HTX-PLF: Impact 10/13/2025

Friendswood ISD’s board of trustees will consider a ratification for chiller repairs at Friendswood Junior High School at its Oct. 13 meeting.

What’s happening: The chiller condenser coils at Friendswood Junior High began experiencing “significant leaks with several coils damaged beyond repair” in spring 2024, according to board agenda documents.

The board approved the ratification of replacement coils in May 2024, but because of extended lead times, the installation of the new coils was delayed until March 2025, which caused additional repair work on the chillers, board agenda documents note.

Now, district officials are recommending a ratification for the repairs of two of the school’s chillers until the coil replacement is completed. 

The cost: The chiller repairs will cost over $86,500 and will be paid through the district’s capital projects fund.

After operating as a mobile coffee business that popped up at local events, Monarch Pastries & Coffee House is opening a brick-and-mortar storefront in Friendswood. 

The gist: The coffee house was designed around the concept of metamorphosis and offers coffee, matcha and pastries, according to the establishment’s website. 

Owned by Dillon and Victoria Seals, the coffee house was designed to be more than just a coffee shop and instead, a place for connection, creativity and community.

• 2114 El Dorado Blvd., Friendswood

Over one year after Hurricane Beryl, 1 in 8 Houston-area residents reported their lives were still “very” or “somewhat” disrupted by Beryl, according to an Oct. 2 report from the Houston Population Research Center at the Kinder Institute.

Looking back: According to the report, Beryl caused an estimated $2.5 billion to $4.5 billion in property damage.

Quote of note: “Now, a year down the road, residents are having to grapple with the reality of repairs that are still needed, credit card bills from unexpected hotel rooms or refilling the fridge that are still unpaid, and their expectations that these things should already be resolved but they’re not,” Dan Potter, co-director of the research center and lead researcher on the survey work, said in the report.

Going forward: The Federal Emergency Management Agency has delivered the majority of its disaster aid, but there is still a gap to fill. As of early 2025, federal estimates suggested there was about $800 million in repairs needed between the destruction from Beryl and the May 2024 derecho. 

Texas’ power grid is unlikely to have issues this December, according to an Oct. 3 report by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.

The details: During the winter, demand for electricity spikes when people get up in the morning and return home in the evening. This December, the tightest period is expected to be from 7-8 a.m. each day, when little to no solar power is being produced. ERCOT found that there will be a 1.81% chance of a grid emergency during that time.

“Under typical grid conditions, the deterministic scenario indicates that there should be sufficient generating capacity available," the report reads.

The background: Texas' grid withstood three cold snaps early this year. ERCOT last asked residents to voluntarily reduce their energy use in January 2024.

Legislative approach: State lawmakers approved legislation this spring that is designed to make the grid more reliable by tightening regulations on large electric consumers, such as data centers. In extreme grid conditions, those customers will be required to switch to backup power to reduce strain on the grid.