Local Tex-Mex restaurant La Cabana Bar & Grill opened at its new location Jan. 31, according to staff.

The details: The longtime Spicewood restaurant at 21103 W. Hwy. 71 was demolished in December to make way for a road leading to Lake Travis ISD’s incoming high school.

Owned by Linda and Chip Holt, the restaurant is now located in the former site of Apis Restaurant and Apiary.

Diving in deeper: La Cabana serves a variety of Tex-Mex staples, from tamales, tacos, fajitas, nachos and enchiladas to burgers, fish, desserts and more. The restaurant also offers a bar with beer, wine and margaritas, according to its website.

• 23526 W. Hwy. 71, Spicewood

For the past several months, Eanes ISD administration has considered various ways to garner $5 million-$6 million in cost savings or revenue generation in order to balance the fiscal year 2026-27 budget. The board of trustees unanimously approved an optimization plan Feb. 3, which will include a revenue-generation program and staffing optimization plan to reduce the projected budget shortfall.

Some context: The board previously discussed budget optimization actions including local revenue increases, staffing optimization, freezing or reducing salaries, and calling for a voter-approval tax rate election. 

The update: The approved optimization plan includes local revenue increases which could net $600,000 in savings through increasing facility rental usage and fees, creating a virtual academy and increasing out-of-district transfers. The plan also includes staffing optimization, which could net between $3.3 million-$4.5 million savings through a reduction in workforce and attrition.

Looking ahead: The board could also consider freezing salaries or reducing raises but will not make any decisions on this until the 2026-27 budget process is underway in May.

Austin's light rail project cleared a key federal review in January, marking a "major milestone" in the multibillion-dollar transit system's ongoing development.

The details: Roughly half of the light rail's $7.1 billion price tag will be covered through federal grants that require an extensive Federal Transit Administration review and approval. As one step in that funding process, Austin Light Rail entered the FTA's National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA, review about two years ago. The federal agency has now issued its record of decision for the transit system's Final Environmental Impact Statement, or FEIS, advancing the light rail program's planning and moving it closer to securing needed federal grants.

Quote of note: "Completing the Final Environmental Impact Statement and earning the FTA’s Record of Decision in under two years is a major achievement for Austin Transit Partnership and the community we serve,” ATP CEO Greg Canally said in a statement.

Austin's rail became the first major transit initiative to finish its FEIS within a federal guideline of two years, according to the ATP.

Two Democratic candidates are running to lead the Texas General Land Office in the upcoming March 3 primary election.

The big picture: Benjamin Flores and Jose Loya are vying for the Democratic nomination for Texas land commissioner. The winning Democratic candidate will face Republican incumbent Dawn Buckingham in November, and the winner of that election will begin serving as land commissioner in January 2027.

Buckingham, who is seeking a second four-year term as land commissioner, is running uncontested in the Republican primary. Community Impact runs candidate Q&As for contested races only.

The context: The General Land Office manages 13 million acres of state lands, with duties such as allocating disaster recovery funds, leasing state lands to generate revenue for the state's Permanent School Fund, preserving state landmarks such as the Alamo and overseeing several veterans programs. It is Texas’ oldest state agency, according to its website.