An excavator scraped up cinder blocks, wood fragments and the history of La Cabaña Bar and Grill in December, loading 67 years of history into an 18-wheeler. A building erected in 1958, when W. Hwy. 71 was a sleepy two-lane road, is now gone.

Latest update: But La Cabaña isn’t gone forever, the Holts told Community Impact. They plan on reopening the local, cherished Tex-Mex spot at 23526 W. Hwy 71, the former Apis Restaurant and Apiary location, sometime in mid-January.

“We don’t have a date of opening at this point. It just depends on permitting,” Linda Holt said. “We’re so thankful for the community support through this transition time, and we look forward to serving them in the future.”

The 17-person staff helped pack up the restaurant for its move west on Hwy. 71 this month. La Cabaña will live on, just a little on down the road.

“The outpouring of this community has just been incredible,” Linda Holt said.

In the year and a half since 68% of Lakeway voters approved a $22 million bond to fund park projects, the city has taken several steps toward making those plans a reality. 

The bond consists of four projects at existing parks or amenities and one new park in the Rough Hollow area: 

• Lakeway City Park: $10.65 million
• Lakeway Swim Center Park: $6.02 million
• Live Oak Tennis Courts: $2.72 million 
• Butler Rough Hollow Park: $2.1 million
• Lakeway Activity Center: $508,771

From major construction milestones and airline expansion deals to staffing challenges and behind-the-scenes upgrades, these nine Austin-Bergstrom International Airport updates shaped how travelers moved through the ABIA in 2025.

1. Airport ground breaking on 'Texas-sized’ garage
Airport and city officials gathered just north of the economy parking lot to break ground on a new parking garage at ABIA on Feb. 28.

Marking another milestone in the parade of projects coming online for the airport's sweeping multimillion-dollar expansion, the new 2.5-million-square-foot parking garage will add an estimated 7,000 spaces.

2. Airport patio reopens to public
For travelers passing through the Austin airport, the little-known outdoor patio is once again open to the public.

The outdoor patio, located near Gate 2, offers front-row views of planes taking off and landing on the airport’s two runways.

3. Airport breaks ground on latest 12,000-square-foot expansion
City and airport officials celebrated the start of construction May 12 on the Atrium Infill Project that will result in an additional 12,000 square feet for the Arrivals and Departures Hall.

Central Texas counties could begin receiving up to $1.25 million each in state funding for flood warning sirens in the coming weeks and months, officials announced Dec. 16.

The overview: The funding comes less than six months after historic flooding hit parts of Central and West Texas over the July 4 weekend, killing at least 137 residents and visitors. During special legislative sessions this summer, state lawmakers approved requirements that 30 counties included in a July disaster declaration install flood warning systems with the help of $50 million in state grants.

Zooming in: Each county is expected to receive up to $1.25 million from the Texas Water Development Board. Counties seeking more money will need their requests approved by the three-member board.

Counties are required to submit detailed project plans to the TWDB and can use the grants to install physical infrastructure such as sirens, rain gauges, flood gauges and solar panels to power the warning systems. The money can also be used for local flood education, outreach and training programs, TWDB staff said.