The Round Rock Area Serving Center celebrated the opening of its new 16,000 square foot thrift store Feb. 26, two-and-a-half years after the project broke ground. 

What you need to know: The nonprofit's thrift store supports its charitable operations helping Round Rock area residents. This additional building is expected to help generate about $1 million annually, as previously reported by Community Impact.

The details: By constructing a new space for an expanded secondhand shop, the serving center doubled the size of its food pantry. At the time of groundbreaking, Executive Director Lori Scott said the scale of the planned expansion was proportional to the need in the area. 

Round Rock City Council on Feb. 27 voted 7-0 on a second reading of an ordinance to rezone a 23-acre property from a mix of light industrial and single-family zoning to Planned Unit Development No. 160, consolidating the site under an industrial designation with added development restrictions.

The big picture: City Planning Director Brad Dushkin said the request was necessary in part because several remnant single-family parcels on the south and west sides of the tract are undevelopable as residential lots due to a lack of public street frontage and utilities.

The PUD also amends the city’s 2030 Future Land Use Map to designate the entire property as industrial.

The site sits west of I-35 and McNeil Road and is separated from McNeil by Union Pacific railroad tracks, meaning all access will continue to come from two existing driveways onto the I-35 frontage road.

While the zoning shifts the property to industrial use, council members emphasized added compatibility standards for neighboring Chisholm Valley homes along the southern boundary.

Last fall, Gary Parente launched Curbside Compost with a simple goal—make composting easier for Williamson County residents and turn everyday food scraps into a small, steady act of sustainability.

About the program: As a Cedar Park resident, Parente launched his organic recycling concept to extend composting services to residents north of Austin—which already has mandated compost pickup from the city.

Curbside Compost provides an airtight bin for residents to dispose of their food scraps in, which they then place on the curb on their scheduled pickup day. Parente leads the services, collecting the scraps, cleaning the bins and leaving a new liner. Residents can sign up for the composting service for $29 per month.

Quote of note: “We ensure these materials are recycled back into the earth, enriching local soil and supporting a healthier ecosystem,” Parente said.

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

More Texans have turned out to the polls this year than in recent primary elections.

The gist: The increase is particularly pronounced among Democratic primary voters, state data shows, with more than twice as many Democratic votes cast by Feb. 24 than in Texas’ last gubernatorial primary.

Zooming in: Statewide, nearly 1.3 million Texans, or about 7% of the state’s 18.7 million registered voters, cast early ballots through Feb. 24, the eighth day of the 11-day early voting period. This is up from about 6% turnout at the same point in 2024 and about 4% turnout in 2022.

In interviews with Community Impact, election analysts attributed Texas’ rising primary voter turnout in part to a slate of competitive, high-profile races on each party’s primary ballot.

At the polls: Early voting in Texas’ Republican and Democratic primaries ran through Feb. 27, and primary election day is March 3.