LIBERTY HILL, Texas (KXAN) — On the first day of school for Liberty Hill Independent School District, the line to pick up students snaked around Santa Rita Middle School’s parking lot and onto the street.

“It’s the first day, and so it’s trying to get things smoothed out, but so far, so good,” said Alex Vu, who was there to pick up his son.

Amanda Major went inside to pick up her daughter, who started attending the school last year.

“Last year, when we started dropping her off at school, you could actually get through the pickup line. And then as the year progressed, it just kept getting bigger and bigger. It’s crazy,” Major said.

The school is one example of growth in the district. It opened last year to accommodate 900 students and is already being expanded to accommodate 400 more, according to the superintendent.

“It literally just boomed overnight, you know,” said Vu, who moved to the area two years ago.

“As far as the students who showed up, we’re about 8,100 students,” said Steve Snell, Liberty Hill ISD superintendent. “We ended last year with 7,100 students. So, when you take away the students who graduated last year, we have about 1,400 new Panthers at Liberty Hill this year.”

According to KXAN data, the district has been growing at one of the fastest rates in our viewing area over the past decades at 149%. It trails only behind Jarrell ISD, growing at 186%. For comparison, Austin ISD’s enrollment has decreased 14% during the same time.

Snell said the school district currently has 13 ongoing construction projects, funded by the nearly $500 million bond passed last year, and there will be more.

“[It] takes about two years to build an elementary school from start to finish. So, we’re trying to stay ahead on the school build,” he said.

He said they now have eight schools, and by 2025, he expects to have at least 12.

So, who’s moving here?

Snell said their demographic data for this school year isn’t available, yet, but in the past, they’ve found families are flocking to Liberty Hill, because they like the community and school district and for job opportunities.

“About one in three were moving from California for tech jobs. One in three were moving from other metropolitan areas in Texas or other states like the Midwest or Florida. And a third were moving from Travis County,” Snell explained.

Katie Amsler, spokesperson for the City of Liberty Hill, said they’re expecting more neighbors.

“We’ve actually had 1,500 new home starts since February, we have five to 6,000 more homes in the works, along with 16 multifamily complexes,” Amsler said.

She said they’re working on infrastructure, like expanding their wastewater treatment plants and preparing to dig four new water wells.

Major moved to the city two years ago after returning to Texas from Cambodia.

“I think ultimately, growth is a good thing. It brings in more people it brings in more businesses. I just wish we could figure out the traffic thing,” she said.