Missouri City City Council extended its reimbursement contract with the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County through 2040.

Zooming in: City Council unanimously approved the extension, which requires the city to contribute 1% of sales tax funds to METRO, at a Dec. 1 meeting. The contract went into effect in 1978—as voted for by Missouri City citizens—and without its extension, METRO would not be required to reimburse any money to the city while still receiving tax funds, City Attorney E. Joyce Iyamu said.

What’s next: Kumar said city staff are working with METRO to get the most benefit out of their contract, with projects in the works.

Franchisee Masroor Fatany, who is behind Layne's Chicken Fingers' Houston location, said the new location marks a strategic expansion into the Missouri City-Sugar Land corridor.

“We were able to find a location with a perfect dining room and kitchen setup near a major intersection, and we’re excited to open,” he said.

What they offer: Founded in College Station in 1994, Layne’s menu offers chicken fingers, fries, Texas toast, milkshakes and sauces, including spicy options.

About the owners: Fatany opened his first Layne’s location in the Greater Houston area in August at 132 E Airtex Drive., Houston, a representative confirmed the third location will open in Rosenberg at 28225 Southwest Freeway in December.

About the grand opening: At the Dec. 6 grand opening at 11 a.m., Fatamy said the first 50 visitors will receive Layne’s for the year.

Travelers will be able to fly directly to Rome from George Bush Intercontinental Airport, or IAH, beginning May 1, 2026, Houston Mayor John Whitmire announced Dec. 2.

In a nutshell: Italian airline ITA Airways will offer the flights to Rome Fiumicino Airport, Whitmire said during a press conference. The new Houston connection marks the ninth U.S. destination for the airline, officials said.

Joerg Eberhart, CEO and general manager of ITA Airways, said the airline will start with three nonstop flights per week in May and ramp up to five flights per week by June. The flights are already available for purchase through the airline, he said.

Quote of note: “If we look at what’s going on in the Italian economy and the Houston economy, this gives us now the opportunity to go to Italian companies and try to track more of them and locate their U.S. headquarters here in Houston because we’ve got this great service now,” Houston Airports Director of Aviation Jim Szczesniak said.

Nine new medical cannabis dispensaries could soon open in Texas, the Department of Public Safety announced Dec. 1.

The overview: The nine companies were preliminarily approved to join three existing dispensaries that provide medical-grade, low-THC products to eligible patients through the Texas Compassionate Use Program. The program's expansion comes after state lawmakers passed House Bill 46 this spring.

Lawmakers also allowed dispensaries to store products in multiple locations, which advocates said would cut costs, and added more qualifying conditions to the program.

Zooming in: The nine providers given conditional licenses Dec. 1 are:

• Verano Texas LLC in West Texas
• Trulieve TX Inc. in the Panhandle
• Texas Patient Access LLC in North Texas
• Lonestar Compassionate Care Group LLC in North Texas
• Lone Star Bioscience Inc. in South Central Texas
• PC TX OPCO LLC, dba PharmaCann, in Southeast Texas
• Texa OP, dba TexaRx, in the Rio Grande Valley
• Story of Texas LLC in Southeast Texas
• Dilatso LLC in North Texas