Highland Village City Council members unanimously approved the fiscal year 2025-26 budget at a Sept. 9 meeting.

The budget totals $67.2 million, which includes expenditures for general operations, public safety and streets. Council members also unanimously approved a tax rate of $0.500984 per $100 of assessed value, an increase from the FY 2024-2025 tax rate of $0.500273.

The overview: The city is projecting $41.58 million in revenue from property tax, sales tax, and other fees and grants.

The city expects to spend $26.2 million from the general fund in expenditures, which is a 5.73% increase from FY 2024-25.

The city’s projected revenue for the general fund totals $22.9 million, which is a 0.2% increase from last year, according to city documents. Sales tax revenue decreased by 7.8% from fiscal year 2024-25, City Manager Paul Stevens said.

“We have seen a slowdown like the rest of the state in sales tax revenues,” Stevens said. “We do hope there will be some changes in the economy, and maybe that will pick up again.”

A new pilates studio, Body Alive, is set to open a Flower Mound location later this year, Director of Marketing and Administration Morgan Oberle said in an email.

What they offer: The business offers a selection of group fitness classes geared toward all skill levels, including hot mat pilates, hot power pilates and a hot body challenge. What makes Body Alive unique is the use of heat during workouts and the studio’s energy and community, Oberle said.

• 4610 Long Prairie Road, Flower Mound

Denton County commissioners unanimously approved adopting a more than $450 million budget and lower tax rate at its meeting Sept. 9.

The overview: The $452.2 million 2025-26 fiscal year budget includes funding for new employees, including around eight additional positions for the county auditor’s office, according to county documents. Denton County Budget Officer Alejandro Moreno said the adopted budget is a $35.7 million increase, or 8.58%, over the fiscal year 2024-25 budget.

“We did a good job balancing the tax rate and also taking care of the necessities that we’re having to deal with at our local level,” County Judge Andy Eads said. “As the federal government contracts grants, we’ve had to be nimble and adjust things.”

Austin-based private school Alpha School is aiming to expedite learning for more students using artificial intelligence at new academies opening across the country.

What happened: On Sept. 9, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon visited Alpha School in Austin alongside Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath. Alpha School co-founder MacKenzie Price highlighted how the school is using AI to personalize and improve students’ education.

What they're saying: “It's the most exciting thing I've seen in education in a long time,” McMahon said about Alpha School. “I'm incredibly enthusiastic about this.”

How it works: Students complete their academic learning in two hours each day using an AI platform known as 2 Hour Learning. Price said the Alpha School model enables students to learn twice as fast as they would in a traditional school setting.

The update: Alpha School opened several new academies across the United States this school year, including a K-3 school in Plano and K-8 school in Fort Worth. The company is planning to open an academy in Houston this winter.