Sienna Plantation, Texas

History

The Sienna Plantation subdivision is on land that previously operated as a sugar and cotton plantation. Purchased in 1840 by South Carolina planter Jonathan D. Waters, the tract included a wharf along the Brazos River. In 1872, Houston businessman Thomas W. House purchased the property, followed by former Houston mayor Thomas H. Scanlan in 1913. Scanlan's heirs' estate entrusted the property to the Scanlan Foundation, which benefited the Catholic diocese of Houston. From the 1950s until 1972, the diocese operated the Cenacle Retreat on the land under the direction of the Cenacle Sisters. They chose the name "Sienna Plantation" in honor of the Siena area of Tuscany in Italy.

In the 1970s developer Larry Johnson founded the Johnson Development Corporation and in 1978 began development of the project. In the mid-1980s the Johnson Corporation began construction of single family homes, roads, and a 10-mile-long (16 km) levee for flood protection. The project stalled during the economic meltdown of the 1980s.

The developer refocused his efforts in 1994. The development of Sienna Plantation was organized by Tan Yu, a billionaire developer from the Philippines, who in 1997 was based in Taiwan. In 2009 5,000 of the 5,200 houses in Sienna Plantation were occupied.

Geography

Sienna Plantation is located in eastern Fort Bend County at 29°29′35″N 95°30′24″W (29.493136, -95.506707). It is bordered to the north and west by Missouri City and to the northeast by Arcola. The Brazos River runs just west of the western border of Sienna Plantation, and Oyster Creek flows southwards through the center of the CDP. Downtown Houston is 27 miles (43 km) to the north.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 14.1 square miles (36.4 km²), of which 13.6 square miles (35.3 km²) is land and 0.42 square miles (1.1 km²), or 3.05%, is water.

Cityscape

The development is south of Texas State Highway 6. Sienna Parkway, the main thoroughfare in Sienna Plantation, is located off Highway 6. Sienna Plantation has many single-family houses of various designs and styles. In 2009 the prices ranged from $160,000s to the millions. A section of Sienna Plantation has custom houses that, as of 2009, were priced in the $500,000s. As of that year a 272-unit apartment complex was under construction at the entrance to Sienna Plantation. In January 2009 the H-E-B Sienna Market Place, located at the entrance to the Sienna Plantation community, and a Kroger store located 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Sienna Plantation opened; before the openings, Sienna Plantation had a lack of proximity to grocery stores.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 13,721 people, 4,057 households, and 3,658 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 1008.9 people per square mile (388.7/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 65.1% White, 18.1% African American, 0.4% Native American, 11.0% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 2.7% some other race, and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.1% of the population.

There were 4,057 households, out of which 64.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 81.3% were headed by married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 9.8% were non-families. 8.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 1.4% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.38, and the average family size was 3.59.

In the CDP, the population was spread out with 38.0% under the age of 18, 3.3% from 18 to 24, 34.0% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 4.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.0 years. For every 100 females there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.

For the period 2010–14, the estimated median annual income for a household in the CDP was $130,300, and the median income for a family was $130,457. Male full-time workers had a median income of $107,798 versus $74,224 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $46,039. About 7.0% of families and 6.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

In 1996 Missouri City and Sienna Plantation had a joint development agreement. It states that when Sienna Plantation is about 90% developed and when the City of Missouri City wishes to assume the outstanding development debt of Sienna Plantation, the annexation will occur. There are periodic reviews of the annexation proposals. In 2011, one review concluded that due to the municipal utility debt, if residents of Sienna Plantation, do not wish to pay extra taxes for fire and police services and other city services, then annexation should occur in 2027.

Primary and secondary schools

Sienna Plantation is served by the Fort Bend Independent School District. The community is within the East Division, controlling school board slots 5 through 7. As of 2008 the board members in the slots are Laurie Caldwell, Steve Smelley, and David Reitz, respectively.

The community is zoned to Sienna Crossing Elementary School, Scanlan Oaks Elementary School and Jan Schiff Elementary School (three separate attendance zones). The community is also zoned to Baines Middle School, which is located within Sienna Plantation. Since the 2010, all of Sienna is served by the new FBISD Ridge Point High School located in Sienna Plantation on Waters Lake Blvd. Lake Olympia Middle School in Missouri City served all of Sienna Plantation until fall 2006, when Baines Middle School was built.

Donald Leonetti Elementary School will open in fall 2017 and Ronald Thornton Middle School will open in 2018. Both are in Sienna Plantation.<ef>"Attendance Boundary Plan Update." Fort Bend Independent School District. Retrieved on February 19, 2017.</ref>

Sienna Lutheran Academy is a private school that caters to the Christian education of children in grades K-8.

Histories of schools

Before 2010 the portion east of Sienna Parkway was zoned to Hightower High School in Missouri City, while the portion west of Sienna Parkway was zoned to Elkins High School in Missouri City. In 2007 sections of Sienna Plantation were rezoned from Hightower to Elkins.

Lake Olympia Middle School in Missouri City served all of Sienna Plantation until fall 2006, when Baines Middle School was built.

Community colleges

Houston Community College (HCC) serves Sienna Plantation. In the fall of 2008, HCC opened a satellite campus near the entrance to Sienna Plantation.

Public libraries

Fort Bend County Libraries operates the Sienna Branch, which opened on April 24, 2010. The $15 million, two story facility, which has 45,000 square feet (4,200 m²) of space, was a joint project between the library system and Houston Community College. The library is a part of the HCC campus and is open to the public and HCC students.

Parks and recreation

Zen T. C. Zheng of the Houston Chronicle said that Sienna Plantation has "a natural environment." The community has lakes, parks, trees, and a trail along 4 miles (6.4 km) of the frontage of the Brazos River. Sienna Plantation has a 160 acres (65 ha) sports complex, an 18-hole championship golf course, recreational centers, and water parks. The Sienna Plantation sports complex is the home to a variety of youth club sports programs, including, the Sienna Panthers Lacrosse Club which has 240 youth lacrosse players ranging from 1st grade to High School. It is also the home fields for Team 91 Texas which provides elite Lacrosse for 175 players to compete nationally. The recreational centers include an amphitheater and a fitness room.

Religion

As of 2011 many Protestant churches are located in Sienna Plantation. On April 30, 2011, an LDS Church meeting house was scheduled to open in the community, serving a 200-member English-speaking ward and a 200-member Spanish-speaking ward.