Austin Living: Steiner or River Place? (Cedar Park, Canyon: cul-de-sac, apartments, HOA)

[t987h]

Originally Posted by CarnivalGal

Hey, there. I'm in Steiner. We do like it here, but the traffic sucks. I will say that the improvements they are finishing up on 2222 and 620 have made a HUGE difference. My kids are in high school now, but we moved here when my oldest was a baby. It's been a fantastic place to raise kids.

River Place isn't all that much different, TBH. But there is a second route to 360/2222. In other words, you can avoid 2222 and 620 if you really need to. But the worst traffic issue is still the high school, which you'll need to deal with in either case. If you go to River Place, you'll need to deal with the middle school too.

Because RP has the additional convenience of easier access to the 360 area, it also tends to be more expensive. So your money will go further in Steiner.

My biggest complaint is the lack of diversity. But as a transplant from the Northeast, I have that complaint for the entirety of Austin. But it's magnified in this area.

You can't go wrong with schools in either. Steiner has 3 elementary schools, all are amazing. River Place Elementary is equally as good.

Really appreciate your insights, as we also have younger kids and it's great to hear you had a fantastic experience raising kids. I have read the demographic information and looked at the schools in Steiner and RP, but from your experience in Steiner, how would you describe the community feel/vibes? Is it better to live closer to the entrance / exit of Steiner or more tucked in? I would assume there are less folks moving there post-pandemic/going back to office these days.

Thank you so much!

[CarnivalGal]

Originally Posted by Austin97

This isnt really true. Westwood is much more racially diverse than vandegrift. Im not sure why you discount asians. Essentially 62% white vs 38% white. Anderson is also more economically diverse than vandegrift.

westwood is:
62.6% Minority Enrollment
37.4% White
36.0% Asian
18.4% Hispanic
4.6% Two or More Races
3.0% Black
0.5% American Indian/Alaska Native
0.1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
Total Economically Disadvantaged (% of total) 11%

vandegrift

38.2% Minority Enrollment
61.8% White
16.2% Hispanic
13.4% Asian
4.9% Two or More Races
3.4% Black
0.1% American Indian/Alaska Native
0.1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
Total Economically Disadvantaged (% of total) 7%

anderson
48.5% Minority Enrollment
51.5% White
30.0% Hispanic
7.8% Asian
5.3% Two or More Races
5.2% Black
0.1% American Indian/Alaska Native
0.1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
Total Economically Disadvantaged (% of total) 24%

I by no means am claiming that Vandegrift is diverse. But neither is Westwood, IMO. When a huge proportion of the minority enrollment is the same minority, then that's not really that diverse either. Again, coming from the northeast, I don't think Austin as a whole is diverse. The schools reflect that.

[CarnivalGal]

Originally Posted by t987h

Really appreciate your insights, as we also have younger kids and it's great to hear you had a fantastic experience raising kids. I have read the demographic information and looked at the schools in Steiner and RP, but from your experience in Steiner, how would you describe the community feel/vibes? Is it better to live closer to the entrance / exit of Steiner or more tucked in? I would assume there are less folks moving there post-pandemic/going back to office these days.

Thank you so much!

Steiner is huge. So living towards the back means it just takes longer to get out of the 'hood. So getting to stores, the high school, etc. will take longer. The distance from the front of Steiner to the back of Steiner is about 5 miles, so you'll need to factor in that distance. And even if your kids are young now, don't discredit how often you will be driving to the high school when they are older. If they are in any sports or activities, you will driving there a lot. My kid's in band, and during marching season, I feel like I'm driving there 3 times a day. BTW, River Place is pretty much the same way. Homes in the back of River Place are a fair distance from the front, stores, etc.

All parts of Steiner have a community feel. I love that when my kids were younger, they had friends that lived on the street and they would just walk to each others houses or play outside together for hours. We live towards the front, and I love that we (and my kids) can walk to stores, restaurants, etc. Can't do that if you're in the back.

I will say that we intentionally did not buy in the Golf Club area of Steiner and don't regret that decision. They have basically an additional HOA, which is ridiculous. It also adds another layer of pretentiousness in an already pretentious area.

[Bentonite]

Originally Posted by t987h

Thank you! I would say more on the cultural/social side of things. If you recommend any other areas of Austin (don't care too much on the commute, just want to be away from the city and also closer to neighborhoods with families/kids).

How far from Austin would you consider? Dripping Springs is about 20 miles due west of Austin. Good schools (I'm told), small (but growing), friendly, lower crime, family/retiree oriented, and lots of green spaces. Even a tiny bit of "culture" is slowly increasing, including music, dance, and art. There's not, perhaps, enough diversity of the kind you want but everyone seems welcome here. I've friends and neighbors from Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and all over the U.S. Maybe DS would be a possibility for you.

[t987h]

Originally Posted by CarnivalGal

Steiner is huge. So living towards the back means it just takes longer to get out of the 'hood. So getting to stores, the high school, etc. will take longer. The distance from the front of Steiner to the back of Steiner is about 5 miles, so you'll need to factor in that distance. And even if your kids are young now, don't discredit how often you will be driving to the high school when they are older. If they are in any sports or activities, you will driving there a lot. My kid's in band, and during marching season, I feel like I'm driving there 3 times a day. BTW, River Place is pretty much the same way. Homes in the back of River Place are a fair distance from the front, stores, etc.

All parts of Steiner have a community feel. I love that when my kids were younger, they had friends that lived on the street and they would just walk to each others houses or play outside together for hours. We live towards the front, and I love that we (and my kids) can walk to stores, restaurants, etc. Can't do that if you're in the back.

I will say that we intentionally did not buy in the Golf Club area of Steiner and don't regret that decision. They have basically an additional HOA, which is ridiculous. It also adds another layer of pretentiousness in an already pretentious area.

Wow this is great and super helpful, and on a map that 5 miles front to back looks small but you're totally right! Two last questions are, given Steiner is so far from Austin downtown, do most people just work from home (or don't work downtown) and / or some people are retired?

Do you think Steiner will be less desirable as more people head back to the office/post pandemic?

[CarnivalGal]

Originally Posted by t987h

Wow this is great and super helpful, and on a map that 5 miles front to back looks small but you're totally right! Two last questions are, given Steiner is so far from Austin downtown, do most people just work from home (or don't work downtown) and / or some people are retired?

Do you think Steiner will be less desirable as more people head back to the office/post pandemic?

Pre-pandemic, I knew very few people here who worked downtown. I worked in Lakeway and then in Westlake (right by the bridge). My husband works off of 183. He also has a really flexible schedule, so he was never really commuting during peak hours. I work from home now and probably will forever.

I think most folks don't work downtown. But as I mentioned, the road projects here have made a HUGE difference. To give you an idea, it used to take me 45 minutes just to get from my house to River Place in the morning. Once I got past RP, it was fine - no traffic. Now I can make that trip at the same time in 5-10 minutes and hit no traffic. Getting to the high school at peak hours can kind of suck, but that's just because there is only one access road to the high school and middle school, so everyone needs to turn at the same light, and that light can get backed up. But it's still not that bad.

I don't think it will be less desirable as more people head back to work. That said, RP used to be quite a bit more $$ for that reason, even for comparable houses. It's still more expensive, but that gap has narrowed.

[ScoPro]

You work at Farm Credit Bank?

[Ivory Lee Spurlock]

Steiner Ranch sounds pretty big, 5 miles from one end to the other. How many people live there?

[Trainwreck20]

Originally Posted by Ivory Lee Spurlock

Steiner Ranch sounds pretty big, 5 miles from one end to the other. How many people live there?

Almost 20,000.

[t987h]

Originally Posted by CarnivalGal

We moved to Steiner from NW Hills (actually very close to Hill Elementary). Unless something drastically changed, that area wasn't any more diverse.

The only reason Westwood has the diversity numbers it does is because there is a large Asian population. But outside of white or Asian, there's not a ton of diversity. But as I mentioned in my first response, Austin generally isn't really diverse, IMO.

I will also add for the OP that if you have a commute that will take you towards downtown or points east, then River Place may be the best choice for you. But I work from home, so that's not an issue for me.

If I may ask one more dumb question, how would you consider Great Hills or NW Hills vs. Steiner (if commute wasn't an issue) in regards to family/friendly neighborhood vibes for someone with very young children? I have a feeling folks in Steiner typically spend a good amount of time in Steiner (aside from work) as it certainly has all the amenities and stores/needs nearby.