houstongirl

Rumor has it that a locally owned retailer is using that space for a new specialty foods/deli/wine shop. I think it will be a welcome addition to that area, and certainly an added benefit for the residents of that building.

Overall, the Houston economy is in much, much better shape than the rest of the country. In my business, which deals with the retail and restaurant industries, we're seeing our vendors from around the country all wanting to come work the Houston market for a while. Things are slow everywhere else, but seem to be chugging along here in Texas. For now at least, Houston is the best place to be!

I didn't realize they were putting Cutten all the way through. Not good news for those living on Cutten in Majestic Oaks.

They are still planning on opening in November 2008.

This helps explain why my cousin, who is a Cy-Fair coach, berates me for having my child in private school because "their sports programs aren't as good as they good be." Oh well, I guess she will never play pro football now.

I'd love to know who's moving in. We are going to sell our house soon and new employees looking to move to the area would be great.

Private high schools are few and far between in the NW area of Houston. The largest selection is found further in town, but there are a few choices out here in the 'burbs. A lot of the students at Trinity complete their high school years at Concordia High School in Tomball. I know many families with kids at Concordia, and they are all very pleased with not only the academics and opportunities, but also the sense of community within the student body. In fact, there is a high probability it is the high school my child will attend. I know families with kids at Concordia, John Cooper, and Lutheran High North. I have not heard any complaints from any of them... except from the kids when it

I completely agree and was not trying to imply the inability to succeed without a private school education. I just happen to have a fairly well-rounded opinion since I attended both types of school (all in NW Houston) with about 50% of my education in each. Our negative experience was extreme and pretty rare in the KISD system. However, after the way our situation was severely mishandled, I have lost all trust in KISD as far as my child's education goes. The upbringing of a child is not something to play around with.

I'm pretty sure I've told this story before, but... My child spent 3 years in a KISD Exemplary elementary before we made the switch to private. In those 3 years (K-2) she had one FABULOUS teacher, one OK but very slow teacher, and one HORRIBLE teacher. The one teacher that was so bad, was verbally abusive to an excessive point. Granted, every school seems to have "one of those", but the things this teacher said and did to my child were traumatic and have had a continued effect even after 3 years away from that school. We had several meetings with the VP and Principal at the school, but nothing was done. We insisted our child be removed from the class, and they agreed it was necessary, but didn't do so until 2 weeks before the end of the school year! In fact, the only reason they actually made the move to a different class is because we contacted the Superintendent, Dr. Jim Cain. Only after a discussion with him did the school principal react to the situation. The problem was equally with the teacher and the administration's lack of response. Upon further research, I found out this teacher had been at the school for 15+ years. She previously had been teaching a higher grade level, but had been moved to a much lower level. Why? Well, the parents from her class had recommended her termination or the removal of their students from her class. They had even gone as far as to pass around a petition through all of the parents discussing her short-comings as a 4th grade teacher. Apparently it created such a stir, the principal had no choice to move her to a different grade level, which is how we ended up with her. (Yes, I know it wasn't a true demotion to move to a lower grade, but she was moved mostly due to a lack of subject knowledge.) I have always considered KISD to be an exceptional public school system. However, our experience there was AWFUL. Sure, there are thousands of students that received a thorough, incident free education there (which I know many), but what we went through can never be erased in my opinion. We looked at quite a few private schools in the area before selecting Trinity, and I saw one especially that seemed like a magnet school for "problem children." However, many schools are not set up this way and don't tolerate any misstep by the students. For instance, if you choose to allow it, they can still get old fashioned swats at some. (Which is an entirely different subject.) The teachers and administration truly care about the education and all-around well being of each and every student. They honestly try to encourage the whole child, not just TAKS scores. We chose Trinity because I attended that school for several years before transitioning to SISD. I went to Bammel Middle and Westfield High... back when it was considered to be BETTER than Klein, and I can say I was easily far, far ahead of my peers in terms of academics when I made the switch. I graduated with honors in the top 15% of my class. Much of this I credit to the quality of education I received in my years Pre-K-6 in private school. As far as fine arts go, (I'll get killed by the Klein parents for this) I was lucky to be in the band program at Westfield, which was as good as it gets anywhere in this country. As far as extra-curricular activities, my child's school offers most you can receive at a public middle school. Grades 5-8 can participate in sports such as soccer, softball, volleyball, basketball, cheerleading and football. They offer art classes and computer club for all ages, and drama classes for the older children. Grades 3-8 can participate in the choirs at the school, and 5-8 can enter the band program. In fact, our 3-4 grade choir just started this year and entered a city wide choir contest in April. They competed against 37 other schools, including KISD elementary schools, and our choir won FIRST PLACE! So there are lots of opportunities for activities in the private schools, depending on which you attend. Frankly, I think these are valuable choices for students, but I don't plan on my kid becoming a professional athlete, so I find quality academics to be infinitely more important. Ultimately, do the research and make the choice that is best for you and your child.

I attended Trinity Lutheran School when I was a young, and my child has just completed a 3rd year there. It is a wonderful school with caring teachers, active parents, and lots of activities available for the students. My co-worker's children attend St. Anne's in Tomball and they have been pleased as well. My nephew attended Northwoods Catholic for a year and a half and they really liked it there (very, very structured).

The sign has been up at their location inside Willowbrook for a while now. They're definitely doing work on the space.

I will be there. And as my favorite saying of the week goes.... OAK 'EM! It's hilarious yelling that at a game.

That is a terrible thing to imagine. What a shame.

Lack of ability to address issues..... This is the main reason I yanked my kid out of KISD and put her in private school. Most of the kids in my family go to KISD schools, and they have no issues, for the most part. However, I have found that many times, when a problem comes up (with staff, administration, etc.) they just lack the ability to face it and find a solution. When we had a serious issue with a teacher a few years ago, the problem took 3 months to be taken care of, and this was only after I contacted the superintendent and threatened legal action if he didn't respond. My niece attends KOHS. She was there around the time of the Collins opening, and told me how nice it was to have a school that was not overcrowded. It was also funny because they were 4A and played all of the "country" schools, as she called them. Now in just a few years, KOHS is also overcrowded. She complains often of long lunch lines, busy halls, and other general issues. With all of the land being developed (or about to be developed) for residential use, KISD really needs to get with the program and build that other high school FAST! The stadium seems like a secondary issue, but after attending a few Thursday night or Saturday afternoon football games this year, they need to figure that situation out quick too! Otherwise, they'll be playing games on Wednesday or Sunday once the new school opens. Like I said before, I've pulled my child out of KISD and placed her in private school. I know this opens up an entirely different debate (public vs. private), but frankly, I know I can sit down with her principal any time I need to.

Hopefully it will help some of the issues. Glad to see they named it after Andy Dekaney. Great guy.