Two candidates have filed for Frisco City Council Place 1.

The details: The City Council seat is being filled through a special election to be held Jan. 31.

The seat opened when seat holder John Keating announced he was running for mayor in the upcoming May election. The winning candidate will fulfill the remaining term of the seat, which expires in May 2027.

Frisco's Makers Gym, a creative coworking space, will officially cease its operations this month.

The cause: The coworking space team cited several reasons for closure, including rising operational costs and the need for a larger creative market. 

Looking back: Makers Gym was founded by Terrance Price and opened in March 2021. It features shared spaces that creatives could book, including sound stages, photo studios, editing studios and podcast studios, along with other general meeting rooms. The space also offers equipment for rental such as microphones and camera equipment.

• 7511 Main St., Ste. 200, Frisco

As customers file through the doors of Palace Barber Shop in downtown McKinney, they either take a seat in the red chairs lining the wall or go immediately to a barber chair. For the most part, customers do not get asked what service they would like performed, nor do they need to volunteer the information, the service just ensues.

“I walk in, sit down and Linda or John already know what I want,” said Jerry Brooks, McKinney resident and longtime customer. “I don’t have to tell them anything.”

The set up: A regular haircut is the top requested service at the barber shop. Shaves, flat tops and beard trims are also available.
Marshall said when she started working at the barber shop, haircuts cost $3, today they are $25.

The shop is open Tuesday through Saturday.

“I'm not here Sunday and Monday because Sunday is the Lord's day and Monday is Linda’s day,” Marshall said.

• 204 E. Louisiana St., McKinney

On the heels of what proponents have called “historic” property tax relief, some Texas lawmakers are questioning whether the state can afford to continue increasing the tax exemptions passed in 2023 and 2025.

The big picture: Texas homeowners pay property taxes to various local entities, although lawmakers can limit how much entities increase taxes each year and provide state funding to expand tax exemptions.

Texas is spending $51 billion on property tax relief in fiscal years 2026 and 2027 alone and may be required to spend more to maintain existing tax exemptions in future bienniums, lawmakers said.

What they're saying: "We're kind of maxed out at what we can do for property tax reform, from a budget perspective," said Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, during a Nov. 20 event.

"$51 billion ongoing, it's a huge amount to continue to support. To think about doing anything more seems very fiscally irresponsible," Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, said.

The other side: Rep. Ellen Troxclair, R-Lakeway, said creating limits on local government spending would be critical to keeping Texas affordable.