Before most of Tomball wakes up, the ovens at Harpers Bagels are already on. Founded by brothers Sean and Aaron Rink in May, the family-operated bagel shop opens with a simple promise—fresh bagels made daily and sold until they’re gone. 

The inspiration: Formerly in the gas and oil industry for over 20 years, Sean Rink traces Harpers Bagels' roots to a conversation he had with his daughter Harper when she was 7, asking what she wanted to do when she grew up. When she said she wanted to have her own donut shop, Sean took the inspiration to heart, opening a bagel shop instead with the intention of one day giving it to her.

On the menu: At Harpers Bagels, customers can find eight to 10 different bagel flavors baked freshly from scratch with no additives, paired with seven or eight flavors of cream cheese ranging from plain to honey walnut.
Bagel flavors offered include:

• Plain
• Blueberry
• Cinnamon raisin

Spring-based dessert shop Luliet Creamery & Bake Shop will open a new Vintage Park location in February, founder Nelia Shehaj announced on social media Jan. 14.

At a glance: Shehaj said Luliet acquired Treat! Gourmet Cupcakes in the Vintage Park shopping center, and the business is currently working on refurbishing the space with plans to open in February. 

Treat! Gourmet Cupcakes, which opened in 2010, announced its closure in November and had its last day of business Dec. 24. Shehaj in her announcement called the cupcake shop a "staple for celebrations."

From the oven: The Vintage Park shop will feature Luliet's full menu, including scratch-made cookies and cupcakes, French macarons, house-made ice cream and custom cake orders, per the announcement. 

Zooming out: The expansion marks Luliet's third storefront, with the original shop located on FM 2920 in Spring and a second location on FM 1488 in Conroe.

• 126 Vintage Park Blvd., Houston

Houston’s single-family rental market experienced solid growth in 2025, according to a new update from the Houston Association of Realtors.

Long story short: HAR reports single-family rental leases have increased 9.4% year over year, with a total of 3,283 homes leased in December. There was a 21.2% increase in listings, with 5,486 listings added to the Multiple Listing Service in December compared to 4,525 the prior year.  

Two candidates are facing off March 3 in the Republican primary election for Harris County clerk.

The overview: Lynda Sanchez and Mike Wolfe are competing for the Republican nomination in the race against Democratic incumbent Teneshia Hudspeth for Harris County clerk. Early voting begins Feb. 17, and election day is March 3.

Some context: The Harris County Clerk's Office is responsible for maintaining records from Commissioners Court and other county courts as well as key documents such as property records, marriage licenses, and birth and death certificates, per the office's website. The county clerk also serves as the chief election official for Harris County.

The setup: The candidates responded to four questions, including: 

• Why are you running for this position?
• What do you feel are the major challenges facing the office currently?
• How will you address these challenges?
• How will you work to make the office more user-friendly to residents? 

The March 3 primary election is coming up, and so is the deadline to register to vote. Eligible Texans must register by Feb. 2 to cast votes in dozens of races, including 18 statewide officials, 38 members of Congress, 166 state legislators and various local seats, such as county judges and commissioners.

How to register: Texans must submit a paper voter registration application by Feb. 2. Applications can be mailed to their county elections office or delivered in-person.

To avoid delivery delays under new federal postmark rules, prospective voters may requests that mailed applications be hand-stamped at a local post office.

The big picture: Texas holds primaries for partisan elected positions at the federal, state, regional and local levels. Republican and Democratic primary voters will have a say in which candidates will represent their chosen political party on the November ballot, shaping who is ultimately elected to each seat.

In recent years, no more than one-fourth of registered Texas voters have cast ballots in primary elections, state data shows.

Four Republican candidates are running for Texas lieutenant governor—the second-in-command to the governor—in the upcoming March 3 primary election.

The big picture: Republican incumbent Dan Patrick is seeking a fourth term in the lieutenant governor's office. The lieutenant governor leads the Texas Senate and can exercise the powers of the governor if the governor dies, resigns, is removed from office or is absent from the state, according to the Texas State Historical Association.

Patrick is challenged by three Republican candidates: Timothy Mabry, Perla Muñoz Hopkins and Esala Wueschner. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the votes in the Republican primary, a runoff election will be held between the two top vote-getters May 26.

Stay tuned: The winning Republican candidate will face the winner of the Democratic nomination in November. The winner of that election will be sworn in for a four-year term in January 2027.

Three Democratic candidates are running for Texas lieutenant governor—the second-in-command to the governor—in the upcoming March 3 primary election.

The overview: Vikki Goodwin, Courtney Head and Marcos Vélez are seeking the Democratic nomination for Texas lieutenant governor. The lieutenant governor leads the Texas Senate and can exercise the powers of the governor if the governor dies, resigns, is removed from office or is absent from the state, according to the Texas State Historical Association.

Stay tuned: If no candidate receives more than 50% of the votes in the Democratic primary, a runoff election will be held between the two top vote-getters May 26.

The winning Democratic candidate will face the winner of the Republican nomination in November, and the winner of that election will be sworn in for a four-year term in January 2027.