The tale of two Katys: the city vs the school district

KATY, TX (FOX 26) - In this tale of two Katys, there's the City of Katy and then there's Katy ISD.

There are 16,000 residents living within the city limits,  and 309,000 living within the school district.

Can the City of Katy keep the small town feel while the Katy community explodes around it?

"There's a need for both," says Betsy Proctor, the owner of Limited Edition Arts and Antiques. But she adds, "the biggest need is to keep Old Katy, or keep historic Katy historic, and not have the two Katys merge." 

Proctor opened her business more than two decades ago and has seen a lot of changes. 

"Have the growth, but keep the growth in a vintage sort of way," Proctor says. "I would hate to see this turn into a strip mall." 

Strip malls are a dime a dozen, and La Centera at Cinco Ranch is not one of them, but it's a prime example of the modern hustle an bustle of Katy ISD's community.

"Old Katy and New Katy, that's really not on most people's radar," Melissa Nixon tells FOX 26. Nixon is president of the 1Katy Political Action Committee. She says the look and feel of the City of Katy is totally up to its taxpayers. She lives outside the city limits though, and she just would like to focus on what brings the community together.

"We all value family, safety, and community. Those the are the things that unite us," Nixon says. "The things that divide us are not as powerful."

"It's all a juggling act," says City Councilman Jimmy Mendez. "How do you please these people without upsetting these people? How do you continue to grow without growing further traffic problems and congestion."

Katy's city council and mayor work for the taxpayers, but opposing sides put them in the middle.  Tens of thousands of people have a Katy mailing address, yet have no say on what goes on in city government.

But soon even the City of Katy will have a new mailing address. It's building a new town hall in Historic Katy. It's old fashioned on the outside, yet modern on the inside.  That's balancing growth for a diverse community.