Three organizations serving Bastrop County will receive $1.58 million from St. David’s Foundation to help residents access public benefits, food, healthcare and other financial support.

Why it is needed: Local recipients will use the funding to reduce enrollment barriers and connect eligible residents with available support:

1. Bastrop County Emergency Food Pantry will add trained benefits navigators

2. Career Tracks’ Bridge to Benefits Rural Collaborative will help rural residents enroll in programs including SNAP, Medicaid, CHIP and WIC

3. Texas Legal Services Center will help residents appeal benefit denials, disenrollments and overpayment claims.

Notable quote: “If you're not sure you're eligible, ask, get help and go to one of these organizations,” said senior program officer Kim McPherson. “They are there because they want to help you. They are going to make you feel supported. They are not going to make you feel rushed. If it turns out that you're eligible, that can be a game changer for not just you but your entire family.”

Looking for a way to celebrate Halloween? Check out six pumpkin patches, festivals, hikes and haunted attractions happening across Bastrop County.

1. Community Fall Festival and Trick-or-Treating (Oct. 29): Bastrop nursing home residents and staff will offer carnival games, snacks, trick-or-treating and more.

2. Evergreen Farms Pumpkin Hunt (through Oct. 31): Hunt for pumpkins among the growing Christmas trees, then enjoy train rides, mazes, zip lines, fishing and more.

3. Pumpkin Patch at Community Gardens (through Oct. 31): The annual patch features train rides, bounce houses, giant slides, pumpkin painting, vendors and food.

4. Boo Bark Ranger Howl-O-Ween Hike (Oct. 31): Bring a leashed pup in costume for a one-mile guided hike focused on trail safety.

5. Boo Bash (Oct. 31): Downtown Bastrop’s celebration includes trick- and trunk-or-treating, bounce houses, activity booths and food vendors.

6. Scream Hollow Wicked Halloween Park (through Nov. 1): Brave five haunted attractions, a haunted hayride, live music, bonfires and two Halloween museums.

New apartments in Austin, a Brazilian steakhouse in Cedar Park and a Burlington in Bastrop are among the five most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the Austin metro this week.

1. Rio Grande Apartments ($97.3 million): This building will house 300 student housing apartment units. The building will be 30 stories tall with a lobby, study spaces, pool deck and leasing, amenity and fitness areas.

2. Grace Learning Center ($25 million): This project involves constructing a four-story, 48,000-square-foot worship assembly building for Grace Covenant Church.

3. Fogo de Chao ($4.5 million): A Fogo de Chao location is coming to Cedar Park. The Brazilian steakhouse has a location in downtown Austin.

4. Burlington ($3.3 million): A Burlington is coming to Bastrop as part of the Burleson Crossing East development.

5. P. Terry’s ($950,000): A new P. Terry’s Burger Stand location is coming to Liberty Hill, with construction set to begin early next year.

Inspired by generations of family recipes and locally grown ingredients, Marimbas Guatemalan Bakery & Restaurant serves traditional Guatemalan dishes, baked goods and specialty drinks with the goal of bringing a taste of Guatemala to Austin.

The details: Marimbas uses fresh ingredients from the family’s ranch in Manor, Texas in nearly every dish, including vegetables, native chilies and farm-raised chickens, general manager Ronaldo Alvarado said.

“We remind a lot of people of their home… how their mom, or how their grandma made their food,” Alvarado said. “Using their own ingredients, growing their own crops, it’s just very familiar to our Guatemalan customers.”

On the menu: Using ingredients from the family ranch and influences from Guatemala, Marimbas has an extensive menu including breakfast items, Guatemalan street food, traditional Guatemalan dishes, baked goods and a variety of drinks.

Popular dishes include the Pepián de la Abuela, a Guatemalan stew made from farm-raised chickens in a thick sauce from tomatoes, seeds and chilies.