By Katherine Feser   
Houston Chronicle    4/7/96  
 

Holly Brant liked the "Memorial" schools but not the steep Memorial prices when she narrowed down her search for a home about a year ago.  

So she bought in Sherwood Oaks, a neighborhood just north of Interstate 10 near North Wilcrest, where the lots and houses were bigger than those she saw in  
comparably priced Memorial neighborhoods, such as Nottingham West.  

Her ZIP code may not be as prestigious, but her house is big enough to accommodate all her furniture, and her kids will be able to attend the same schools - Spring  
Forest Middle School and Stratford High School in the Spring Branch Independent School District.  

"Basically, south of the freeway was out of our price range for what you got," Brant says.  

In Sherwood Oaks, she got a spacious 4-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath house, with walk-in closets and a pool, for $110,000.  

Sherwood Oaks was developed in the mid-1960s with Spanish, colonial and traditional style houses ranging from 1,700 to 3,200 square feet. 

"It's very self-contained," says real estate broker Betsy Scofield. "I call it a Memorial neighborhood, north of I-10."  

Prices range from $90,000 to $130,000. The subdivision has been popular among employees from Amoco, Shell, Conoco and Exxon in the nearby Energy  
Corridor.  

Harry Nicholls, a resident of Sherwood Oaks since 1965, opted for the neighborhood because even then the homes were less expensive than those similar in quality  
and style on the other side of the freeway. Plus, the development had curbs and gutters. Today, he likes being close to I-10 and about a mile from Beltway 8, which  
makes trips to Intercontinental Airport easy.  

The community is bordered by Addicks Reservoir to the northwest, a strip of patio homes near Old Katy Road to the south, and a few old houses that have been  
converted to commercial property along Sherwood Forest to the east.  

Sherwood Oaks has back-door trash pick-up, private security patrol, a neighborhood swimming pool and a garden club. Block captains welcome new residents  
and contribute to the community newsletter.