Metal straps bolted into Brazos Street planters sparked online alarm and prompted a city investigation into an apparently unpermitted installation.

Canyon Ranch is building a 600‑acre wellness resort in Spicewood and has tapped two‑Michelin‑star chef Val M. Cantú to run its flagship restaurant. Reservations are slated for March 2026 with a fall opening planned.

Santa Rita Ranch sold 483 new homes in 2025 and ranked No. 29 nationally, driven by a mix of housing options, schools and resort‑style amenities. The Liberty Hill community remains Austin’s top‑selling master‑planned neighborhood.

An Austin firefighter says the city denied her workers' compensation after a stage-four uterine cancer diagnosis, prompting union and researcher pushback. The case heads to appeals.

Steve Pier will lead the Texas Workforce Commission starting Feb. 2, moving from the Department of Information Resources. His hire comes amid a broader shuffle in state agency leadership.

An 85‑acre mixed‑use plan would add up to 425 homes and 10 acres of retail to Georgetown’s Hwy. 195 corridor. Final city vote is set for Jan. 27.

Williamson County detectives arrested a 35-year-old Austin man after a Jan. 14 search turned up hundreds of grams of fentanyl, over a kilogram of cocaine and other drugs. The investigation began after a December overdose and remains active.

Spec’s is proposing a 12,000‑sq‑ft shop at 1481 Hero Way — the chain’s first in Leander — with wine, spirits, deli items and THC drinks per public filings.

Analysis of Zillow data shows Texas listings averaged about 117 days to sell last year. Sellers should expect longer listing windows and plan accordingly.

City leaders are weighing a capped 2026 bond and a new mayoral "decision tree" to frame trade-offs after voters rejected Prop Q. Staff and a task force will narrow projects this spring.

Federal prosecutors apologized after officials deported a Babson College freshman from Boston to Honduras in violation of a judge’s order. The judge suggested a student visa as one potential fix.

A One Dumplings & Noodle Bar reopened in Bee Cave in mid‑December, bringing soup dumplings, baos and noodle bowls back to the Highway 71 strip.

Sen. John Cornyn joined GOP colleagues to introduce the ICE Protection Act, seeking tougher penalties and new mandatory minimums for vehicle attacks on ICE officers.