think about it, but considering that Lake Houston Parkway is a major thoroughfare and the only route I could take, I worried about being late for everything because of traffic at the times I would be driving.
Of greater concern for me was the uncertainty of where my kids would go to school. Like I said, there appears to be a GREAT DEAL of heartache over the fact that kids from KR are "bussed" to schools in the "main part" of Kingwood. It was explained to me that when KR was developed, Greentree Elementary had declining numbers, so the KR elementary kids were sent there since they didn't have their own school yet. That situation has persisted even though the elementary-school population of the Greentree community has grown. Kids who live in Greentree are now split up among 2 or 3 different schools because Greentree elementary is full. Many of these families are understandably not happy with the situation and sort of place the "blame" on the KR families who go to Greentree rather than a school closer to home. There was an article in the most recent Kingwood Observer about the issue of bussing kids to other schools in Humble ISD rather than the school closest to them. Many people consider it favoritism, and I get the feeling that there are going to be changes coming in the near future. Not that I don't think the schools closer to KR are good ones (I'm not familiar with them at all), but I am not comfortable with the uncertainty of where my children might be going to school in the next couple of years.
I understand that any neighborhood could possibly be rezoned at any time, but this KR issue seems to be such a hot one that I see the changes as imminent. I also worried about how that would affect property values (if I am concerned about it, I'm sure others are, too). We ultimately decided against the home in Kings River for an unrelated reason (the home was not energy-efficient and we were worried about the potentially high utility bills), but I have to admit that the school zoning issue and all the hard feelings from other Kingwood families did play a part.
I'm sorry I didn't see your post sooner, but I hope I have provided some helpful information.
Thank You for writing such an in-debth and comprehensive response. I am concerned over the same rezoning issue that you mentioned in your post.
Do you think High School has the same zoning controversy as the Middle School? The house I was considering was ~ 4.5 miles from Kingwood HS and ~ 4.1 miles from Atascocita HS.
Since my kids are only 4 and 6, I'm not as aware of zoning issues surrounding the high schools as the elementary schools. But since there seems to be many people who are very vocal about the school zoning in the whole Kings River area, I would assume that any of the KR zones are somewhat vulnerable to change. I doubt that any changes would happen very soon, so if your kids only have a couple years of school left I might not be as worried. But remember that I'm very new here myself, so I can only pass along my impressions from what I've researched. Hope this helps.
Paula
Quote:
Originally Posted by LJM
Dear Crescentcitygal.
Thank You for writing such an in-debth and comprehensive response. I am concerned over the same rezoning issue that you mentioned in your post.
Do you think High School has the same zoning controversy as the Middle School? The house I was considering was ~ 4.5 miles from Kingwood HS and ~ 4.1 miles from Atascocita HS.
When we moved to Kings River 5 years ago, we were told that this subdivision will eventually be zoned to the new high school (but I graduated 2 years ago). However, I don't believe it's anywhere near completion, and I don't think that they will take any students that are already attending Kingwood High School out of that school to transfer them to Atascocita upon completion.
We are in kind of a gray area here, however, and considered a part of Kingwood, Atascocita, AND Humble. I have no idea how far along they are in the construction of the school, but they've been talking about it for over 5 years now.
Although Kingwood is considered to be one of the top public high schools in the U.S., I have no doubts that Atascocita will quickly emulate that same reputation. But if it's that important to you about the zoning, and your children are still young, I would consider moving closer to the center of Kingwood (perhaps Mills Branch?). But check with your real estate agent first since Kings River is honestly one of the nicer neighborhoods and it's kind of difficult to find newer houses closer to the center of town :/
Hi, LJM. I just found your post and wanted to reply because we just went through this same thing ourselves. Last month, we fell in love with a house in Kings River, as well as with the neighborhood itself. We moved here from another state a few months ago and have been renting while we shop for a house. Being new to the area, we had the same questions as you about whether or not Kings River is "officially" part of Kingwood. I also wanted to know why the elementary-school kids in part of KR are zoned to Greentree Elementary on the other side of Lake Houston (I will be driving my kids to school, and I was concerned about traffic on Lake Houston Parkway while getting them to school in the morning).
I spoke to a LOT of people about this, and BOY did I hit a sore spot with a lot of people! Apparently there is a lot of animosity regarding the issues of school zoning and whether or not KR is part of Kingwood. Some say it is, and some say it is either Humble or Atascocita. For what it's worth, I have a map of Kingwood, and it does include Kings River. I can tell you that KR is not currently incorporated into the city of Houston like the rest of Kingwood, so maybe that is where some of the controversy arises (a benefit here is that taxes are lower in the unincorporated sections). This could change, of course. There is also a small part of Kingwood closer to Hwy 59 that is not incorporated into the city, and is part of Montgomery Country, not Harris (I know this because we are currently living in this part).
My only concern about being "across the bridge" was that both of my kids would be going to school on the other side of that bridge (my son is in kindergarten in public school, and my daughter is in a private preschool), and will have different drop-off and pick-up times for the next 2 years. Also, all of their after-school activities are in the "main" part of Kingwood. That would be a lot of driving back and forth for me. It's really not THAT far if you think about it, but considering that Lake Houston Parkway is a major thoroughfare and the only route I could take, I worried about being late for everything because of traffic at the times I would be driving.
Of greater concern for me was the uncertainty of where my kids would go to school. Like I said, there appears to be a GREAT DEAL of heartache over the fact that kids from KR are "bussed" to schools in the "main part" of Kingwood. It was explained to me that when KR was developed, Greentree Elementary had declining numbers, so the KR elementary kids were sent there since they didn't have their own school yet. That situation has persisted even though the elementary-school population of the Greentree community has grown. Kids who live in Greentree are now split up among 2 or 3 different schools because Greentree elementary is full. Many of these families are understandably not happy with the situation and sort of place the "blame" on the KR families who go to Greentree rather than a school closer to home. There was an article in the most recent Kingwood Observer about the issue of bussing kids to other schools in Humble ISD rather than the school closest to them. Many people consider it favoritism, and I get the feeling that there are going to be changes coming in the near future. Not that I don't think the schools closer to KR are good ones (I'm not familiar with them at all), but I am not comfortable with the uncertainty of where my children might be going to school in the next couple of years.
I understand that any neighborhood could possibly be rezoned at any time, but this KR issue seems to be such a hot one that I see the changes as imminent. I also worried about how that would affect property values (if I am concerned about it, I'm sure others are, too). We ultimately decided against the home in Kings River for an unrelated reason (the home was not energy-efficient and we were worried about the potentially high utility bills), but I have to admit that the school zoning issue and all the hard feelings from other Kingwood families did play a part.
I'm sorry I didn't see your post sooner, but I hope I have provided some helpful information.
Moving to Houston with 13 yr old and one in Jr College system. Husband will be working in Katy but needs the airport frequently as well. Seems everyone talking about public schools. Any Catholic grade schools/High Schools? Housing in the $500-$600,000 range and no more than 30 min commute to airport. Any ideas?
Facinating thread. As a long time resident of the area, let me add a few comments.
The Humble Independent School District serves the Kingwood, Atascosita, and Humble areas. Currently there are three traditional High Schools: Humble, Kingwood, and the brand new Atascosita High School. Next year the fourth traditional High School, Kingwood Park, will open. In addition there is a nontraditional High School, Quest, and a new high school planned to open in a few years on the beltway directly across from Summerwood.
As far as the "is Kings River really part of Kingwood" debate, that depends on who you ask. There is a HUGE "north of the river/south of the river" attitude in many parts of the area, with many (but not all) in Kingwood feeling than anyone south of the bridge is not a true Kingwoodite. There is a very strong and sometimes bitter rivalry among the high schools, and I don't image that will change anytime soon.
Part of Kings River is zoned to Kingwood schools, and part to Atascosita schools. Both high schools are first rate. As Atascosita High School is seriously overcrowded, I don't see any more movement of Kings Park students into the Atascosita schools as a very strong possibiltiy, at least until the new beltway high school opens. Then all bets are off.
If you are looking for a good deal on a really nice house, then Kings Park is terrific. If, however, it is really important for you to feel a part of the Kingwood community, then I would suggest moving more into the immediate Kingwood area.
I hope this helps!
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KingsRiver
