At the Sept. 15 regular board meeting, the Magnolia ISD board reviewed the bond update and approved contracts to begin construction for multiple 2026 bond projects.

Some context: As previously reported, MISD passed a $465 million bond in May to fund the construction of multiple new schools to address student overpopulation. At the regular board meeting, the MISD board received updates on Elementary Schools #10 and #11 and High School #3 from MISD Assistant Superintendent Erich Morris.

Stay tuned: Morris said that Elementary School #10 is currently in its early design phases; as of now, 50% of the construction documents have been completed and 100% are required by December. On Feb. 8, 2027, the board will approve the Guaranteed Maximum Price for the project and construction will begin in March 2027.

Southern breakfast and lunch spot The Flying Biscuit Cafe is anticipating a fall opening for a new Magnolia location, officials announced in a social media post.

The details: Specializing in comfort food, the Atlanta-based restaurant offers items such as biscuits and gravy, breakfast burritos, pancake tacos, steak and eggs, chicken and waffles, burgers, and shrimp and grits.

• Opening in November

Houston-based rocket propulsion company Venus Aerospace opened a new propulsion test stand at the Houston Spaceport on Sept. 10.

The gist: The new test stand is a part of "critical infrastructure to support the continued development and maturation of its rotating detonation rocket engine technology," according to a Sept. 10 news release from the company.

The $3.9 million test stand was funded through the Texas Space Commission's Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Fund, which is part of the state's investment in growing Texas' aerospace and space economy, the news release notes.

Quote of note: “Building and testing propulsion systems at this pace requires the right infrastructure around the technology,” CEO and Co-Founder Sassie Duggleby said. “We’re grateful to the Texas Space Commission and the state of Texas for investing alongside companies like Venus."

Texas does not have a single system to connect first responders in emergencies, meaning local and state agencies often operate on a network of radio systems that are not always compatible with one another.

The big picture: State leaders said there are more than 50 different radio systems used by first responder agencies across Texas.

"We have situations where counties and cities are on separate ones, and they never know it until they have to [communicate with] each other," state Rep. Ken King, R-Canadian, said during a Sept. 14 legislative hearing.

Looking ahead: King has vowed to pass a bill to integrate first responder communications under a statewide system during the 2027 legislative session, with some emergency management experts calling interagency communications "the No. 1 issue" in the aftermath of disasters.

"[This] is not simply a communication issue—it's a responder safety issue and an operational effectiveness issue," said Kyle Mills, head of planning and preparedness for the Texas A&M Forest Service.