Check out eight upcoming road projects in Hays County Precinct 4, which includes Dripping Springs, Driftwood and Buda.

The following projects are being funded by certificates of obligation amounting to $240 million. To learn more about the CO and the 2024 road bond, see previous reporting by Community Impact.

1. Dripping Springs southwest connection
Project: The county is designing a new four-lane divided roadway, to allow easier access to RM 12 and alternative access to Hwy. 290. The project will be 2.4 miles long and is currently in the design process.

• Timeline: TBD
• Cost: $1.44 million

• Timeline: slated to complete summer 2027
• Cost: $51.79 million

A national bagel chain is headed to Northgate Road in San Marcos.

The details: Construction on San Marcos' second Einstein Bros. Bagels will begin in March, with a projected end date of mid-2026, according to a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

The spot will be located near other breakfast-focused eateries, including Starbucks and First Watch.

On the menu: The eatery serves a variety of bagels with double-whipped cream cheese spreads, as well as breakfast and lunch sandwiches, coffee and espresso drinks, and other baked goods.

• 135 Northgate Road, Bldg. 1, Ste. 100, San Marcos

Texas’ power grid will likely remain stable in December and January, recent reports from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas show. However, grid conditions could become tight if a winter storm hits large swaths of Texas, driving up demand for electricity.

The overview: ERCOT, which operates the electric grid for 90% of Texas, found in a Nov. 7 report that there should be “sufficient generating capacity available” to serve customers throughout January.

ERCOT forecasts that the tightest period this winter will be from 7-8 a.m. daily, when little to no solar power is being produced. During that time, ERCOT found the chances of a grid emergency are 1.81% in December and 1.4% in January.

More details: If a severe winter storm causes demand on the Texas grid to near record levels, there is a roughly 35% chance of a grid emergency in December and a less than 10% chance in January, ERCOT reported. Texans last experienced a grid emergency in September 2023, and the grid withstood three cold snaps in early 2025.