Riverstone is a upscale master-planned residential community in

Fort Bend County, Texas Fort Bend County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. The county was founded on December 29, 1837, and organized the next year. It is named for Fort Bend, a blockhouse at a bend of the Brazos River. The community developed around th ...

, United States. Approximately 18,000 residents ultimately will live in 6,000 homes. The development is largely located in

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

s that are in

extraterritorial jurisdiction Extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) is the legal ability of a government to exercise authority beyond its normal boundaries. Any authority can claim ETJ over any external territory they wish. However, for the claim to be effective in the external ...

s (ETJ) of

Sugar Land Sugar Land (sometimes incorrectly spelled as Sugarland) is the largest city in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States, located in the southwestern part of the metropolitan area. Located about southwest of downtown Houston, Sugar Land is a po ...

and

Missouri City Missouri City is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, within the metropolitan area. The city is mostly in Fort Bend County, with a small portion in Harris County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 74,259, an increase ...

, with portions being in Missouri City proper and strips of land being in Sugar Land proper. - Compare with school attendance boundaries and with the ETJ map. - Compare with the Riverstone development map. 441 houses were sold in Riverstone in 2016. As of 2017, John Burns Real Estate Consulting, a company headquartered in

Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the ...

, ranked Riverstone as No. 20 on its list of highest-selling

Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...

subdivisions, and Robert Charles Lesser & Co. (RCLCO) ranked Riverstone as No. 18 on its top-selling list. John Burns ranked Riverstone among its top 25 in 2018.

History

Riverstone's began development in 2001, with development continuing until the present. It was created by the Johnson Development Corporation. Riverstone's neighborhoods were developed by a series of housing companies such as

Taylor Morrison Taylor Morrison is one of the largest home building companies in the United States. Its corporate headquarters are in Scottsdale, Arizona. The company formed when Taylor Woodrow and Morrison Homes joined forces in July 2007. Taylor Morrison oper ...

and Meritage Homes.

Geography

The community is mostly located in

s, primarily in the extraterritorial jurisdictions of the cities of

and

. A portion is in Missouri City itself. Much of the early development (some 500 homes) was in the Missouri City ETJ portion, but about 60% of the total land area and most of the future homes will be in Sugar Land ETJ. Riverstone stretches from State Highway 6 on the northeast to the

Brazos River The Brazos River ( , ), called the ''Río de los Brazos de Dios'' (translated as "The River of the Arms of God") by early Spanish explorers, is the 14th-longest river in the United States at from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater ...

on the southwest. It is bounded on the north by the Bridgewater neighborhood of The Commonwealth master-planned community in Sugar Land, the Lakes of Austin Park, and Heritage Colony neighborhoods of

First Colony First Colony is a master-planned community in Fort Bend County, Texas. The community, with approximately 50,000 residents,Kaplan, David.Blending elegance and fast food" ''Houston Chronicle''. May 13, 2010. Retrieved on May 14, 2010. encompasses ...

in Sugar Land and Missouri City respectively, and Sugar Land's Maranatha Farms. To the east are First Colony's Colony Lakes neighborhood and the Sienna Village neighborhoods of

Sienna Sienna () is an earth pigment containing iron oxide and manganese oxide. In its natural state, it is yellowish brown, and it is called raw sienna. When heated, it becomes a reddish brown, and it is called burnt sienna.''Shorter Oxford English ...

, both in Missouri City, and Sugar Land's Pecan Manor is adjacent to part of the south boundary. Riverstone falls into ZIP codes 77459 and 77479, respectively served by the Missouri City and Sugar Land post offices. Some of the Missouri City properties fall into the latter ZIP code, thus having Sugar Land mailing addresses. The primary thoroughfares are University Boulevard, which connects the community with the Southwest Freeway ( U.S 59/I-69) through the Avalon and Brazos Landing communities in the west and State Highway 6 in the east, LJ Parkway, which connects it to The Commonwealth and First Colony in the north and Sienna in the south, and Riverstone Boulevard in the northeast, which connects it to First Colony in the west and Highway 6 in the east. Oilfield Road is also located in the southeast, which links it with some of the Colony Lakes neighborhoods of First Colony.

Economy

The area of Riverstone that borders Highway 6 and around the intersection of University Boulevard and LJ Parkway are dominated by large-scale commercial developments. The intersection around University Boulevard and LJ Parkway is home to the Stella at Riverstone, a large commercial development with strip malls, restaurants, a 100,000 square foot

Kroger The Kroger Company, or simply Kroger, is an American retail company that operates (either directly or through its subsidiaries) supermarkets and multi-department stores throughout the United States. Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cinc ...

, and other developments. Additionally, there are two strip malls adjacent to the Villas neighborhood and in the Avalon at Riverstone development. An office district is located in the northeast off of Riverstone Boulevard.

Parks and recreation

Riverstone is well known for its numerous artificial lakes, which dot its neighborhoods and cityscape. The community has well over of lakes and contains numerous waterfront homes. Parks are spread throughout Riverstone, with many having facilities such as playgrounds. Additionally, there is a dog park. In total, there are of recreational space, walking trails, parks, and open spaces. The major recreational center at Riverstone is the Club at Riverstone, which contains a clubhouse that contains a fitness center and a meeting room, eight tennis courts, a water park (which serves as the community's third pool complex), and playground. Parks are planned on much of the remaining south boundary (beyond the levees protecting against high water along the Brazos River).

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Riverstone is located entirely within the

Fort Bend Independent School District Fort Bend Independent School District, also known as Fort Bend ISD or FBISD, is a school district that operates 86 schools in Fort Bend County. Based in Sugar Land, Texas, it is the 5th most diverse school district in Texas and is the 43rd la ...

(FBISD). Until 2016, Riverstone had no on site schools, with the community being zoned to areas outside the community. Early plans called for the construction of three elementary schools and an additional middle school. Anne McCormick Sullivan Elementary School opened in Riverstone in August 2016, making it Riverstone's first school. Its namesake was a firefighter who died in the Southwest Inn fire in 2013. Regarding elementary schools, other sections are zoned to Austin Parkway (First Colony, Sugar Land), Commonwealth (The Commonwealth, Sugar Land), and Settlers Way (Fist Colony, Sugar Land) elementary schools. Previously Schiff Elementary School in Sienna Plantation served the Stonebrook subdivision. Sonal Bhuchar Elementary School opened in 2023 as Riverstone's second consecutive on site school. First Colony Middle School in First Colony and Fort Settlement Middle School in Avalon serve Riverstone, with the former serving the east and the latter the west. Previously Baines Middle School in Sienna served the Stonebrook subdivision. Elkins High School in Missouri City serves all of Riverstone. Previously

Clements High School William P. Clements High School, more commonly known as Clements High School, is a public high school in Sugar Land, Texas. Named after former Texas governor Bill Clements, Clements High School is a part of the Fort Bend Independent School Dist ...

in First Colony served some sections of Riverstone. In 2014 FBISD proposed rezoning portions of the community to First Colony Middle School from Fort Settlement Middle School, prompting some area parents to protest the plan. File:FBISD Elkins High School.jpg, Elkins High School File:FBISD Fort Settlement Middle School.jpg, Fort Settlement Middle School File:FBISD First Colony Middle School.jpg, First Colony Middle School File:FBISD Austin Parkway Elementary.jpg, Austin Parkway Elementary School File:FBISD Commonwealth Elementary.jpg, Commonwealth Elementary School File:FBISD Sullivan Elementary School.jpg, Anne Sullivan Elementary School File:FBISD Settlers Way Elementary.jpg, alt=, Settlers Way Elementary School File:Sonal Bhuchar Elementary.jpg, Sonal Buchar Elementary School

Colleges and universities

The designated community college for areas in Sugar Land proper and the Sugar Land extraterritorial jurisdiction is

Wharton County Junior College Wharton County Junior College (WCJC) is a public community college with its main campus in Wharton, Texas. The college also has campuses in Richmond, Sugar Land, and Bay City. WCJC offers a range of postsecondary educational prog ...

. The

Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...

specifies that the

Houston Community College Houston Community College (HCC), also known as the Houston Community College System (HCCS), is a community college that operates community colleges in Houston, Texas, Houston, Missouri City, Texas, Missouri City, Greater Katy, and Stafford, Texas ...

(HCC) boundary includes "the part of the Fort Bend Independent School District that is not located in the service area of the Wharton County Junior College District and that is adjacent to the Houston Community College System District." Wharton College's boundary within FBISD is defined only as the City of Sugar Land and the ETJ of Sugar Land, and part of Riverstone is in Missouri City proper and Missouri City ETJ. The Missouri City/Missouri City ETJ parts of Riverstone are in HCC.
See profile page
- Compare with the Riverstone map.

Notes

External links

Riverstone Community
{{Missouri City, Texas Geography of Fort Bend County, Texas Missouri City, Texas