There are several events taking place in the Conroe and Montgomery area, including holiday markets, tree lightings and Christmas parades.

Tree Trimming Party
Celebrate the holidays with a potluck while decorating the VFW Post 4709 tree. The event will also include a white elephant exchange for adults 21 and over and child-friendly games and activities.

• Dec. 7, 4-8 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• 1303 W. Semands St., Conroe

• Dec. 13, 10 a.m.
• Free (admission)
• Downtown Montgomery

• Dec. 13, 11 a.m.
• Free (admission)
• Heritage Place, 500 Metcalf St., Conroe

Next Level Urgent Care in Conroe has expanded, Chief Administrative Officer Alexis Smith confirmed.

The gist: The expansion completed on Oct.14, offers additional exam rooms, improved patient flow and an enhanced waiting area designed with patient comfort in mind, according to an Oct. 14 news release.

With the growth, Next Level aims to reduce wait times and increase access to care, per the release.

What they're saying:

• "Next Level was founded with a mission to make high-quality healthcare both accessible and affordable," Juliet Breeze, founder and CEO of Next Level, said.
• "The support we've received from the Conroe community has been incredible. This expansion reflects our commitment to meeting growing demand while maintaining the compassionate, efficient care our patients expect every time," Scott Brown, physician assistant and regional vice president at Next Level, said.

At the Montgomery County Commissioners Court meeting Nov. 18, commissioners got an update on the county's historical courthouse master plan and approved additional funding for the new mental health treatment facility that broke ground in August.

Meeting highlights: Commissioners approved the historical courthouse master plan last year. The plan is almost 50% completed, including the historical and architectural research, said Jason Smith, deputy chief of staff for Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough.

Some context: The state of Texas has more than 240 courthouses that are at least 50 years old, and it has more historic courthouses than any other state, according to the Texas Historical Commission website.

Items worth mentioning: The commissioners also approved $117,500 for the expansion of the Montgomery County Mental Health Treatment Facility in Precinct 1.

Conroe ISD trustees Nov. 18 received updates on progress on the current Grand Oaks attendance boundaries process, as well as plans to establish the 2026-27 school year calendar before it receives its final approval in January.

The gist: Assistant Superintendent of Operations Chris McCord discussed the updated current zoning scenarios being considered for Grand Oaks Junior High School and Kacy Arnold Elementary School, including the challenge posed by the growing population of nearby schools such as Hines Elementary School, which opened in 2023.

Stay tuned: The district’s next board meeting will be Dec. 16 at the Walter P. Jett Teaching and Learning Center at 19043 David Memorial Drive in Shenandoah.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center on Nov. 12 announced a $2.5 billion philanthropic campaign—the largest in the center’s history—to support cancer-fighting initiatives.

Read all about it: MD Anderson already raised $1.9 billion for the campaign, called “Only Possible Here,” during a preliminary silent fundraising phase, according to a Nov. 12 news release. The Houston-based center focuses exclusively on treating, researching and preventing cancer.

The campaign’s three focus areas include expanding reach, expediting breakthroughs and elevating the patient experience, all with the goal of ending cancer, per the release. Money raised throughout the campaign will support several MD Anderson programs and initiatives, including the Cancer Neuroscience Program and Kinder Children's Cancer Center, among others. 

Quote of note: “This campaign presents an opportunity for anyone to become involved in the world's most important and impactful effort to end cancer,” campaign Chair Clarence P. Cazalot Jr. said in a Nov. 12 statement. 

Google is targeting Texas for future investments in data and artificial infrastructure, with $40 billion expected to be spent on adding three new data centers.

Federal, state and local leaders announced the new centers to be constructed in Armstrong and Haskell counties at a Nov. 14 event at the first Texas Google Data Center in Midlothian, near the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

The gist: One new data center will be constructed in Armstrong County near Amarillo, and two new data centers will be constructed in Haskell County near Abilene. One center in Haskell County will also use a new solar and battery energy storage plant.

“They say that everything is bigger in Texas—and that certainly applies to the golden opportunity with AI,” Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said.

Also of note: The driverless car company Waymo is expanding to North Texas in 2026, Pichai said.

Thanksgiving week is expected to be one of the busiest U.S. travel periods in history, according to projections from AAA. A record 5.8 million Texans are projected to travel at least 50 miles from home Nov. 25-Dec. 1.

Zooming in: About 5.3 million Texans are expected to drive to their Thanksgiving destinations, according to a Nov. 17 news release, while about 328,000 people will fly and 140,000 will use other forms of transportation.

The impact: Texans should give themselves extra time to reach their destinations during Thanksgiving week, with the most congestion expected Nov. 25-26. Traffic is also expected to be heavy as Texans return home Nov. 30, according to INRIX, a transportation data company.

Minimal traffic is expected on Thanksgiving Day.

More details: Texas drivers will pay about the same for gas as they did last Thanksgiving, according to AAA Texas. One gallon of regular unleaded gas cost about $2.65 in Texas as of Nov. 13, down from $2.69 last year.