Elected officials from the City of Leander and Leander ISD convened officially for the first time at a special joint meeting Nov. 8.

To help promote cross-municipal team building, the agenda included opportunity for discussions about demographics, construction and future growth.

Ellen Skoviera, assistant superintendent for business and operations, presented the board with new information about LISD's demographics, highlighting the portion of the district that overlaps the City of Leander.

"It's the first time that I've really seen different information than just more and more [growth]," she said, noting smaller projected kindergarten classes compared with recent years.

However, Skoviera said in about a decade, the part of the district within the City of Leander will likely experience the most growth overall. That point correlated with City Manager Kent Cagle's presentation, during which mentioned the planned construction of 3,000 homes in the Crystal Falls West subdivision and more in Mason Hills, formerly Mason Ranch.

"In this calendar year, we had about 500–600 single-family permits," Cagle said, compared to about 1,200 in 2006 and as few as 250 at the city's most recent low.

Mayor Chris Fielder said the city strategically planned future land use around the likely need of a school in Crystal Falls West. And in LISD, Director of Capital Improvements Jimmy Disler said staff has been working with the developers of Mason Ranch and Crystal Falls West to plan for growth. The areas of two evolving neighborhoods—Benbrook Ranch and Serita Valley—are likely future sites for new schools, he said.

The two municipal boards agreed to meet again, possibly in late summer. School Board Vice President Russell Bundy said he appreciated the useful collaboration between LISD and the city.

"Just having the information helps us to be able to have that in the back of our minds when we are making decisions," he said. "I hope this is one of more meetings to come."