Houston ISD board managers approved the sale of five district-owned properties, totaling more than 230 acres of land, at the board’s Dec. 11 meeting.

The details: Board managers initially indicated the district’s intent to sell 17 properties in January, according to agenda documents. Among the properties approved to be sold are:

• 2.3 acres with unused office space located at 1102 Telephone Road, Houston
• 3.3 acres with the former Harper Alternative School facility at 3200 Center St., Houston
• 3.3 acres with the former Ryan Professional Development Center at 4001 Hardy St., Houston
• 14.5 acres with the former Terrell Alternative Middle School at 4610 E. Crosstimbers St., Houston
• 208 acres of undeveloped land dubbed the North Forest acreage

A newly-renovated and expanded unit designed for postpartum mothers and their babies was unveiled at Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. 

At a glance: The 19-bed unit increases the hospital’s capacity to care for new mothers from 75 to 96 beds, according to the news release. The expansion will allow the hospital to better meet the needs of its growing maternal population and consolidate the labor and delivery, high-risk antepartum services into one unit. 

Quote of note: Director of Women’s Services Aydrien Robinson said at the Nov. 21 ribbon-cutting ceremony that a lot of work and collaboration went behind the scenes to open the new unit.

“We are extremely excited what this does for not only Memorial Hermann, but also for the community,” Robinson said. “We take care of the most sickest patients here and it just really gives us the opportunity to expand what we have and what we do on a daily basis to more patients.”

Houston City Council member Abbie Kamin confirmed with Community Impact on Dec. 12 she will step down in the spring to run in the 2026 Harris County attorney election.

In a nutshell: Kamin announced her candidacy for Harris County attorney Dec. 5 on social media. The position opened after former Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee resigned to run for U.S. Congress District 18. 

Kamin told Community Impact that she could be of more service to her constituents at the county level. She said her priorities include reforming abuse and neglect protections for children and addressing neighborhood needs, such as housing conditions, toxic waste and pollution, and “bad actors eroding public safety.”

Quote of note: “When the county attorney’s position became open, I started considering whether I could dive into the fight in a bigger way,” Kamin said.

Some context: Kamin represents Houston’s District C, which includes parts of the Washington Corridor, Montrose, Meyerland and the Rice University area. She was first elected to the Houston City Council in 2019.

Since city council members voted in July, a public comment session has taken place on the final Tuesday of every month at 6 p.m. inside the council chambers in Downtown Houston. Now, the test that was intended to run through Dec. 31 has been adopted as a permanent change.

The discussion: During the Dec. 10 meeting, council members discussed what went well and what they wanted to change with the new ordinance moving forward.

Council member Fred Flickinger, District E, proposed an amendment to change the evening session from monthly to quarterly. However, his amendment was ultimately denied in an 8-9 vote.

Meanwhile, council member Mario Castillo, who suggested the ordinance in July, said he has noticed that the evening sessions have been "pretty popular," but did make some tweaks to the ordinance. 

What's changed: Changes to the ordinance include:

• Switching the start time from 6 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• Eliminating proclamations
• Clarifying that the final public session is a non-consolidated meeting

Sonia Lopez was appointed by Harris County commissioners Dec. 11 to serve as one of the county's civil court judges to fill a vacancy as the presiding judge runs as one of the Democratic nominees for Harris County attorney.

Quote of note: Lopez, standing beside her family, told court members that she will work hard to earn the trust of Harris County residents.

“I have to thank my parents who taught me the value of hard work,” Lopez said. “They came to this country to live the American dream, and I think they have accomplished that.”

The setup: The appointment comes as presiding Civil Court Judge Audrie Lawton Evans formally entered the 2026 primary election by Texas’ Dec. 8 candidacy filing deadline. Six total races are being contested by both Democratic and Republican candidates across the March primary elections, including the Harris County attorney position.

Need to catch up on Community Impact’s coverage from last week? Check out five trending stories in the Greater Houston area from Dec. 8-12.

A sneak peek: Vegas Texas Casino officials said the practice-style casino has plans to open between Dec. 15-Jan. 1 in Cypress pending receipt of its Certificate of Occupancy and TABC license. The casino is fully compliant with all Texas gambling and sweepstakes laws, and no gambling of any kind is offered, officials said. 

In case you missed it: On Jan. 1, drivers will see an increase in toll rates, according to a Nov. 18 news release from the Harris County Toll Road Authority. The toll rate increases are along the Montgomery County Toll Road Authority’s portion of Hwy. 249. 

Craving something new? From a new sushi spot to a rebranded Mexican birria locale, Community Impact compiled six dining updates across the Greater Houston area, including restaurants that recently opened or are coming soon.