HTX-COM: Impact 10/16/2025

Conroe City Council approved two contracts Oct. 10 to help prepare the new Oscar Johnson Jr. Community Enrichment and Recreation Center for opening—one for a perimeter fence and another for interior furniture.

What you need to know: Deputy City Administrator Nancy Mikeska said the fence will help protect the building and those using the facility. The $154,445 contract was awarded to fencing contractor Telchow Construction LLC and will be funded through the center’s construction fund.

Council also approved a $322,052 contract with L&M Furniture Co. to furnish the Oscar Johnson Jr. Community Enrichment and Recreation Center. The purchase will come from the city’s reserve, or “rainy day,” fund, Mikeska said.

Quote of note: “With the two expenditures, we’ve saved about half of what was allocated in the original estimate,” Mikeska said.

What’s next: City officials said the furniture purchase and fencing work will help finalize preparations to move staff and youth programs into the new Oscar Johnson Jr. Community Enrichment and Recreation Center in the coming months.  

Veteran- and woman-owned business Patriot Paws Mobile Imaging is now serving Montgomery County and parts of Harris County, officials said.

Meet the owners: Owned by Porter residents Katie and Jason Blanco, who are members of the VFW and the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association, the business opened in May and launched as a mobile business to local veterinarians in August.

Quote of note: “We started Patriot Paws Mobile Imaging after seeing how challenging it can be for hospitals to get timely ultrasounds scheduled, sometimes waiting weeks, which can delay treatment and add unnecessary stress for both doctors and clients and their pets,” Katie Blanco said.

The details: The locally owned business offers services to the following areas:

• Cleveland
• Conroe
• Cypress
• Humble
• Magnolia
• New Caney
• Splendora
• Porter
• Spring
• Tomball
• The Woodlands

During an Oct. 10 City Council meeting, Conroe city officials said ongoing water plant and well projects are on track, though land acquisition remains one of the city’s challenges.

The details: Norman McGuire, public works director and assistant city administrator, said Water Plant No. 29 is “much complete” and expected online soon. The well is operational, he said, with final paving and wiring to be finished within two weeks. 

The Texas House and Senate are launching new legislative committees to “get to the bottom of exactly what occurred” during this summer’s deadly Central Texas floods, state leaders announced Oct. 13.

The details: The bipartisan panels, known as the House and Senate General Investigating Committees on the July 2025 Flooding Events, will meet jointly to conduct “a comprehensive and thorough review” of the floods, House Speaker Dustin Burrows and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said.

Lawmakers will be tasked with:

• Identifying strategies to strengthen Texas’ disaster preparedness
• Helping communities respond to future floods
• Examining actions taken at summer camps in the flood zone