Boerne...What can you tell me about it? (Houston, New Braunfels: HOA, low crime)

[TXsurburbanmom]

Boerne is a town despite the word suburb being used. SA grew out to it. SO would be a suburb most places but SA likes to move that city limit sign I have never lived in Boerne but have friends that love it. I do live in SO and love it. SO is a big neighborhood with some apts and houses that run from mid/high $100s to millions. Also quite a few businesses moved onto the main road and the edges to take advantage of the shopping habits of 20k or more people. If you don't want to leave a 5 mile radius out here you go a long time before you would have to since there is a lot out here. In that respect it is kind of like a small town. There are no city/county offices though, no downtown, or a cute older area which is a big difference from Boerne I'm sure. I would say the schools are pretty equal in that they rank very well. Boerne will probably have more of a Texas/country feel though. My biggest complaint about SO is that it doesn't feel much like TX.

As to the drive I think that may be the biggest issue. I think a lot of people who live in Boerne drive in for work. BAMC is a pretty good drive without traffic. Hopefully someone can give you an idea on something exact. From SO it's about 30 minutes in normal conditions. The NC area is not limited to SO. Encino Park, Rogers Ranch, the Vineyard feed into the same schools as SO or schools that rank the same. Slightly farther out 281 including the back of SO is Comal ISD. Also good schools but the MS and HS are out in Bulverde-about 20 farther out 281.

I think Boerne is really pretty and wouldn't mind living there but I'm not sure I'd want to drive into BAMC every day. Oh and I think Boerne will be okay on water. The aquafer is deep it's environmental issues that cause the watering restrictions.

[doss1]

FWIW, many pepole that live in Boerne are not liking the commute these days. The novelty was starting to wear off and I know of 2 families looking to move closer into SA.

[TXStrat]

Originally Posted by Rapp5

Yay! Well now I'm getting excited. How does Boerne in comparison to Stone Oak? I've just read a lot from other people's comments raving about that area. I don't know much about it but thought I'd ask. What do you think a commute from Boerne to the Fort Sam Houston (Bamsey) area would run/be like? Where we live is a suburb of D.C. and commute times are upwards of an hour or "so"...when the weather is perfect. Give it a little rain, some snow, or just insane drivers then you're looking at around 1.5 hours. Just thought I'd ask.

I make the commute from Boerne to Fort Sam every day. We looked in Alamo Heights, they do have good schools, but we found the homes to be very overpriced. Stone Oak is nice, we just found it too crowded and congested for our personal tastes. Even weekend errands would be met with heavy traffic. Boerne is a smaller and set further out than Stone Oak and other suburbs. It is still close enough to be convenient to the city. We are 10 minutes from Six Flags, La Cantera and The Rim (both shopping areas)

[88txaggie]

Stone Oak has a very suburban feel to it. Disclaimer - moved from Plano, which is north of Dallas, to the Boerne area; haven't lived in Stone Oak. But SO has what I miss about Plano - close grocery and other stores and conveniences.

Boerne is a small town....and Fair Oaks Ranch is a bedroom community that is 8 or so miles from that small town - a very different feel. Anything you need to do, like grocery shop, kids karate, YMCA, Lifetime, etc is accessed via the highway - Interstate 10. Either you drive into Boerne, or you drive into Leon Springs or the Rim.

That, to me, is the biggest difference between Boerne and SO. The other difference is where you have to deal with traffic - Boerne area into SA is a commute with traffic, yes, but the SO/281/I10 area has heavier traffic and gets terribly clogged.

I can't speak to parent involvement in Stone Oak, but here in Boerne ISD and especially at the local elementary school, karate, and kids sports - almost every parent is involved. The parking at the elementary school is crazy on any special day - school assemblies, school parties (like valentines day or winter break parties) - you have to park across the street, because a lot of the kids have both parents in attendance, not just one!

[doss1]

Won't the super street they are working on at SO alleviate most of the traffic problems in the near future? If so, SO may be worth a look again.

[Rapp5]

That's great to hear about parent involvement! All of this is great information- thanks again everyone.

If SO doesn't have a TX feel- where does it feel like?

[mrstxcop]

The following is my opinion and how I differentiate between Stone Oak and Boerne...

Boerne is a true city with a small town feel whereas Stone Oak is not a city, it's a large neighborhood/area in San Antonio...

Boerne has it's own Police Dept, Kendall County has it's own Sheriff dept, Boerne has it's own City Council, it's own Courthouse, it's own City Manager, etc...

Boerne has it's own convention and visitor's Bureau, Stone Oak does not...

When traveling into Boerne you actually leave San Antonio city limits, you don't leave the city limits to drive into Stone Oak...

IMHO, Stone Oak is a fast paced area whereas Boerne is very laid back...

Boerne has movies in the park in Main Plaza, Boerne market days, Farmers Markets, concerts in Main Plaza, 2nd Saturday Art and Wine event every month, which is a free event... Dickens on Main which is a 2 weekend event during the Christmas season... There are many other city events thruout the year... In Boerne you are going to find Mom & Pop shops on Main street... Clothing stores, lots of antique stores... My favorite is the Mom & Pop pet store...

As far as I know, Stone Oak does not have events like those listed above... In Stone Oak you will find lots of dining and shopping and bars, etc... It's more of a trendy area... I would definately not use the word trendy to describe Boerne...

As far as parent involment, I cannot speak for Boerne schools, as again, my kids go to Northside Schools... But the parents in our schools are very involved... Parking is insane during Christmas parties, Festivals, etc... Teachers often have to delegate room parents as so many sign up... There never seems to be any shortage of donations from parents to teachers and/or classrooms...

[TXsurburbanmom]

It's more that it's not very western. Sure lots of trucks and SUVs and chock full of yummy Mexican food so you know it's not NC But other then that and the lack of pines Inalways thought Cary was like SO would be if it was a town. It's a newer area so the shops, roads, and houses are new---although I really really prefer the brick/rock/stucco homes in TX! Lots of transplants and not many boots and hats. It's friendly like other parts of TX and theirs lots of church activity including activities for kids. I do try and inject a little West TX into the area but I'm just one person

SO Elementary has a lot of parent involvement. As someone who apparently volunteered for every event it felt like we needed more help but I've learned we have more then most. Several new teachers commented how they got no help at previous schools. Also I heard the Scholastic Rep tell our librarian she'd never been in another school with so many volunteers. Nice to hear since I was up a ladder hanging book fair decor from the ceiling. Not active yet in MS or HS but a lot of my friends volunteer at their older kid's schools as well.

I think there are a lot of great places for you in the SA area. Check the TEA website for school ratings--Boerne ISD is obvious but to compare SO and other NC schools look under NEISD---and great schools to get a parents view on different schools.

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by Rapp5

Yay! Well now I'm getting excited. How does Boerne in comparison to Stone Oak? I've just read a lot from other people's comments raving about that area. I don't know much about it but thought I'd ask. What do you think a commute from Boerne to the Fort Sam Houston (Bamsey) area would run/be like? Where we live is a suburb of D.C. and commute times are upwards of an hour or "so"...when the weather is perfect. Give it a little rain, some snow, or just insane drivers then you're looking at around 1.5 hours. Just thought I'd ask.

First, it's BAMC (Brooke Army Medical Center); it may be pronounced "bamsey" but that's how it's spelled out.

Secondly, a commute from Boerne to BAMC would get old quick. From downtown Boerne it's nearly 40 miles/45 minutes (estimated, barring any traffic) each way and factor in traffic and that's more of a headache than I'd want to endure on a daily basis. Sure, most of it is IH-10 into downtown, but how much traffic do you think flows in and out of that route during rush hour?!?

I was stationed up in the DC area and know how bad the commutes are (I go back regularly and am constantly reminded of it). While it's a "fact of life" there, most people here avoid anything over a half hour as it is so easily done.

We love Boerne, we go out there all the time and really enjoy the area; but there are so many nice areas to live in that would make your commute so much easier that I'd look somewhere north of 1604 but closer to Ft Sam. In the long run that would be the much wiser decision...

And, as mrstxcop so adeptly pointed out, there is no comparing Stone Oak and Boerne. They are two completely different entities.

Good luck! M2

[TXStrat]

Parents are very involved in a positive way at Boerne schools. Meaning, they are not involved to the point of competition like I have seen in other places. Class sizes for my student in elementary school have averaged between 20-24, much smaller than we have experienced elsewhere. The main thing Boerne has that Stone Oak doesn't, to paraphrase earlier posts, is it's own unique identity. Stone Oak is a suburb of San Antonio. It is a nice area, and there are plenty of nice developments, but it doesn't have it's own unique identity. It just sort of runs into San Antonio. Boerne is a separate and distinct smaller town that is not just an extension of San Antonio. It has more of a laid back, small town feel. Things in Boerne are definitely more laid back than what I experienced in my time on the east coast in Alexandria, VA.

As mentioned earlier, I make the commute from Boerne to Fort Sam Houston, now part of Joint Base San Antonio, five days a week. I work near the center of post, about 3-4 miles from the recently renamed San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC), formerly Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC). With the conversion to Joint Base status, BAMC was renamed as well. I leave for work about 0600-0615, and miss the rush. I only encounter very light traffic. My departure time is more about timing at the gates on Ft. Sam than traffic on I-10. Due to a large influx of people to Ft. Sam last year, there is work being done to expand the access control points. While the work is being done, it not surprisingly limits the number of available gates. The Walters St. gate and related off post road expansion will go a long way towards easing congestion, and is scheduled to be complete around next month.