The project: At an Oct. 6 special board meeting, the Montgomery ISD board of trustees discussed a proposal for a new virtual learning pilot program. Created due to interest within the district, the proposed fully virtual pilot plan would begin in the spring 2027 semester for students in grades 9-12. The program would have limited enrollment, with the goal of testing capabilities and bringing back former virtual students who left the district. If successful, the district plans to move to open enrollment for the 2027-28 school year and offer hybrid learning in the 2028-29 school year.

Dig deeper: The district is considering several factors for the program, which would be provided through Pearson:

• Students can participate in UIL activities, pep rallies, prom and student clubs.
• Virtual courses will count toward class rankings.
• MISD will provide laptops with pre-installed monitoring systems.

Further conversations on the program will occur at the next public meeting on Oct. 20.

Smalls Sliders reopened its Willis location on Oct. 8 after a fire last March forced the restaurant to close and rebuild.

What they offer: Smalls Sliders sells cheeseburger sliders paired with waffle fries, shakes and sauces. The Willis location was the first to open in Texas in late 2024.

The details: The restaurant needed a complete rebuild. A whole new building was built offsite and brought in, Douglas said.

"I'm elated," Operations Manager Kirk Douglas said Thursday. "It's probably one of the toughest things you ever go through with a business and a fire."

Montgomery County Commissioners Court on Oct. 8 approved selling $35 million in bonds that will pay for roadway projects through next summer.

The background: Voters in May 2025 authorized a $480 million road bond expected to fund 76 transportation projects. It was the first road bond in a decade to handle the population growth the county has seen and will continue to see.

Some context: County finance officials said this round of bond sales is the smallest the county will make since interest rates have climbed higher than were projected.

John Robuck, who consults the county on investments, said this round is expected to give the county enough money for road projects through June with the hope that interest rates will settle down by then. The county currently has $57 million in the bank for road bond projects.

“National debt, the Iran conflict and inflationary fears have pushed interest rates up a lot higher than we projected,” Robuck said.

Read all about it: Entergy Texas announced that David Borde has been named its new president and CEO, succeeding Eliecer Viamontes, who left the company. The change was effective Oct. 5. Borde joined Entergy in 2009 and has served as the director of corporate development based in Texas, vice president of investor relations, and vice president of utility strategy and regulatory initiatives. His previous experience includes working in the investment banking division of Citigroup USA and as a lawyer at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Entergy serves portions of Texas, including Montgomery County and a small part of Harris County, with headquarters in The Woodlands and Beaumont.

What they're saying: "David has extensive experience in utility strategy, regulatory affairs and utility finance, along with his deep understanding of our business and customers," Entergy Chair and CEO Drew Marsh said. "He is a thoughtful and proven leader, and he will build on the strong foundation in Texas while advancing our commitment to providing safe, reliable and affordable energy to the communities we serve."

Community Impact reported on several developments across the North Houston area from Oct. 2-9:

Arms manufacturer Watchtower Defense opens facility in Tomball

Property owners in Cypress, Cy-Fair, Jersey Village to see tax rate increases

$8M Plum Grove Road expansion project wraps up in New Caney

The Container Store closes Spring-Klein area location

PREVIEW: Montgomery County commissioners to consider support for legislation granting ordinance powers

The White Canvas Event Venue now hosting events in Cypress

Whataburger opening new location in Conroe

Dutch Bros Coffee to open Kingwood location in late 2026

Bari Ristorante now open in The Woodlands

The Texas comptroller's office is reviewing the finances and spending decisions of four public school districts: Austin, El Paso, Prosper and Barbers Hill ISDs.

The overview: The review was requested by Gov. Greg Abbott in August and will identify whether schools are directing taxpayer dollars toward students, teachers and classrooms over administrative costs, according to information from the two state agencies.

Zooming in: For the 2024-25 school year, the Texas Education Agency gave the selected districts the following financial ratings:

• Austin ISD: B rating; score of 88 (about 69,000 students)

• El Paso ISD: A rating; score of 92 (about 46,000 students)

• Prosper ISD: A rating; score of 94 (about 33,000 students)

• Barbers Hill ISD: A rating; score of 100 (about 8,000 students)

More details: Austin and Prosper ISDs are in Community Impact's coverage areas. According to previous reporting, Austin ISD passed an $887 million general fund budget for fiscal year 2026-27 after making $205 million in gross cuts this summer. Prosper ISD adopted a budget with an expected $42.2 million shortfall.