HTX-NCP: Impact 11/11/2025

HTX Happy Tails Dog Walking & Pet Services, a New Caney-based business owned by Gabriela “Gaby” Briseño, is now open.

Zooming in: Briseño’s business serves customers in all of East Montgomery County and the Kingwood area. HTX Happy Tails Dog Walking & Pet Services offers pet boarding, dog walking, doggy daycare and other services.

Meet the owner: Briseño also co-owns Gaby’s Event Rentals, which marked five years since opening in October.

• Opened Sept. 1
• Location available upon booking

Across the two ZIP codes that make up Community Impact's New Caney-Porter coverage area, data for October 2025 compared to October 2024 shows: 

• The number of homes sold decreased in both New Caney and Porter.
• The median price of homes sold increased in New Caney and decreased in Porter. 
• Homes were on the market for longer in New Caney and sold faster in Porter. 
• Nearly 80% of homes sold were in the $200,000-$399,999 price range. 

Community Impact interviewed Ron Papsdorf, the Chief Transportation Officer for the Houston-Galveston Area Council, about the current state of transportation in the Greater Houston area.

The gist: H-GAC is a regional organization through which local governments consider issues and cooperate in solving problems in areas such as transportation. Papsdorf, who stepped into the role of chief transportation officer in June, spoke about the biggest priorities and challenges for transportation in the Greater Houston area as well as new trends he is seeing in mobility needs across the region.

Gov. Greg Abbott announced his bid for a fourth gubernatorial term Nov. 9, laying out an ambitious six-pronged plan to make “out-of-control property taxes finished in Texas.”

The details: Abbott's goals include eliminating property taxes charged by public school districts, which make up the majority of an average homeowner’s property tax bill. Some conservative groups and lawmakers pushed for an end to school property taxes during recent state legislative sessions.

The governor’s plan to limit local tax increases includes:

• Limiting annual local government spending
• Requiring approval from two-thirds of local voters for all tax hikes
• Allowing local residents to petition for an election to roll back tax rates
• Requiring property appraisals to occur once every five years
• Capping appraisal increases at 3% per year, down from 10% today
• Asking voters to eliminate school property taxes