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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.
Steiner is definitely very family-centric with a relatively high density of families. NWH/GH are more 'matured' in the sense that it is more balanced between families and empty-nesters. There are some excellent schools in that area, though, and I would not avoid it. If I was deciding between Steiner and those areas and could afford either, I would go closer in.
Steiner is definitely very family-centric with a relatively high density of families. NWH/GH are more 'matured' in the sense that it is more balanced between families and empty-nesters. There are some excellent schools in that area, though, and I would not avoid it. If I was deciding between Steiner and those areas and could afford either, I would go closer in.
I agree. The tree coverage in NW Hills is really nice and it's so much closer in to central Austin. I'd give schools in Steiner the nod, but would keep NW Hills in the running.
Can't remember if OP is visiting soon, but to me it would be *really* obvious after driving through both neighborhoods which one you prefer. They have a different feel.
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.
We actually moved from NW Hills to Steiner. I think Steiner is more family friendly. It was literally master planned for families, so it has a ton of amenities. I think there are something like 20 playgrounds in Steiner, so there will be one within walking distance no matter where you are. There are the three community centers with pools, all of which have a baby pool and/or splash pad. The HOA does a ton of family and kid friendly events like a huge Easter egg hunt, father-daughter dance, 4th of July parade, pictures with Santa, etc. Our annual 5K has a kids fun run and is basically a little festival, with food booths/trucks, petting zoos, face painting, etc. Same with the annual Concert in the Park. Neighborhood Sports, and every other kids sports league it seems, comes out here, so if your tot wants to play soccer, flag football, whatever, they don't have to leave the 'hood. And I guarantee you that at least some of their teammates will also be classmates, so they'll know the other kids. And parents will know other parents (yay, carpooling). Halloween here is absolutely bananas, but it's a lot of fun. People go all out making haunted houses, doing block parties, etc. I've got to give it to them; they've really created a community here.
I think Northwest Hills generally is an older population, so there are just less kids. And I know there are kids sports and such everywhere, but you may have to travel a bit farther for them, and they will be families you don't necessarily know outside of that sport, which may not be a bad thing. Great Hills is somewhere in the middle. And like I said earlier, in Steiner there are going to be kids the same ages as your on your street. Probably a lot of them. I loved that my kids were outside in the cul-de-sac playing with their friends more than they were in the house. And it didn't involve making plans ahead of time or driving anyone anywhere. Literally knocked on the neighbors door and asked if so and so could come out and play or come over. I don't think the other areas have that. My oldest daughter is graduating from high school this year, and she is graduating with a ton of kids that she went to preschool with. I just think that's really cool. Even if they don't really hang out anymore, they still have that connection and closeness, if you will. Like if she were even in trouble or needed help, even if it's just a ride home, there's this whole set of "moms" and people she can trust who can and will absolutely help her, KWIM?
I really think the only downsides to Steiner are the commute (if you have one) and the lack of diversity.
Most of northwest hills was built in the 60s and 70s. If people buy their homes in their late 20s/early 30s, then they were in their 70s/80s in the 2010s. So nw hills has heavily turned over and the two elementary schools are more full than they ever have been. The downside of NW hills is pretty much zero parks with playgrounds (there are multiple large greenbelts with hiking trails). They recently built a tiny park by murchison middle school and there are the doss/hill playgrounds which are not available during school hours. The murchison pool is the main pool, but there is the westover club and JCC which also are hubs for kids. There typically is no HOA, but the NWACA (northwest austin civic association does parades and other events).
Households with Children 2,028 0.2%
Households without Children 6,929 -1.9%
Great hills was built more in the 80s and some in the 90s. so the people there are just in their 70s and 80s. I would say great hills is just starting to turn over now. Great hills also doesnt have a lot of parks and few (1?) HOA type swimming pool. You essentially need to join the country club. Because it is so hilly, kids dont roam as much as northwest hills. A lot of great hills feeds into the same AISD schools as northwest hills (anderson feeders). However a small portion feeds into RRISD (westwood feeders)
Households with Children 5,049 3.8%
Households without Children 16,556 -1.9%
steiner ranch was built in the 90s and 2000s and 2010s so lots of the young kids are in college now but there are still many households with children.
The development at the front of Steiner is still being finished, so there are still new homes being built here. The Grove section was finished in 2020 (I believe). So development has been pretty ongoing since it's inception in the 1990s. But I agree that the population is aging.
Speaking of Northwest Hills, in the early 1960s before its development began there was an abandoned quarry where Murchison Middle School now stands.
Up above the bluff on the north side (apartments are there now) there was a narrow county road that ran parallel with the cliff.
It was one on my favorite spots to go parking with the girlfriends…. Until one evening when a carload of cedarchoppers started harassing us and I had to “boogie out”.
Fun times.
We actually moved from NW Hills to Steiner. I think Steiner is more family friendly. It was literally master planned for families, so it has a ton of amenities. I think there are something like 20 playgrounds in Steiner, so there will be one within walking distance no matter where you are. There are the three community centers with pools, all of which have a baby pool and/or splash pad. The HOA does a ton of family and kid friendly events like a huge Easter egg hunt, father-daughter dance, 4th of July parade, pictures with Santa, etc. Our annual 5K has a kids fun run and is basically a little festival, with food booths/trucks, petting zoos, face painting, etc. Same with the annual Concert in the Park. Neighborhood Sports, and every other kids sports league it seems, comes out here, so if your tot wants to play soccer, flag football, whatever, they don't have to leave the 'hood. And I guarantee you that at least some of their teammates will also be classmates, so they'll know the other kids. And parents will know other parents (yay, carpooling). Halloween here is absolutely bananas, but it's a lot of fun. People go all out making haunted houses, doing block parties, etc. I've got to give it to them; they've really created a community here.
I think Northwest Hills generally is an older population, so there are just less kids. And I know there are kids sports and such everywhere, but you may have to travel a bit farther for them, and they will be families you don't necessarily know outside of that sport, which may not be a bad thing. Great Hills is somewhere in the middle. And like I said earlier, in Steiner there are going to be kids the same ages as your on your street. Probably a lot of them. I loved that my kids were outside in the cul-de-sac playing with their friends more than they were in the house. And it didn't involve making plans ahead of time or driving anyone anywhere. Literally knocked on the neighbors door and asked if so and so could come out and play or come over. I don't think the other areas have that. My oldest daughter is graduating from high school this year, and she is graduating with a ton of kids that she went to preschool with. I just think that's really cool. Even if they don't really hang out anymore, they still have that connection and closeness, if you will. Like if she were even in trouble or needed help, even if it's just a ride home, there's this whole set of "moms" and people she can trust who can and will absolutely help her, KWIM?
I really think the only downsides to Steiner are the commute (if you have one) and the lack of diversity.
@carnivalgal not sure if you've heard but Leander ISD is planning to close one of the elementary schools in Steiner as early as 2025-26 and eventually also close either Four Points Middle School or Canyon Ridge Middle School. See the 10-year Long Range Plan here: https://news.leanderisd.org/communit...ELMioL2hDtzya0.
I've seen schools getting closed when enrollment dips precariously but this plan seems unnecessary given current enrollment levels and student-teacher ratios. There is a petition to oppose the closures - https://www.change.org/p/stop-lisd-f...redirect=false.
@carnivalgal not sure if you've heard but Leander ISD is planning to close one of the elementary schools in Steiner as early as 2025-26 and eventually also close either Four Points Middle School or Canyon Ridge Middle School. See the 10-year Long Range Plan here: https://news.leanderisd.org/communit...ELMioL2hDtzya0.
I've seen schools getting closed when enrollment dips precariously but this plan seems unnecessary given current enrollment levels and student-teacher ratios. There is a petition to oppose the closures - https://www.change.org/p/stop-lisd-f...redirect=false.
Oh, trust me. I've heard about it. People here are losing their minds. From what I understand, they would merge the 3 elementary schools in Steiner into 2, and use the third for a professional building (offices, etc.). I do think that will happen, but I don't think it will happen that soon. Talking to a board member I am friends with, it is more like 10 years out. Enrollment at the schools is still too high to do that now. But I do think it will happen, and it should. Numbers are going down, since Steiner is pretty much built out now. There's no point in having 3, half-empty schools. But that is apparently an unpopular opinion here. All three schools are exceptional, so there would be no loss in quality. My kids are in high school now and won't be affected by it, but I would have had no problem with my kids getting re-zoned to one of the other elementary schools in Steiner when they were there. They are all great.
The middle schools gets a little trickier, and I think that's still to be seen with what happens there. I think there is a decent chance that there will just be re-drawing of boundary lines into FPMS and CRMS. Like they would sort of just shift a bunch of folks in the district south. Kids currently zoned to Cedar Park Middle School will shift to Four Points, and some currently zoned to Four Points would shift to Steiner, etc. But again, I don't think anything will happen anytime soon. No way could they stuff all the kids currently in Four Points and Canyon Ridge into one school.
They have said it will not happen soon but the bond is raising $37 million specifically earmarked for "repurposing" the elementary school and all their plans have consistently shown that the shutdown will take affect in 2025. Not sure how that is fiscally responsible? Apparently, this is a result of the last bond election failing and now they want to optimize facilities. Four Points News has some details in their new edition - fourpointsnews.com
I've always wondered why school districts raise 100s of millions of dollars in bonds for new schools instead of working with developers during the planning phases of new developments and have them foot the bill for basic infrastructure that includes schools.
They have said it will not happen soon but the bond is raising $37 million specifically earmarked for "repurposing" the elementary school and all their plans have consistently shown that the shutdown will take affect in 2025. Not sure how that is fiscally responsible? Apparently, this is a result of the last bond election failing and now they want to optimize facilities. Four Points News has some details in their new edition - fourpointsnews.com
I've always wondered why school districts raise 100s of millions of dollars in bonds for new schools instead of working with developers during the planning phases of new developments and have them foot the bill for basic infrastructure that includes schools.
Leander ISD has some unique issues. First, it's still growing at a pretty good rate. But most of that growth is in the northern reaches of the district. It's also one of the largest school districts in Texas as far as land area goes at about 200 square miles, I believe. So just rezoning kids from the overcrowded northern schools to under-enrolled schools is the south isn't that easy, since a lot of these campuses are so far away from each other.
But all the schools in Steiner and River Place are exceptional, so if folks end up getting re-zoned, school quality won't decline.
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