Hanshin Pocha, a restaurant known for a menu stacked with Korean comfort food, opened a new location near Lakeline Mall. The restaurant opened in February, according to a post on the Austin location's Instagram page.

A closer look: According to the restaurant's website, popular street food wagons called "pocha" were adapted into indoor stalls. Hanshin Pocha is an evolution of that same concept.

"The vision was to modernize the pocha with clean interiors and hygienic food offerings while retaining its romantic ambiance," the website says.

The menu features items such as fried dumplings, Korean pancakes, kimchi fried rice, stir-fried udon with brisket and more.

The Austin location is Hanshin Pocha's first in Texas, joining locations in California, Georgia and Arizona.

• Opened Feb. 5

• 11301 Lakeline Blvd., Bldg. 8, Ste.114, Austin

Cedar Park residents can expect temporary route changes on the Brushy Creek North Fork Trail as part of the Toro Grande Roadway Improvements Project.

The details: According to a March 24 news release, a detour will be in place at the Brushy Creek bridge through the end of the year. The city advises residents to keep an eye out for ongoing construction and to abide by posted signage near the work zone.

The context: The approximately 3-mile-long, mixed-use trail was completed in early 2025. Both pedestrians and bikers can take advantage of the trail, which is 8 to 10 feet wide. The Toro Grande Roadway Improvements Project will construct a new four-lane route linking New Hope Drive and Parmer Lane. The project is managed by both Cedar Park and Williamson County.

Austin is increasing the scope and frequency of public homeless encampment clearings this spring.

The details: Public camping is illegal in Austin under both Proposition B, a local ban reinstated by city voters in 2021, and a Texas law passed the same year. The city still has a high number of public encampments and receives hundreds of service requests to address those sites every month. However, homeless strategy officials say current resources haven't allowed adequate response.

Going forward: Starting May 11, several dedicated encampment management teams will begin working citywide five days a week. Most will involve Austin Police Department officers and other city department staff, and one Austin Parks and Recreation-led team will focus on litter removal.

The city will track the number of site visits and timely response to requests, the number of people sheltered or connected to services, and monitor for repeat activity at encampment sites after each cleanup. Later this year, Austin will also launch a new 3-1-1 reporting option and public encampment management dashboard.

Check out the latest Austin metro transportation updates. 

Ongoing projects
Oak Hill Parkway
Project: The Texas Department of Transportation is currently reconstructing 7 miles of Hwy. 290 in Oak Hill, transforming the existing four-lane, undivided roadway to a six-lane divided highway with new frontage roads and 14 miles of shared-use paths.
Update: As early as mid-May, the Hwy. 290 and SH 71 flyovers will open. The Convict Hill cross-street bridge opened in April.

• Timeline: 2022-26

• Cost: $677 million

• Funding source: TxDOT

Completed projects
Gattis School Road Segment 3
Project: The city of Round Rock is expanding Gattis School Road—from A.W. Grimes Boulevard to Double Creek Drive—into a six-lane divided roadway, and adding pedestrian improvements, bicycle enhancements and right- and left-turn bays with new traffic signals to A.W. Grimes and Double Creek.
Update: Construction on segment 3 of the road was completed in May. Construction on segment 6 is still ongoing and expected to be complete by late 2027.

• Timeline: 2024-27

• Cost: $26 million (segment 3)

• Funding source: type B sales tax revenue (segment 3)

As health care costs continue rising in Texas and across the nation, state lawmakers are working to understand the factors that make health care unaffordable and what can be done to rein in prices.

The big picture: About 5.2 million Texans, or 16.7% of the state’s population, did not have health insurance in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

For years, advocates have called on Texas lawmakers to pass laws to drive down health care costs and improve access to health insurance. During a two-day hearing April 30 and May 1, a Texas House committee examined why health care costs are rising. Lawmakers will discuss potential policy solutions later this year, committee chair Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls, said.

What's happening: Yale University professor Zack Cooper said that since 2000, U.S. health care spending has grown three times faster than inflation. The average health insurance premium for a family of four is $27,000 per year, he said.

“Every family is basically buying a new Toyota Corolla worth of health insurance," Cooper told lawmakers.