City officials are weighing the construction of a new fire station near University Boulevard and A.W. Grimes Boulevard, as well as the purchase of an additional fire engine to serve Round Rock residents. 

What you need to know: The Round Rock City Council will take action on contracts for the city's 11th fire station and the purchase of a fire engine to replace a smaller squad program and better serve the department's current needs. 

The details: Fire Department Chief Shane Glaiser said the current configuration of squad vehicles has limited equipment, making them less than ideal for responding to fires involving dumpsters, cars and construction sites. The contract amount for the new engine is $939,950, and would be funded through the city's self-purchase budget. 

The new fire station would also be the third funded by the city's 2023 bond. With a contract price of $10.5 million, which would be awarded to John King Construction if approved, the future fire station would also house a satellite office for the Round Rock Police Department, city staff said. 

Construction at several Round Rock ISD campuses will kick off this summer, as the district continues progress on improvements funded by the 2024 bond. 

What they're saying: Representatives of HPM, the firm managing the 2024 bond program on behalf of the district, provided an update in a May 19 board meeting about ongoing and completed projects across RRISD campuses. 

What's next? Comprehensive construction projects at the following facilities will get underway this summer: 

• Berkman Elementary School 
• C.D. Fulkes Auditorium 
• CTE renovations 
• Forest North Elementary School 
• Great Oaks Elementary School 
• McNeil High School 
• Stony Point High School 
• District support services at A.W. Grimes Boulevard 
• Westwood High School

A new Carvana, Austin Country Club renovations and a higher education center are among the five most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the Austin metro this week.

Carvana ($65 million): Located off SH 130 in Manor, the business will offer automotive sales and services.

Austin Country Club ($38 million): This project involves construction at the country club, including a parking garage, a fitness building and a dining building. Renovations will also be made to an existing youth building.

Ayn Rand Center ($30 million): Located near the University of Texas at Austin, the center will consist of a library, exhibition spaces, offices and higher education classrooms.

One of the Kids Therapy Center ($10 million): The therapy center, which has locations in Cedar Park and South Austin, offers applied behavior analysis, speech, occupational therapy, swim therapy and more.

O'Reilly Auto Parts ($1.4 million): Construction on the automotive store in San Marcos is set to begin this fall.

The Lower Colorado River Authority is set to invest billions in infrastructure across its service area to address the needs of Central Texas' growing population. 

What you need to know: The authority announced its investment and business plan for fiscal year 2026-27 on May 21. The plan projects water demand will grow "significantly" through 2031, alongside electrical demand. 

The details: Plans show power, water and broadband infrastructure development account for $1.8 billion for just FY 2026-27. The funds will come from the authority's on revenues and debt, with no state appropriations included, a news release states.

Texas was home to eight of the nation’s fastest-growth municipalities in 2025 as people continue moving to smaller cities in the state’s large metropolitan areas, new U.S. Census Bureau data shows.

The details: Celina, located about an hour north of Dallas, grew faster than any other U.S. city in 2025, according to the census data released May 14. The city grew by 24.6% between July 2024 and July 2025, and 64,427 people called Celina home as of July 1.

Fulshear, a 64,630-person city west of Houston, saw the second-fastest growth in the nation last year, at 21%.

What's happening: Helen You, interim director of the Texas Demographic Center, said the trend of people moving to smaller cities in major metros “is not unique to Texas."

The suburban boom comes amid a slowdown in overall population growth, according to previous Community Impact reporting. While Texas gained more new residents last year than any other U.S. state, growth slowed significantly amid a nationwide reduction in immigration from other countries.

In the May 26 runoff election, Republican voters across Texas cast their votes in a contentious U.S. Senate race between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

The context: The Republican race for U.S. Senate is one of several statewide contests that advanced to May runoffs after no candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the March 3 primary election.

About the candidates: Cornyn, an incumbent senator with nearly 24 years in office, is seeking to hold his seat for another six years while being challenged by Paxton, the once-impeached state attorney general who was recently endorsed by President Donald Trump. Read each candidate's priorities in their own words here.  

The winning Republican candidate will face the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, state Rep. James Talarico of Austin, in November.
 
Keep reading to see the results in the Cornyn-Paxton race and find other runoff results at communityimpact.com/voter-guide.

For the first time in more than a decade, there is no incumbent in the Texas attorney general's race as Ken Paxton runs for the U.S. Senate. Voters across Texas made their picks for attorney general in the May 26 runoff election, with the winning candidate from each political party moving on to the November election.

The context: The Republican and Democratic attorney general races are among several statewide contests that advanced to May runoffs after no candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the March 3 primary election.

The attorney general serves as Texas' top lawyer and law enforcement officer.

About the candidates: On the right, state Sen. Mayes Middleton of Galveston and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Austin are each seeking the Republican nomination for the seat.

On the left, state Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas and former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski are vying for the Democratic nomination.

Keep reading to see the results in the two attorney general races and find other runoff results at communityimpact.com/voter-guide.