After a decade since the last Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD bond, the board of trustees Jan. 8 discussed the options for pursuing a bond in May. The bond would be focused on facility improvements, technology upgrades and stadiums.

The details: Since late 2024, district staff and committees have worked to consolidate a list of infrastructure needs for facilities. The final list featured more than $500 million in identified needs. Chief Finance Officer Brian Moy said the district has a bond capacity of $295 million, meaning only select projects could be chosen. The final project priority recommendation included more than 20 projects, totaling around $255.78 million. This list included projects such as:

• Lehnhoff Stadium rebuild
• Steele High School Fine Arts Building renovation
• Steele High School new CTE Building
• Clemens High School cafeteria expansion
• Playground improvements at elementary schools
• Bus fleet replacement

An 11,000-square-foot plasma center called Kedplasma will be opening its doors at 1832 Universal City Blvd.

What we know: The plasma center specializes in the collection and procurement of high-quality plasma, which is processed into plasma-based therapies. The plasma treats conditions such as hemophilia and immune deficiency disorders.

Michael Cassata, Universal City Development Services and Economic Development Corp. director, said they anticipate Kedplasma to open in approximately three to four months, or in April or May.

“We are excited to have Kedplasma in town,” Cassata said in an email to Community Impact.

• 1832 Universal City Blvd., Universal City

Comal County Commissioners unanimously approved a resolution accepting up to $1.25 million in funding from the Texas Water Development Board, or TWDB, to bolster flood water infrastructure and warning systems at a regular meeting Dec. 23.

What happened: The action authorizes the county judge to execute a grant agreement for an initial grant of $1 million in financial assistance to enhance outdoor flood warning sirens, monitoring technology and low-water crossing safety measures, with the ability to accept an additional $250,000 if needed, according to agenda documents.

The funding was allocated from Senate Bill 3, passed during a special session of the state’s 89th legislature, following severe flooding in July, which made $30 million available statewide to support flood mitigation efforts in 30 eligible counties, including Comal County, documents state.

Looking ahead: No exact timeline was presented to commissioners for when these projects would be completed, but the combination of grant funding and already-budgeted county resources could also allow all four phases of the project to be completed within the next year.

Hundreds of Texas private schools have been approved to participate in the state’s new education savings account program, per a map released by the state comptroller in early January.

The overview: As of press time, 775 private schools and prekindergarten providers had been approved to accept education savings accounts, or ESAs. There are over 1,300 accredited private schools in the state, according to the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission. 

Of the approved schools, there are:

• 233 schools in the Houston area
• 195 schools in the Dallas-Fort Worth area
• 94 schools in the San Antonio area
• 70 schools in the Austin area