New Kings River Development Gets a Buzz Cut
Those who have fond memories of boot camp in the military may appreciate the buzz-cut look of Meritage Homes’ new development in Kings River. These photographs, taken on Sunday 3/10/24, speak for themselves.
Industrial-Scale Terraforming
Contractors have shorn vegetation from the area, except for a thin strip of trees around part of the perimeter. The next step will be to start digging a detention basin and redistributing the dirt across the site. They will use the dirt to fill in wetlands and elevate home pads.
Twenty acres gone! In about a month!
The result will be rank-and-file tract homes on parade, most likely with some kind of landscaping allowance.
Enjoy the Trees While You Can
It’s not clear yet when Meritage plans to begin Phase II of its Kings River development. The company owns another 20-acre tract on the east side of Pinehurst Trail Drive.
In another 20 to 30 years, the new development should blend in somewhat with the surrounding area.
In the meantime, assuming the engineering company properly configured drainage requirements and we don’t get any monster storms, Meritage may avoid adversely impacting surrounding homes with runoff.
However, the latest hurricane forecasts suggest a a highly active hurricane season for the Gulf of Mexico this year.
Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda
Such developments underscore the need for community associations to purchase forested areas they want to preserve for recreation, beauty, flood-risk reduction, and protection of home values. Ironically Harris County Appraisal District valued this land at less than $400,000.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 3/11/24
2386 Days since Hurricane Harvey
