Officials in Bastrop County are advancing a range of transportation projects to streamline traffic, safeguard drivers and pedestrians, and meet the demands of a growing population. 

This list is not comprehensive. 

Ongoing projects

Blakey Lane extension 

Project: The city of Bastrop is extending Blakey Lane from Edward Burleson Lane to a proposed street called Reed Way, south from Reed Way to an intersection at Old Austin Highway, with roundabout options.

Update: The planning stage is 56% complete.

• Timeline: scheduled to begin construction May 25

• Timeline: 2025-28

• Timeline: 2025-26

First Watch, a Florida-based breakfast, brunch and lunch chain, will open its upcoming Bastrop location in March in the Burleson Crossing East shopping center.

What we know: The 3,922-square-foot location began construction in late September, according to a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. 

"Our commitment to community is a big part of who we are, and we're excited to become part of the neighborhood," a representative with First Watch previously told Community Impact.

What else? The Bastrop location will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

• Opening March 16
• Burleson Crossing East, 661 Hwy. 71 W., Ste. 101, Bastrop

Check out the top six trending stories in the Austin area Feb. 23-27. 

1. Major highway overhaul underway between Leander and Georgetown

2. Updates on a dozen businesses serving west Georgetown

3. The League Kitchen & Tavern to close in Lakeway; Cousin Louie’s location announced

4. Costco to open new store in Liberty Hill this March

5. Lane closures over Mays Street bridge in effect

6. 9-mile stretch of US 183 expansion nears finish line

Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations unveiled its first-ever strategic plan in February, detailing how the city plans to invest and coordinate across the local homelessness response system in the coming year-plus.

The details: The full plan, available to view online, was developed last year and is meant to serve as a blueprint for AHSO from Austin's current fiscal year 2025-26 through FY 2026-27. 

Zooming in: The city's homelessness office spent months engaging with more than 30 local groups and polling its own team to build out the plan that addresses five high-level objectives, with dozens of specific benchmarks that will be further outlined or completed over the year ahead.

Those include improving how the city tracks its spending and contracts, outcomes for homeless clients, resident and stakeholder engagement, and internal training. New shelter beds and other homelessness facilities are also called for.

Dozens of Texans shared their feedback Feb. 25 on the current phase of a lengthy revision of the state’s social studies curriculum standards. Parents, educators and students urged the State Board of Education to slow the revision process down and give those drafting the new curriculum more time to work.

The overview: The state is currently overhauling the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for social studies, which are the standards dictating what public school students should learn at each grade level. The board is expected to adopt the new standards this summer before they are rolled out to classrooms in 2030.

“We have one opportunity to get this right for an entire generation of students,” said Meghan Dougherty, an Austin-area social studies specialist involved in the revision process.

Zooming in: Several educators involved in drafting the new curriculum plan said current proposals included "too much content" with a heavy emphasis on Texas history, while some appointed content advisers and SBOE members argued schools should teach lessons focused on "American exceptionalism [and] Texan exceptionalism."