Barbecue restaurant Smithers Smokehouse is in development on East Hickory Street in downtown Denton, according to filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

The details: Construction is scheduled to be complete on the 2,650-square-foot space in early October, according to the filing.

The restaurant is located in the same space that housed Shine it Auto Detail before the shop moved to West Parkway Street in December. The construction’s $900,000 scope includes adding a walk-in refrigerator and two new patio overhangs.

• 300 E. Hickory St., Denton

Meet the three candidates in the running for Denton City Council, District 1.

What’s happening? Vicki Byrd, the current District 1 representative, will finish serving her third term on council and is running for the Denton ISD, Place 6 trustee seat. Kristofer Cox, Jordan Villarreal and Michael Herron are the three candidates running for the District 1 council seat in the local May election.

Candidates were asked to keep responses within 50 words, answer the questions provided and avoid attacking opponents. Answers may have been edited or cut to adhere to those guidelines, or for style and clarity.

Candidates are listed in the order determined by the ballot order drawing Feb. 19, according to the city’s website.

Also of note: Election day is May 2, with early voting starting April 20 and running through April 28. The last day to register to vote is April 2.

See five road projects planned or ongoing around Dallas-Fort Worth.

1. Teel Parkway construction
Project: Teel Parkway in Prosper will be improved with a four-lane concrete divided roadway. The improvements include paving, a retaining wall, drainage and median landscaping. The project spans First Street to Freeman Way.
Update: The project is in the design phase.

• Timeline: winter 2027-summer 2029

• Cost: $800,000

• Funding source: town of Prosper

2. Heritage Avenue/Cheek-Sparger Road
Project: The project consists of extending the southbound right-turn lane on Heritage Avenue and Cheek-Sparger Road, addressing issues caused by erosion at the existing culvert bridge crossing and replacing and extending the culvert under the road. A 7-foot concrete sidewalk, curb ramps and a pedestrian handrail will also be added to the east side of the road to connect the apartment complex with H-E-B, she said.
Update: Colleyville City Council approved an interlocal agreement with the city of Euless for the road project on Heritage Avenue at the March 10 regular meeting.

• Timeline: TBD

• Cost: $169,788

• Funding sources: cities of Colleyville, Euless

At least 257,000 students have applied for Texas’ inaugural education savings account program, according to the state comptroller’s office. Less than half of those applicants are likely to be accepted.

The overview: Applications for Texas Education Freedom Accounts close at 11:59 p.m. March 31. Students enrolling in private schools will receive $10,474 to spend on tuition and related expenses, while homeschool students can get up to $2,000 each, and students with disabilities may qualify for up to $30,000 each.

Through March 29, about 23% of applicants had indicated they would be homeschooled while 77% of applicants said they wanted to attend a private school, state data shows.

Program funding is capped at $1 billion for the 2026-27 school year, meaning between 90,000 and 100,000 students will likely be accepted.

By the numbers: About 34,000 students indicated in their application that they have a disability, per the comptroller's office. Students who have a disability and are considered low- or middle-income will receive priority acceptance into the program under state law.