Kingwood, Houston, Texas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For Kinwood, see Kinwood, Texas
Kingwood is a 14,000 acre (57 km²) master-planned community located in northeast Houston, Texas.[1] The majority of the community is located in Harris County with a small portion in Montgomery County. Known as the "Livable Forest," it is the largest master-planned community in Harris County and second-largest within the 10-county Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area.
Kingwood, founded in 1969, is being developed on Lake Houston by the Friendswood Development Company, headed up by John Bruton Jr. The name is derived from the King Ranch, which at one point owned the land, as well as from the Friendswood Development Company.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Neighborhoods
Kingwood is divided into 25 neighborhoods, called "villages." Most villages have a neighborhood pool providing free access for village residents, and most provide their own set of village-specific services.
Trailwood is Kingwood's oldest subdivision, with its first homes being completed in 1971; while new homes are still being built in Barrington, Kingwood Greens, Kings River, Kings Point, and Royal Shores.
Several other subdivisions and developments have developed around the Kingwood area, though they are not actually part of Kingwood. Some of these subdivisions are Forest Cove, which was first built in 1963, Deer Ridge Estates, North Kingwood Forest, Kings Lake Estates, Lakewood Cove and Woodspring Forest. Nearby developments include Oakhurst at Kingwood and King's Manor. Oakhurst does not pay Kingwood Service Association fees, though it is considered part of Kingwood and is also developed by Friendswood Development.
[edit] Education
[edit] Primary and secondary schools
Kingwood pupils residing in Harris County attend the Humble Independent School District. Kingwood High School and Kingwood Park High School serve the area. All students enrolled in Humble Independent School District also have the option to attend Quest High School, a magnet high school in Atascocita.
Students residing in Montgomery County attend the New Caney Independent School District.[3] A small portion of North Woodland Hills, as well as the Kings Manor and Oakhurst developments, are located in Montgomery County.
Kingwood is served by three Humble ISD middle schools: Kingwood Middle School, Creekwood Middle School and Riverwood Middle School. Kingwood Middle School students are zoned to Kingwood Park High School, while students attending Creekwood and Riverwood are zoned to Kingwood High School.
In addition to the high schools and middle schools, Kingwood is served by nine Humble ISD elementary schools.
[edit] Colleges and universities
Lone Star College-Kingwood is two-year community college that serves the area and it is part of the Lone Star College System.
[edit] Public libraries
Dedicated on August 12, 1983, the 12,000-square-foot (1,100 m²) Kingwood Branch of the Harris County Public Library, has over 112,000 books.[4] In partnership with the Houston Public Library, the branch is slated to become a "City-County" branch in exchange for 4.2 million dollars to fund the building of a new 35,000-square-foot (3,300 m²) facility. At the time of its completion, the existing branch will be converted into a community center.[5] In addition to the Kingwood Library, and within Kingwood, there is also the Kingwood Community College library, which permits access for "currently enrolled students, high school students and adults living within the district, patrons of Montgomery County Memorial Library System, and college employees."[6]
[edit] Services
Police, fire and ambulance services are provided by the City of Houston.
The Houston public works department is responsible for the maintenance and construction of roads in Kingwood, but are not responsible for the greenbelt trails that run throughout the community.
The greenbelt trails' maintenance is the responsibility of the trail association in each village with exception to Trailwood Village. Over 75 miles (121 km) of greenbelts comb the area.
METRO operates a single Park and Ride location in Kingwood to provide commuters with an alternative to driving themselves downtown.
The Kingwood Chamber of Commerce serves local businesses and the community with regular activities such as Kleenwood.
[edit] Police
The Houston Police Department's Kingwood Patrol Division[7], headquartered at 3915 Rustic Woods[8], provides law enforcement services to Kingwood.
Minors under the age of 15 are subject to a Houston mandated curfew after 10:00PM Sunday through Thursday, or 11:00PM on Friday and Saturday (baring few minor exceptions.)[9] This curfew extends to fill the time between 9AM until 2:30PM on days when school is in session.[9] John Cannon, a spokesman for the HPD says, "the curfew is to ensure that kids are in school getting an education."[10]
[edit] Fire
Kingwood lies in Houston Fire District 102 operated by the Houston Fire Department.[11] There are four stations located within Kingwood: Station 101, Station 102, Station 103 and Station 104. A fifth station, Station 105, is outside of Kingwood and in the same fire district.[11][12]
[edit] Community Events
Kingwood residents enjoy a number of community events throughout the year, including:
- Mardi Gras
- When: February
- Where: Town Center Park.
- Parade and vendor fair with open air concert.
- Picnic on the Park
- When: Day before Easter
- Where: Town Center Park
- Easter Egg hunt open to children of all ages. The event also offers game booths, a vendor fair, and performances by local area groups.
- Auto Shows
- When: Spring and Fall, often April and October respectively.
- Where: Town Center Park.
- Typically draws up to 200 vehicles in a wide variety of categories. The Spring Car Show is held in April and the Fall show is typically held in October.
- Fourth of July
- When: July 04
- Where: Parade, between Creekwood Middle School, and Kingwood High School; festivities, Town Center Park.
- Consisting of a parade; and, firework display, with open air concert, and vendor fair.
- Christmas in the Park
- When: December
- Where: Town Center Park
- Vendor fair, and live performances from local groups. Day ends with a tree lighting ceremony in the park.
[edit] Politics and Representation
Originally an unincorporated area, the section of Kingwood in Harris County was annexed by the City of Houston in 1996 despite vehement protest by the community. The contested annexation was appealed to the Texas Supreme Court and led to the passage of Texas Senate Bill 89 in 1999, which curbed city annexation rights.
Kingwood residents vote mostly Republican, and all representatives of Kingwood on local and state levels are Republican.
- The state representative, representing district 127, is Joe Crabb.[citation needed]
- The congressional representative, representing Texas's 2nd congressional district, is Ted Poe, who won by 55% in 2004.[13]
- Kingwood is in Texas Senate District 4, represented by Tommy Williams.[14]
- Kingwood is represented on the Houston City Council by Michael Sullivan.[15]
- The majority of Kingwood lies in Harris County Precinct 4 (PCT4). PCT4's commissioner is Jerry Eversole; and the constable, Ron Hickman.[16] Other elected officials for Precinct 4 can be found at, Harris County PCT4.
[edit] Amenities
- The newest addition to Kingwood's park facilities is a 2.25 acre public dog park.[17] More information on this new dog park can be found at Kingwood Kennels.
- Kingwood Park, operated by the City of Houston. [18]
- Opened in May 21, 2004, Kingwood Skate Park is a 5,402-square-foot (501.9 m²) facility that has "mini half pipe with 90' hip, skate benches, a kinked round grind rail, a kicker ramp, skate tables, a bank to stair with rail, shade structures with benches, drinking fountain and a bike rack in the shape of a skateboarder."[19][18]
[edit] References
- ^ Kingwood Community Information (html). Kingwood Online. Friendswood Development Company (2006). Retrieved on 2007-10-07.
- ^ Kleiner, Diana J.. Kingwood, Texas Summary (html). The Texas Handbook. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Super Neighborhood #43 - Kingwood (html). City of Houston. Retrieved on 2007-10-02.
- ^ Kingwood Branch Library (html). eBranch. Harris County Public Library. Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Williamson, Harry. "Kingwood library construction work to start this year" (html), Houston Chronicle, 2007-02-15. Retrieved on 2007-08-05.
- ^ Hours Staff and General info (html). Kingwood College Library info (2007-09-04). Retrieved on 2007-09-30. “Kingwood College is part of the North Harris Montgomery Community College District (NHMCCD).Currently enrolled students, high school students and adults living within the district, patrons of Montgomery County Memorial Library System, and college employees may check out materials.”
- ^ "HPD Beat Map." City of Houston.
- ^ "VOLUNTEER INITIATIVES PROGRAM - Citizens Offering Police Support." City of Houston.
- ^ a b Juvenile Curfew (pdf). City of Houston. Retrieved on 2007-11-01.
- ^ Thomas, Stefanie (2007-09-25). Curfew details differ in Atascocita, Humble and Kingwood (html). The Humble Observer. Houston Community Newspapers. Retrieved on 2007-10-01. “"The goal of the daytime curfew is to ensure that kids are in school, getting an education," said John Cannon, spokesman for HPD. "If a kid is not in school, he or she has a much better chance of getting into trouble. I think most parents would agree that daytime curfew is a good tool to help keep their kids in the classroom."”
- ^ a b Fire Stations (html). Houston Fire Department (2007-06-18). Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Evans, Jay S.. (1995-2003)77, 82, 83, 85, 90, 92-94, 96, 99, 101-104 (html). History of Houston Fire Stations. Houston Fire Department. Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ U.S. House -- Texas District 2 (voting results) (html). Washington Post. AP (2004-11-24). Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Senator Tommy Williams: District 4 (html). The Senate of Texas. Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Council Member Addie Wiseman profile page (html). City of Houston. Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Elected Officials (html). Harris County. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
- ^ Hickman, Ryan (2007-08-13). New dog park in Kingwood has fun for owners and pets alike (html). Kingwood Observer. Houston Community Newspapers. Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ a b Park Inventory (pdf). Houston Parks and Recreation Department (2006-08-28). Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Skate Parks (html). Houston Parks and Recreation Department. Retrieved on 2007-09-30. “Kingwood Skate Park was the very first public skate park built by the City of Houston. It was dedicated on May 21, 2004. The 5,402-square-foot (501.9 m²) facility measures 73’ x 74’. Components include: a mini half pipe with 90' hip, skate benches, a kinked round grind rail, a kicker ramp, skate tables, a bank to stair with rail, shade structures with benches, drinking fountain and a bike rack in the shape of a skateboarder.”
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
|
