Harker Heights at a glance
Harker Heights sits in western Bell County with Killeen on its west side and Nolanville on its east. Interstate 14, which shares the road with US 190, runs through the north part of town. The city reaches south to Stillhouse Hollow Lake on the Lampasas River, so the same town has freeway shopping on one end and lake coves on the other.
City Hall, the Recreation Center and Carl Levin Park share one block on Miller's Crossing. Knights Way, which is FM 2410, is the main east-west street through the middle of town, and Stillhouse Lake Road, FM 3481, heads south from it to the lake. Public schools are part of Killeen ISD, and the Fort Hood main gate is about 9 miles from City Hall.
A short history
The town started on about 400 acres owned by Pinckney R. Cox and Harley Kern. Water Control and Improvement District No. 4 was created for that land in 1955, and lots went on sale in 1957. Kern died before the town was formed. The name joins parts of his first and last names, Har and Ker.
Cox led the push for a water system, which was finished in September 1960. Voters approved incorporation on September 24, 1960, and Cox served as the first mayor from November 1960 to April 1966. The city became a home rule city in October 1963 and set up its police department in 1964.
Two things nearby shaped the growth that followed. Fort Hood opened as Camp Hood in 1942, and the Corps of Engineers finished Stillhouse Hollow Dam in 1968. In December 1988 the city annexed the Comanche Hills utility district, a 2,200-acre addition that took the townsite from 4,400 acres to 6,600.
Homes and housing in Harker Heights
The oldest housing is in the original townsite, where lots first sold in 1957. The city notes that sewer lines put in before the 1970s are usually clay pipe, which tells you the age of that part of town. Since 2017 the zoning code has allowed infill duplexes on small lots in older blocks, so new duplexes now sit beside original single-family houses.
Newer subdivisions are mostly south of Knights Way, toward the lake. City plat records from 2016 and 2017 show large single-family plats there, along with garden home projects and a planned development on East Knights Way that mixes duplexes and multi-family housing with commercial frontage on FM 2410.
The ground changes as you go south. The city says elevation differences raise the cost of running sewer, and the Stillhouse Hollow Lake area has no city sewer. Homes there use septic systems, and a lot on septic has to be at least one-half acre. Expect hillside lots, bigger tracts and some lake views in that part of town.
Neighborhoods and subdivisions
Comanche Land is the part of town with streets such as Indian Trail, Shoshoni Trail and Pueblo Trace, near the library and Eastern Hills Middle School. Forest Hills sits along Knights Way, and Wildewood Acres is around Ramblewood Drive. Comanche Hills came into the city with the 1988 annexation.
South of Knights Way, Cedarbrook Ridge was platted in 2017 on land between Stillhouse Lake Road and Cedar Knob Road, with later phases reviewed in 2021 and 2022. Tuscany Meadows is around Vineyard Trail, and The Ridge includes River Rock Trail. Oakridge Terrace is off Valley Oaks Drive.
Stonewall Ridge is a garden home subdivision at Old Nolanville Road and Nola Ruth Boulevard. Pecan Meadow is the planned development on East Knights Way. Some subdivisions with Harker Heights addresses, such as Beulah Bluff, were platted outside the city limits in the extraterritorial jurisdiction, so check whether a given house is inside the city.
Schools
Harker Heights is served by Killeen Independent School District, which also covers Killeen, Nolanville and Fort Hood. There is one high school in Harker Heights, along with three middle schools and three elementary schools. Elementary campuses run pre-kindergarten through grade 5, middle schools grades 6 to 8, and the high school grades 9 to 12.
Attendance zones are set by the district and do not follow city limits, so confirm the assigned campuses for any address with Killeen ISD. For college, Central Texas College and Texas A&M University-Central Texas are both in Killeen.
- Harker Heights High School
- Grades 9 to 12, Killeen ISD
- Union Grove Middle School
- Grades 6 to 8, Killeen ISD
- Eastern Hills Middle School
- Grades 6 to 8, Killeen ISD
- Nolan Middle School
- Grades 6 to 8, Killeen ISD
- Harker Heights Elementary School
- Pre-K to grade 5, Killeen ISD
- Mountain View Elementary School
- Pre-K to grade 5, Killeen ISD
- Skipcha Elementary School
- Pre-K to grade 5, Killeen ISD
- Central Texas College
- Public community college in Killeen, founded 1965, about 11 miles away
- Texas A&M University-Central Texas
- University in Killeen, part of the A&M System since 2009, about 9 miles away
Parks, lakes and the outdoors
Stillhouse Hollow Lake is the south edge of town. The Corps of Engineers built it on the Lampasas River and began filling it in 1968. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department describes it as a clear, deep lake with steep rocky shorelines, and says largemouth bass is the most abundant sport fish.
Dana Peak Park, a Corps park at 3800 Comanche Gap Road, has a four-lane boat ramp, a swim beach, campsites and a fishing dock. The Dana Peak Trail starts just outside the gate and is open to hikers, mountain bikers and horseback riders. Some facilities close from October through February, and the park has had construction closures, so check with the Corps before you go.
The city runs its own parks. Carl Levin Park on Miller's Crossing has a pool, an amphitheater, a pavilion and a community garden. Community Park on Knights Way is the ball field complex, and Purser Family Park has dog parks and a disc golf course.
- Stillhouse Hollow Lake
- Corps of Engineers lake on the Lampasas River, impounded 1968
- Dana Peak Park
- Corps park in Harker Heights: boat ramp, swim beach, camping, multi-use trail system
- Stillhouse Park
- Corps day-use park by the dam with a marina, boat ramp and swim beach
- Cedar Gap Park
- Corps boat ramp on the north shore, no entry fee
- Union Grove Park
- Corps campground and boat ramp on the south shore
- Carl Levin Park
- 400 Miller's Crossing: pool, amphitheater, pavilion, gazebo, community garden
- Harker Heights Community Park
- 1605 Knights Way: 62 acres, four baseball and four softball fields, 1-mile Kyle Hilliard Trail
- Purser Family Park
- 100 W. Mountain Lion Road: 35 acres, 1-mile lighted trail, dog parks, disc golf
- Kern Park
- 400 S. Ann Boulevard: 8 acres, splash pad, community garden, playground
- Goode-Connell Park
- 110 E. Beeline: 14 acres, walking trail, practice fields
- Skipcha Park
- 515 Prospector Trail: 5-acre joint-use park with a pavilion and trail
- Summit Soccer Complex
- 33-acre city soccer complex
Things to do, shopping and dining
Market Heights is the big shopping center, built in 2008 where FM 2410 meets I-14 and US 190. Most of the chain stores and restaurants are there or along the freeway frontage roads. Knights Way and Veterans Memorial Boulevard carry the smaller local businesses, and the city's 2025 Business Attraction Plan names all three areas as its commercial priorities.
The Stewart C. Meyer Harker Heights Public Library is at 400 Indian Trail, next to the Activities Center. The Recreation Center at 307 Miller's Crossing has a gymnasium with open gym hours and is the home of the city sports leagues. The city also runs GO Heights, a year-round outdoor program with guided hikes and nature classes.
On the water, Stillhouse Park by the dam has a marina, and the Chalk Ridge Falls nature area below the dam has a hiking trail along the river to a natural waterfall. Carl Levin Pool, next to the park, opens for a summer season each year.
Annual events
The biggest event on the calendar is the Harker Heights Food, Wine and Brew Festival, put on by the Harker Heights Chamber of Commerce at Community Park. The Chamber also notes that Texas named Harker Heights a certified Music Friendly Community in 2022.
The Parks and Recreation Department runs the rest. The Harker Heights Farmers Market sets up on Saturday mornings at City Hall in a spring and summer season and again in the fall. Free First Fridays concerts are held at the Carl Levin Park amphitheater. Haunted Heights comes on Halloween and Frost Fest in December, both at Community Park.
- Harker Heights Food, Wine and Brew Festival
- October at Community Park, Chamber of Commerce event
- Harker Heights Farmers Market
- Saturdays, 9 am to 1 pm, at City Hall; spring and fall seasons
- First Fridays Music Series
- Free concerts at the Carl Levin Park amphitheater in spring and fall
- Haunted Heights
- Free Halloween event at Community Park on October 31
- Veterans Ceremony
- Early November at the Activities Center
- Frost Fest
- December at Community Park, with the farmers market on site
- Christmas Tree Lighting
- December at City Hall, with cookies and cocoa with the City Council
Employers and the local economy
Fort Hood drives the local economy. The post is the home of III Armored Corps and the 1st Cavalry Division, and it covers parts of Bell and Coryell counties. The Army changed the name to Fort Cavazos in 2023 and restored the name Fort Hood in June 2025, so you will see both on signs and paperwork.
Inside the city, Seton Medical Center Harker Heights is the anchor. The hospital opened on June 18, 2012, on the I-14 frontage, and the city's business plan calls it a major anchor institution. Killeen ISD staffs seven campuses in town, and retail along I-14 and Knights Way accounts for much of the rest of the local job base.
Getting around
I-14 runs about 25 miles from the Copperas Cove area east to I-35 in Belton, and Harker Heights is in the middle of it. From City Hall it is about 6 miles to downtown Killeen, about 9 miles to the Fort Hood main gate, about 15 miles to Belton and about 22 miles to Temple. Austin is about 65 miles and Waco about 56.
FM 2410, Knights Way, is the surface route across town and on to Nolanville. FM 3481, Stillhouse Lake Road, runs about 5 miles south from FM 2410, crosses the lake on a bridge and ends at FM 2484, which continues east toward I-35. Killeen Regional Airport is about 12 miles west and has commercial flights to Dallas-Fort Worth. The HOP, run by the Hill Country Transit District, provides public transit in Harker Heights, including demand-response and microtransit rides. Call 254-933-3700 to schedule a ride.
Utilities and practical details
The City of Harker Heights provides water, sewer, drainage and trash service on one bill. Call utility billing at 254-953-5630 to start service at City Hall, 305 Miller's Crossing. Drinking water is treated at the Bell County WCID No. 1 plant, with raw water contracts on Lake Belton and Stillhouse Hollow Lake. Trash pickup is contracted to Waste Management, and recycling is by drop-off.
Electricity is deregulated. Oncor owns the lines and you pick your own retail electric provider. Atmos Energy is the natural gas company in the area. Septic systems are permitted and inspected through the Bell County Public Health District, not the city, and the district has to approve the lot plan before the city will issue a building permit.
Seton Medical Center Harker Heights is at 850 W. Central Texas Expressway and has a 24-hour emergency department. The public library is at 400 Indian Trail. City Council meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month at City Hall, and the main City Hall number is 254-953-5600.
Buying and selling in Harker Heights
Bruce Burgess is a Temple native who has held a Texas real estate license since 1991 and has owned Champion Realty, in Belton, since 2007. These are the things he would have you check in Harker Heights.
Before you buy
- On lots near Stillhouse Hollow Lake, find the Corps of Engineers flowage easement line before you make an offer: land below about 671 feet elevation generally cannot have a house on it, and the Corps warns the easement is sometimes left off newer deeds.
- The city says the Stillhouse Hollow Lake area has no city sewer, so ask for the septic permit and inspection records from the Bell County Public Health District and confirm the lot meets the half-acre minimum for septic.
- South Nolan Creek runs through Harker Heights and was mapped in a regional flood study finished in 2019, so check the flood zone for any home near the creek or a drainage channel.
- Killeen ISD sets attendance zones by address and they do not follow city limits, so confirm the assigned elementary, middle and high school with the district.
- In the original townsite, the city notes pre-1970s sewer lines are typically clay pipe, so a sewer line camera inspection is worth adding to the option period.
Before you sell
- If your lot touches Corps of Engineers land or a flowage easement, have a current survey showing the government boundary and the easement line ready, because buyers and lenders will ask.
- On septic, pull your permit and maintenance records from the Bell County Public Health District before you list.
- State plainly whether the home is inside the city limits or in the extraterritorial jurisdiction, since that decides who provides water, sewer and trash service.
- Give buyers the Killeen ISD campus assignments for your address and the name of the nearest city park or lake access, with the road miles to I-14.
