On Jan. 14, Tomball ISD appointed Patrick Beecher to the vacant Position 1 seat on the district’s board of trustees.

The local impact: The position became vacant following the resignation of former board member Tina Salem in December.

According to a news release, Beecher emerged as the top candidate for Position 1 in a competitive process. Beecher has lived in Tomball since 2013 with his wife Vicki and two sons. 

He has served as president of the board of directors for Lutherhill Ministries. He has also volunteered in Tomball ISD schools as a parent and with the Tomball Education Foundation.

“After a rigorous and transparent process, we are excited to welcome Mr. Beecher and are confident of his leadership and dedication to the success of our students and our district,” board President Mark Lewandowski said in a statement.

Next steps: Beecher will be sworn in at the beginning of the next board workshop Feb. 9, and will serve the remainder of the term for Position 1.

The orthopedic clinic offers joint replacement such as hip and knee joints as well as hand and sports medicine at The Woodlands area location.

The big picture: The clinic has locations throughout the Greater Houston area offering a variety of orthopedic medicine services.

• Opened Jan. 5
• 26400 Kuykendahl Road, Ste. A-250, Tomball

Eat Drink HTX, the sister fundraiser to Houston Restaurant Weeks, will return for its fifth year from Feb. 14 through Feb. 28, according to a Jan. 12 news release from the Cleverley Stone Foundation. 

At a glance: The two-week dining event was designed around the casual dining experience and features lower price points than Houston Restaurant Weeks. While menus won’t go live until Feb. 1, the foundation announced dinner will be priced at $25, with lunch and brunch both priced at $15. 

The local impact: Both Houston Restaurant Weeks and Eat Drink HTX were inspired by Cleverley Stone, the late philanthropist and food correspondent who was passionate about bringing business to restaurants during traditionally slower seasons of the year, according to the release.

Houston’s housing market returned to a more balanced pace in 2025, with single-family sales climbing and prices largely holding steady as inventory expanded, according to a year-end update from the Houston Association of Realtors. 

What this means: HAR reported total property sales in the region finished 2025 up 2.3% from 2024, while total dollar volume rose 4.5% to $42.9 billion. Single-family home sales increased 3.8% year over year, with 88,634 homes sold in 2025 compared to 85,373 in 2024. 

A key driver of the shift was more inventory, active listings climbed through the year and hit a record high of 39,490 in July, when the market reached a 5.5-month supply—the highest level since June 2012, per HAR. 

Keep in mind: As supply grew, prices moderated, according to the HAR report the median home price was essentially flat year over year at $334,990, while the average home price rose 0.9% to $426,558 in 2025.