Owner Mary Pope said the business Mere Makings relocated from Louetta to Old Town Spring on Oct. 25, marking its first anniversary serving the area this month.

The details: According to the business Facebook page, Mere Makings offers a selection of the following items:

• Antique collectables

• Handcrafted goods

• Vinyl

The business is located at 113 Midaway St. in Spring.

The clothing store Tanah Rose has opened a brick-and-mortar location in the Spring area. The opening comes after the business operated virtually for three years.

What they offer: According to the business website, Tanah Rose offers curated, exclusive, timeless pieces for the modern woman. The store's offerings include:

• Tops

• Bottoms

• Dresses

• Sets

• A selection of men's clothing

The new physical store opened in September and is located at 9312 Louetta Road in Spring.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare and Harris County Attorney Abbie Kamin announced the launch of the Protective Order Extended Team, or POET, on Oct. 2. The program is designed to expand access to domestic violence legal protections and support survivors countywide.

About the program: The nine-member POET team consists of trained social workers and administrators who will work at locations throughout the county. The program offers its services to survivors for free, regardless of background, immigration status or circumstance. To assist survivors, advocates will meet them at neutral locations to:

• Walk through the protective order process

• Create a safety plan

• Conduct a danger assessment

What else? Advocates and staff will file protective order paperwork and represent survivors in court for free. Survivors do not need to contact law enforcement to receive help. The program is funded through $7.5 million approved by the Harris County Commissioners Court in 2025, which funded four advocate positions. Kamin's office has agreed to fund five additional advocate positions.

On Oct. 1, the Lone Star College System board of trustees unanimously approved a fiscal year 2026-27 total tax rate of $0.1058 per $100 valuation.

This rate is $0.0002 lower than the previous fiscal year's rate and is budgeted to generate $356.2 million in tax revenue.

Diving deeper: The total tax rate consists of two parts:

• An M&O rate of $0.0839 per $100 valuation for college operations, including employee salaries and utilities

• An I&S rate of $0.0219 per $100 valuation to pay off bond debt, with leaders hoping to pay off $404 million in debt by approximately 2030 or 2031

What you should know: Taxpayers in the Harris Central Appraisal District are expected to see a drop in their college system property tax bill. However, some taxpayers in the Montgomery Central Appraisal District and the San Jacinto County Appraisal District are expected to see higher bills due to increased median property values.