Judson ISD has approved the selection of architectural services for its districtwide Long-Range Facility Plan and Education Specification project.

The overview: The JISD board of trustees selected architect firm Corgan Associates Inc. to provide services for its Long-Range Facility Plan and Education Specification project at an estimated cost of $288,750 on Dec. 18.

Corgan Associates will be responsible for establishing school facility standards for construction. The firm will also make sure capital improvement projects and future construction that receives state funding align with Texas Administrative Code, according to board documents.

The Long-Range Facility Plan and Education Specification project will be funded from the district's 2016 bond.

What else? The Long-Range Facility Plan expires after five years from the date of the final plan presented to trustees. The plan must be updated prior to the commencement of a subsequent capital improvement project, board documents state.

The second tenant of the Schertz Station development has opened for smoothie lovers in Northeast San Antonio.

The full story: Smoothie King is now open at the retail hub, joining a location of Panera Bread that opened Oct. 20. The national smoothie chain is owned locally by mother-son duo Delia Gaona and Isaiah Miguel Gaona.

Aside from its many smoothie options, Smoothie King sells food items like smoothie bowls and loaded toast.

• 18476 I-35 N., Ste. 300, Schertz

Another expansion to the Comal County Jail may be on the horizon.

The overview: Comal County commissioners received an update from HDR, Inc., the firm tasked with gathering data on the potential expansion, on an ongoing feasibility study for the jail Nov. 20.

Commissioners showed support for “vertical” construction options designed to meet long-term growth, and an estimated upward trend in inmate capacity needs, according to a presentation from the firm.

The Comal County Jail, which completed its last expansion in 2020, has 582 beds and is operating at 88% capacity, according to the presentation.

The firm’s feasibility study shows the county growing at 23% annually, with an incarceration rate of 2.3% per 1,000 residents—slightly higher than the state average. Based on population trends, the county could require 810 beds by 2035 and 1,101 beds by 2045, according to the firm’s feasibility study.

Residents of Schertz and travelers on I-35 will soon have access to additional dining and retail opportunities.

In October, Panera Bread opened as the first tenant at Schertz Station, a 257,000-square-foot retail and dining hub that will feature a bevy of national chain restaurants and other shopping opportunities.

The big picture: The property off I-35 North and Cibolo Valley Drive was developed by San Antonio-based Merit CRE, which is investing over $65 million in the hub.

Schertz’s Economic Development Corp., or EDC, worked with Merit on Schertz Station’s surrounding infrastructure, such as adjacent road construction, EDC Executive Director Scott Wayman said.

Wayman said the development was a response to Schertz’s population growth.

“We have a large, growing population that expects services, they expect restaurants, and they expect those things to be within a driving distance of their house and make it convenient for them,” Wayman said.