LA RRY JOH N SON
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“It’s our focus on resident lifestyle and creating a sense of community that really sets us apart.” Two Katy ISD elementary schools are currently open in Cross Creek Ranch with a Katy junior high and high school under construction now. Residents also are served by popular schools within the Lamar Consolidated Independent School District. The Westpark Tollway expansion is almost complete and the Grand Parkway isn’t too far away. A large H-E-B opened in 2018 to serve the many residents who have moved to the area and many more retailers and services have opened (and will continue to open throughout 2019) at the Market at Cross Creek Ranch. The approximate 8,000 people who live in Cross Creek Ranch are far more than the 400 who lived in Mr. Johnson’s hometown of Kress. Attending Texas Tech University on a football scholarship and later attending law school at the University of Texas, Mr. Johnson was introduced to real estate while living in Austin. When the company he was working for moved to Houston, he went with them. Mr. Johnson decided to make the leap into owning his own firm in 1975.
“I liked the independence of doing things the way I wanted,” Johnson said. And that was paying attention to location, developing in areas served by desirable schools and partnering with highly regarded builders. “But it’s our focus on resident lifestyle and creating a sense of community that really sets us apart,” he said. But Mr. Johnson doesn’t take all of the credit for the success of his communities. In fact, he points to his team of highly creative and talented people who work at Johnson Development.
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“It’s because of them that we’ve built Johnson Development into one of the leading developers in the nation,” he said. “After all of these years, I still get excited working on deals and working with the people in the company.” And after riding the ups and downs of the Houston economy for decades, Mr. Johnson says he sees good things ahead for the area right now. “There is not an oversupply of housing or lots, jobs have come back, oil prices are good. I think Houston has a good run ahead of it.” d