The first building in Oak Ridge North’s long-planned Plaza District has been deemed substantially complete by Identity Architects, and plans are moving forward on the next steps for the project.

The building, identified as Retail 1 in city agenda materials, is 18,000 square feet in size and located at 27438 Robinson Road, according to a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation filing.

City Council accepted substantial completion for the project and released $1.8 million in escrow funds at its July 27 meeting.

What's next: A second release of funds will be conducted after the exterior of the city’s former public works building is completed. The next step will involve the demolition of a back conference room at the current City Hall to build a driveway to enter the planned shopping center off Robinson Road.

The backstory: A groundbreaking last October marked the beginning of Phase 1 of the 60,000-square-foot Plaza District. According to information from the city, the Plaza District will feature restaurants with patios overlooking a green space.

The Spring Country Club has announced renovations and updates this August to its 55-acre property on Gosling Road to add to its amenities as well as plans to open a signature restaurant.

Once complete, the club will include golf; padel; pickleball; tennis; indoor and outdoor pools; a full-service spa and wellness retreat; fine dining; social lounges; and dedicated family and children's spaces, according to a news release.

What they offer: The site has a nine-hole golf course that now features a new irrigation system, redesigned holes and ongoing green renovations to enhance year-round conditions.

What’s next: In August, the club will open a signature restaurant overlooking the course, which consists of nine covered and climate-controlled padel courts featuring MejorSet's official Premier Padel court model. 

• 25110 Gosling Road, Spring

Montgomery County commissioners got a look Aug. 6 at a roughly $537.3 million preliminary budget for fiscal year 2026-27, with several days of budget workshops set to begin Aug. 11.

The preliminary budget, filed July 27, totals $537,298,232, an increase of about $29.2 million from the county’s $508.1 million adopted FY 2025-26 budget. Budget Officer Amanda Carter said the proposal was built around the county’s current tax rate of $0.3770 per $100 valuation and includes about $6.28 million in unallocated funding that commissioners can direct toward priorities during workshops.

A closer look: Priorities include employee step increases, continued funding for the detention officer pay program, increased employee health insurance costs and startup expenses for the new 523rd District Court. The county is budgeting a $19,000 employer insurance contribution per employee, up from $18,450, as discussed.

By the numbers: County departments requested 103 new positions totaling about $12.8 million, although Carter stressed those requests are not necessarily included in the preliminary budget.

Harris County commissioners took no action Aug. 6 on the county’s minority- and women-owned business contract program following a ruling from a federal judge deeming the city of Houston’s program unconstitutional.

The big picture: Run by the Harris County Department of Economic Equity and Opportunity, the program was established in November 2020 by commissioners to provide equity among women- and minority-owned businesses for county contracts. 

The discussion: A number of business owners and community leaders said the program was vital to help small businesses gain access to larger contract opportunities when competing with more established companies. Business owners also emphasized the program did not guarantee every business owner would receive county contracts, as they were still subject to the bidding process and proving the ability to do the work needed.

Quote of note: “The program provides us opportunity,” said Steve Fraga, Tejas Office Products owner.
”We still have to be financially sound. We still need to run our companies like a majority-owned company.”

Within the next year, Texans will likely see changes to when they can vote early in elections, including expanded weekend voting hours.

The overview: Last year, state lawmakers passed Senate Bill 2753, which shifts Texas’ early voting window closer to election day, cutting out a three-day gap between the two voting periods and adding more Saturday and Sunday voting.

While the changes did not take effect immediately and were designed to help boost voter turnout, local election administrators said the law will also significantly raise costs for municipalities and delay the release of election results.

Election officials said the current three-day break allows staff to set up polling places for election day and prepare submitted ballots so results from early and mail-in voting can be released quickly after the polls close on election night.

The impact: Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth estimated that the shift would raise the cost of administering a large election by 30% and increase costs for smaller elections by 9%, due to personnel, equipment and voter education needs.

Need to catch up on Community Impact’s coverage from this week? Check out these trending stories across the northern portion of the Greater Houston area from Aug. 3-Aug. 7.

1. Tim Hortons to open along Barker Cypress Road in August

2. Humble ISD's rebuilt Foster Elementary School set to open in August

3. PREVIEW: Klein ISD board of trustees to call November election

4. Studio 3113 Modern Needlework opens store for crafters in The Woodlands

5. Emergency service providers adapt to keep up with growth

6. The future of downtown Tomball takes shape

7. Conroe ISD reviews preliminary budget, compensation plan at special meeting