Greater Katy

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This article is in reference to the area around the City of Katy, Texas. For more information regarding the City itself, please go directly to Katy, Texas.

Greater Katy is the term often used to refer to a suburban region on the west side of the Greater Houston metropolitan area that has a Katy address but not part of the city of Katy. This area includes the suburbs that surround the Katy city limits west to Pederson road, east to Fry road, north to FM 529 and south to FM 1093/ Westpark Tollway Parkway. While these boundaries are not exact, it gives a rough outline of what most people consider Greater Katy. Most of Greater Katy is to the east of the city of Katy toward Houston and includes surrounding suburban areas and unincorporated areas that are not in the Houston city limits. The region includes parts of Harris County, Fort Bend County, and Waller County much as the City of Katy does. Greater Katy is one of the fastest growing portions of the Houston metropolitan area and the state of Texas as a whole.

History

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. As of 2015 the population of the Katy area is larger than that of the city limits of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[1]

Greater Katy versus the City of Katy

The City of Katy is actually a very small area surrounded by Greater Katy. The City itself only had an estimated 13,000 residents as of 2004. Many people confuse Greater Katy with the City of Katy, however there is no city representation or services provided to people outside of the actual city limits of Katy. Some of this area is actually within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the City of Houston the city of Katy cannot annex this area without express permission from the City of Houston. This has occurred on several occasions in regards to relatively small tracts of land. Most recently this came into play with development of the Katy Mills Mall, which sat mostly within the City of Katy but about half was in the Houston ETJ. The developer and city of Katy threatened to build just parking lot on the Houston area depriving Houston of any real property tax value. For 1 million dollars Katy bought the right to annex the area desired.

  • Katy Visitor and Tourism Bureau. Under the umbrella of the Katy Area Chamber of Commerce to promote the modest yet growing convention and tourism sector of the Greater Katy economy. www.katychamber.com.

Economy

Several corporations are headquartered in the Greater Katy area.

As of 2014, within the area, the Katy Independent School District, having about 8,000 employees, is the largest employer. BP America, with about 7,000 employees, is the second largest.[2]

Igloo Corporation is headquartered west of Katy in unincorporated Waller County.[3] Academy Sports and Outdoors has its corporate offices and product distribution center in unincorporated western Harris County.[4]

In 2008 KBR announced that a new office facility would appear at the intersection of the Grand Parkway and Interstate 10 in unincorporated western Harris County, Texas, between Houston and Katy.[5] The new complex would have been be in close proximity to the Energy Corridor area of Houston.[6] KBR planned to continue to have a corporate presence in Downtown.[7] In December KBR said that it would not continue with the plans due to a weakened economy.[8] In 2015 the former KBR property was sold to a development company, and has now become a Costco.

Government and infrastructrure

Harris County Leadership Academy (formerly Delta Boot Camp[9]), a juvenile correctional facility of the Harris County Juvenile Probation Department, is in Harris County near Katy.[10] It is located on a 14-acre (5.7 ha) plot of land in the northwestern portion of the county, in proximity to the Sharp Road and the Katy-Hockley Road Cutoff intersection. The juvenile boot camp, scheduled to open in November 1999, was originally scheduled to be located in proxmimity to Barker Cypress Road and south of Interstate 10. It had a price of $2 million, with most of the money coming from federal grants and $500,000 coming from taxpayers. It had survived a lawsuit filed by residents of the area surrounding its current northwest Harris location.[11]

Demographics

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See also: Ethnic groups in Houston

By 2004 many Venezuelans fleeing the economic changes by the Hugo Chávez government settled in the Houston area due to the oil industry, and they specifically chose to move to the Katy area due to the Katy Independent School District's reputation and the proximity to their workplaces in west Houston. As a result the Katy area received the nickname "Katyzuela".[12] In particular, as of 2012 Venezuelans are concentrated in Cinco Ranch. As of 2015 two restaurants, Budare Arepa Express and Delis Café are, according to Florian Martin of Houston Public Media, "could be considered the social centers of the Venezuelan community in Katy. "[13]

Education

Public schools

Schools listed are in Greater Katy only for a full list of all KISD schools visit www.katyisd.org

High Schools

Jr. High Schools

Elementary Schools

Note that some schools may have a Houston address, but fall within KISD.

Charter Schools

Aristoi Classical Academy (formerly West Houston Charter School), a state charter school, is in Katy.

Private schools

Faith West Academy [14][15] Saint John XXIII High School [16]

The new campus of the British International School of Houston (BISH) will open in Greater Katy in September 2016. The school selected the Katy area partly because many BISH students reside in Greater Katy.[17]

Colleges and universities

Katy is served by the Houston Community College System. HCC Northwest College operates the Katy Campus [18]

University of Houston System at Cinco Ranch offers bachelor's or master's degrees in a variety of areas including history, English, or various fields of science or business.

Public libraries

Harris County Public Library operates the Katy Library in the City of Katy.

Greater Katy is served by the Fort Bend County Libraries Cinco Ranch Branch Library is in Cinco Ranch, south of Katy.[19] The HCPL Maud Smith Marks Branch Library is in unincorporated Harris County, east of Katy.[20]

Key roads and streets within Greater Katy

North-South roads

(listed from west to east)

  • Pederson Road
  • FM 1463
  • Pin Oak Road
  • Gaston Road
  • Katy-Fort Bend County Road
  • Grand Parkway (State Highway 99)
  • Peek Road
  • Mason Road
  • Westgreen Boulevard
  • Fry Road (Also an East/West road)

East-West roads

(listed from north to south)

  • FM 529
  • Clay Road
  • Morton (Ranch) Road
  • Franz Road/Saums Road
  • Colonial Parkway/Park Row
  • Katy Freeway (Interstate 10)
  • Kingsland Boulevard
  • Highland Knolls Drive/Bay Hill Boulevard
  • Cinco Ranch Boulevard
  • Westheimer Parkway
  • Fry Road (Also a North/South road)
  • FM 1093/Westpark Tollway

Neighborhoods within Greater Katy

Greater Katy is, for the most part, subdivisions and master planned communities with retail centers. Some of the neighborhoods and subdivisions that are in Greater Katy:

  • Cane Island—- The first master-planned community built within the city limits of Katy, located north of Hwy 90, on the east edge of Katy, is the first development by Rise Communities of Nevada. The first residents moved into their homes during the 4th quarter of 2015, and once completely built out, the community will feature nearly 1100 acres with home sites ranging in size from 50ft-100ft lots. Builders include Cal-Atlantic Homes (Ryland) (50s, 60s), David Weekly Homes (50s, 55s, 65s), Perry Homes (60s, 80s), Coventry Homes (55s), Trendmaker Homes (80s), Shea Home (70s), and Toll Brother Builders (100s).
  • West Memorial—The oldest development outside the City of Katy, now located in the center of the Greater Katy area. Most of the homes here were built in the late 1960s and early 1970s and the area has indeed matured out with large trees lining the streets and homes there. Generally considered an older middle-class neighborhood.
  • Memorial Parkway—Neighborhood to the south and east of West Memorial. Both developments flank Mason Road. Memorial Parkway was built in the late 1970s and 1980.
  • Cimarron—Also an older neighborhood in the core area of Greater Katy, similar to West Memorial.
  • Nottingham Country—Built in the 1970s and 1980s as an upscale development with large brick homes and an oversized community center and swimming pool.
  • Cinco Ranch—This is a collection of developments that was built out during the late 1980s and 1990s and is still growing. Second only to the Woodlands in growth. Cinco Ranch was the first of the "ultra modern" master planned developments to be built in Greater Katy. The amenities were and still are one of a kind. Typical subdivisions include swimming pools, parks, numerous lakes and man-made beaches. Housing prices range from the 170's to multi million dollar homes. Today many of the new shopping outlets in Greater Katy are located in Cinco Ranch and the general vicinity.
  • Williamsburg—This was supposed to be a master-planned community. Built in the late 70's/early 80's, and really didn't take off, some say, because it is located north of I-10. Its neighborhoods includes: Williamsburg Settlement, Williamsburg Parish, Williamschase, Williamsburg Hamlet, and Williamsburg Colony.
  • Grand Lakes—A rather new neighborhood built between Cinco Ranch and the Westpark Tollway. The community does have a series of lakes. In May 2008, the last house in Grand Lakes was finished and the community is considered finished.
  • Falcon Point—A neighborhood built around The Club at Falcon Point, an 18 hole private golf club. Bay Hill Blvd comes to an end right in the middle of Falcon Point which is bordered by Roesner Rd and backs up to the Katy Mills Mall area.
  • Firethorne—- A master-planned community built near just outside Katy city limits. It is a sprawling 1,500 acres (6.1 km2) and homes just started construction in early 2008.
  • Seven Meadows—A smaller community located south of I-10 between Fry Road and FM 1093. It is very close to the Westpark Tollway allowing a quick commute to Houston. Avalon at Seven Meadows features lakefront custom and semi-custom homes as well as patio golf course homes.

Religion

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See also: Religion in Houston

In 2013 Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha of Trinidad and Tobago, Branch 377, an organization of those who have Trinidad and Tobago ancestry, and the Hindu community of the Greater Katy area jointly began development of a new Hindu temple, which will include all Hindu deities rather than focusing on one deity. By November of that year, the 2.4-acre (0.97 ha) future site of the Sai Durga Shiva Vishnu Temple in unincorporated Fort Bend County already had its temporary buildings. The renovation was scheduled to begin in early 2014 with a goal of opening in May of that year. About 10-15 people are organizing the temple. Amaranth Venkateswarlu, an engineer who is one of the organizers, stated that there are about 500 Indian families who live in Greater Katy and that they currently go to Hindu temples in Pearland and Sugar Land.[21]

Regional Organizations

While the City of Katy is the only area served by city fire, police, and emergency services, there are other cases where all of Greater Katy is served by one organization. Examples include:

  • Katy Independent School District. The Katy ISD serves the entire Greater Katy region as well as some parts of far west Houston. The KISD also extends into rural parts of the Cypress region.
  • Katy Area Chamber of Commerce. This business promotion organization services the entire Katy region as well as parts of Houston's Energy Corridor. www.katychamber.com.
  • Katy Economic Development Council. www.katyedc.org

References

  1. ↑ Herrera, Sebastian. "Mobility committee to aid Katy growth as area surpasses Pittsburgh population" (Archive). Houston Chronicle. Tuesday September 22, 2015. Retrieved on September 25, 2015.
  2. ↑ Binkovitz, "‘Katy will be larger than the city of Pittsburgh’ in two years" (Archive). Houston Chronicle. September 23, 2014. Retrieved on September 30, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Igloo Worldwide Headquarters." Igloo Corporation. Accessed September 5, 2008.
  4. ↑ "Contact Academy Sports & Outdoors." Academy Sports and Outdoors. Accessed September 5, 2008.
  5. ↑ Dawson, Jennifer. "KBR plans HQ campus." Houston Business Journal. Friday April 4, 2008. Retrieved January 13, 2009.
  6. ↑ Sarnoff, Nancy. "KBR says it's moving to Energy Corridor / Getting close to customers among reasons to leave downtown." Houston Chronicle. Saturday May 3, 2008. Business 1. Retrieved January 13, 2009.
  7. ↑ "KBR Announces Plan for West Houston Campus Location." KBR. May 2, 2008. Retrieved January 13, 2009.
  8. ↑ Sarnoff, Nancy. "Economic crunch undercuts real estate projects." Houston Chronicle. January 3, 2009. Retrieved January 21, 2009.
  9. ↑ "Residential Facilities." Harris County Juvenile Probation Department. July 23, 2004. Retrieved on February 8, 2016. "9120 Katy-Hockley, Katy"
  10. ↑ "Residential Facilities" (Archive). Harris County Juvenile Probation Department. Retrieved on February 8, 2016. "9120 Katy-Hockley, Katy"
  11. ↑ Stinebaker, Joe. "New juvenile facility may open next month /Boot camp near Katy survived lawsuit." Houston Chronicle. October 27, 1999. p. A24. NewsBank Record # 3173900. Available from the Houston Public Library, accessible with a library card.
  12. ↑ Moreno, Jenalia. "Houston is home to many workers leaving Venezuela" (Archive). Houston Chronicle. Sunday August 15, 2004.
  13. ↑ Martin, Florian. "Venezuelan Expats Weigh In On Chavez’s Death" (Archive). Houston Public Media. March 8, 2013. Retrieved on February 9, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Directions." Faith West Academy. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Contact Us." Faith West Academy. Retrieved November 6, 2010. "Faith West 2225 Porter Road Katy, TX 77493."
  16. ↑ "Contact Us." Saint John XXIII High School. Retrieved November 6, 2010. "1800 West Grand Parkway N Katy, Texas 77449."
  17. ↑ Kirk, Bryan. "Katy-area campus set to open in fall '16." Houston Chronicle. June 9, 2015. Retrieved on September 11, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Northwest College." Houston Community College District. Accessed September 5, 2008.
  19. ↑ "Cinco Ranch Branch Library Katy, Texas." Fort Bend County Libraries. Retrieved November 6, 2010. "2620 Commercial Center Blvd. Katy, Texas 77494-6407"
  20. ↑ "Maud Smith Marks Branch Library." Harris County Public Library. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  21. ↑ Christian, Carol. "Hindu community plans new temple in Katy." Houston Chronicle. November 25, 2013. Retrieved on May 3, 2014.

External links

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