Round Rock officials will take action on a request to update plans for mixed-use development The District on July 9. 

In a nutshell: A proposed update to plans for The District would see the maximum setback eliminated for buildings along Greenlawn Boulevard to make way for surface parking to serve retail. The development is currently planned to include several parking garages for this portion of the development, Planning and Development Services Director Brad Dushkin said in a July 7 packet briefing. 

Why now? Crews broke ground on the first residential project planned for the mixed-use development in March. Dushkin said this project and several others planned for The District will have parking garages.

He said developer Mark IV Capital's desire to change parking requirements for portions of the project is based on conversations with prospective tenants who would like to have signage and parking visible to drivers, as well as market pressures making parking structures unfeasible for this part of the development. 

An international distributor of hobby shop merchandise is set to expand its Round Rock footprint with a new warehouse and office.

What you need to know: A project filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation on June 16 shows plans for a second Round Rock Universal Distribution warehouse. Per the filing, it would be located in the Round Rock 45 industrial park near the northwest corner of S. A. W. Grimes Boulevard and SH 45. The project's scope includes finishing out a 31,259-square-foot space for a warehouse and office, with work to be done between the end of July and late September.

About the business: Universal Distribution is a distributor of comic books, trading cards, collectible toys and figurines, card games and board games.

When Jennifer Bittner moved to the Austin area in June 2023, she feared her family would need to make frequent, hours-long trips to Houston to access specialized care for her children.

Bittner, who has three medically complex children, said specialty services were still expanding when her family first settled into the area.

“When we first moved here … [Texas Children’s] wasn’t finished yet, so we were really concerned that we’d be traveling back and forth to Houston every couple of months,” she said.

Today, Bittner’s family makes just two trips to Houston each year for care related to her sons’ rare disease. Both boys receive regular care at Austin’s Texas Children’s Hospital while her daughter receives care at Dell Children’s Medical Center in Central Austin.

For families like the Bittners, the opening of new hospitals in the Austin metro has expanded access to specialized programs much closer to home.

By the numbers: Between 2017 and 2024, Williamson County’s child population increased by 19.2%, or 26,034.

A YMCA renovation, road reconstruction and a Crunch Fitness are among the five most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the Austin metro this week.

1. Johnny Morris Road ($32.7 million): This project involves roadway reconstruction with improvements to curbs, sidewalks, shared-use paths, signal modifications, and signage and pavement markings.

2. Texas Children's Hospital Austin ($17.9 million): This project includes a shell infill on the existing 5th floor of the hospital to house 12 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, or NICU, beds and 12 Universal Care Pediatric Beds.

3. YMCA Four Points ($17 million): This project involves the single-story renovation of the existing YMCA facility and a new outdoor space with a pool house.

4. Blue Hole Nature Center ($4 million): A new 2,375-square-foot nature center is being built in Wimberley.

5. Crunch Fitness ($1.5 million): A new Crunch Fitness location is coming to Hutto, with construction set to begin this fall.