Early voting is underway for Leander and Liberty Hill voters for the upcoming Nov. 3 election.

What you need to know: Early voting runs Oct. 19-30, and the last day to apply for a ballot by mail is Oct. 23.

Residents in Travis and Williamson counties can vote at any polling location in their respective county. Voters will decide national, state and local races, including:

• U.S. Senate and House of Representatives members

• State-level races such as governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, agriculture commissioner and railroad commissioner

• Williamson County positions, including county judge and tax assessor-collector

• Leander ISD school board trustee positions and a proposed tax rate increase

What to bring: Voters must bring one of seven approved forms of identification, such as a Texas driver's license, handgun license or U.S. passport. Those without an approved ID can sign a reasonable impediment declaration and present alternative identification. Wireless devices, guns and campaigning are prohibited at polling places.

Leander officials approved a development timeline for the Oakwood Hills subdivision on Oct. 15, paving the way for a new neighborhood on 337 acres north of the intersection of Nameless Road and Shady Mountain Road.

The details: The approved phasing plan allows developers to build the first 183 homes across three phases, while the final five homes will be built after the city completes water upgrades.

The approved timeline for the 188 planned lots consists of:

• Phase 1: 16 lots

• Phase 2: 71 lots

• Phase 3: 96 lots

• Phase 4: 5 lots

What else? Because Oakwood Hills is zoned as single-family rural, lots must be at least an acre in size. Developers are planning for about 6 acres of private parks and a trails system, and they have proposed to pay a fee in lieu of parkland to meet city requirements. Additional infrastructure, traffic and floodplain analyses will be conducted as the project moves forward.

Leaders at the Samsung Austin Semiconductor plant in Taylor announced $22.8 million to fund local partners and programs on Oct. 15 at the Made in Texas: Boundless Opportunity event.

The money will help create Samsung's new community engagement program called Spark!, expand workforce development partnerships, launch a new industrial trades training program and expand the paid internship program with Taylor ISD.

The breakdown: Samsung's $22.8 million investment will contribute:

• $10 million for 14 local organizations through the Spark! program

• $700,000 in annual donations to local organizations

• $2.66 million for the 2026 5-Star Workforce Development partnerships

• $7.98 million toward three-year extensions for the 5-Star Workforce Development partnerships

• $1.5 million for the new STEP program

"As I look around the room and look at all these amazing young people, I believe that Samsung's greatest economic impact will be what each of these young people will do to change the world, their future, and Samsung," Senior Director of Communications Michele Glaze said Oct. 15.

An advanced manufacturing facility in Austin, an elementary school in Leander and a LongHorn Steakhouse in Hutto are among the five most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the Austin metro this week.

1. Project Toaster ($100 million): This project involves civil site development and construction of a core-and-shell building for Project Toaster, an advanced manufacturing facility.

2. Project Phantom ($60 million): This project involves the construction of a 285,000-square-foot warehouse with associated site improvements and parking.

3. Elementary School No. 31 ($56 million): Leander ISD plans to open its new elementary school in August 2028.

4. LongHorn Steakhouse ($3.8 million): A new LongHorn Steakhouse location is coming to Hutto, with construction set to wrap up in August.

5. CARTS Bastrop Park & Ride Expansion ($1.5 million): This project involves a parking lot expansion, EV charging stations, a bike-share pod, landscaping and miscellaneous site improvements for the existing bus station.