Hutto residents now have a new place to play pickleball in town.

The gist: Four new pickleball courts recently opened at Riverwalk Park in Hutto. The courts, which feature lighting and seating areas, are located behind the soccer field at Riverwalk Park.

The courts were originally planned for Creekside Park before a contractor’s site evaluation found the site unsuitable because of its proximity to residential homes and potential noise impacts, according to previous Community Impact reporting. According to a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation filing, the estimated cost of the project was a little more than $454,000.

Jason Miller has kept exotic animals since he was 5 years old, catching lizards on fences in Southern California. Now, he’s brought that lifelong passion to Hutto with a storefront he says offers a different approach to exotic pets.

Miller opened Amazing Animal Adventures in November 2024 with what he describes as an interactive, education-first approach.

What they offer: Miller said he hand-raises many of the animals and sources most from breeders he knows personally.

Miller highlighted Willie, a Patagonian Cavy that occasionally roams freely around the store, and Optimus, a 13-year-old rhinoceros iguana who shares his habitat with his companion, Cinnamon, as particularly popular animals with visitors.

A closer look: Miller said his goal is to move away from the industrial feel of traditional pet stores and create a more interactive, welcoming space. He describes the approach as low-pressure and education-first.

Check out the latest updates on upcoming, ongoing and completed transportation projects across the Austin metro. 

Upcoming projects
Austin’s I-35 cap-and-stitch vision faces uncertain funding future: The outlook for Austin's ambitious plans to cover stretches of the redesigned I-35 with public amenity decks remains unclear due to the high costs of constructing the project, which city staff advised not to fund as of this spring. City Council committed last year to pay the Texas Department of Transportation $104 million to add structural supports along I-35, which are needed for any future decks to be built. But no funding has yet been set aside for the development of caps and stitches or public amenities. 

Ongoing projects
Greenlawn Boulevard widening
Project: The city of Round Rock is reconstructing Greenlawn Boulevard from an existing four-lane divided roadway to a six-lane divided urban roadway with pedestrian and lighting improvements.
Update: Construction began in January, per city officials.

• Timeline: completion is expected by April 2027

• Cost: $13.95 million

• Funding source: type B sales tax revenue

At least 257,000 students have applied for Texas’ inaugural education savings account program, according to the state comptroller’s office. Less than half of those applicants are likely to be accepted.

The overview: Applications for Texas Education Freedom Accounts close at 11:59 p.m. March 31. Students enrolling in private schools will receive $10,474 to spend on tuition and related expenses, while homeschool students can get up to $2,000 each, and students with disabilities may qualify for up to $30,000 each.

Through March 29, about 23% of applicants had indicated they would be homeschooled while 77% of applicants said they wanted to attend a private school, state data shows.

Program funding is capped at $1 billion for the 2026-27 school year, meaning between 90,000 and 100,000 students will likely be accepted.

By the numbers: About 34,000 students indicated in their application that they have a disability, per the comptroller's office. Students who have a disability and are considered low- or middle-income will receive priority acceptance into the program under state law.