The Williamson County Bagel Company in Cedar Park is permanently closed. The bagel shop said in an Instagram post that it closed in October 2025.

The background: The family-owned shop opened in August 2024 near the border of Cedar Park and Leander. It offered bagels that were hand-rolled, boiled and baked in-house every day.

• 14300 Ronald Reagan Blvd., Ste. 101, Cedar Park

Estancia Brazilian Steakhouse is now open in Leander. The restaurant held a ribbon cutting Jan. 28.

What's on the menu: The restaurant serves premium meat cut at the table, as well as "fresh gourmet sides, an elevated salad bar, handcrafted cocktails and a thoughtfully curated wine list," according to Estancia's website.

Of note: The Leander opening marks the second location for the restaurant locally. The other is located in The Arboretum on Research Boulevard in Austin.

• 2132 Raider Way, Leander

The Austin Board of Realtors hosted its Central Texas growth forum Jan. 28, bringing in a panel of officials from key Austin transportation entities to discuss how ongoing projects could impact local Realtors.

The panel featured Lindsay Wood with Austin Transit Partnership, Sam Haynes with Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and Tucker Ferguson with Texas Department of Transportation's Austin District.

If you could correct one common misconception related to your project, what is that?
Wood: Light rail is happening. Yes, it's a long process. ... We'll keep hitting every one of those milestones, and you'll start to see construction next year.

Haynes: The airport experienced five years worth of passenger activity over the course of less than 12 months right after the pandemic. ... In a way, yes we are behind, but trust that it is not because we were waiting for the passenger levels to get here or were dragging our feet.

Ferguson: TxDOT listens. We listen to public feedback and incorporate changes into our project, and I-35 is a perfect example of that.

From new worship spaces to a car wash and more, here are five of the most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the Austin metro this week. 

1. St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church
Parishioners can soon worship at a new site, as St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church will build a two-story, 22,000-square-foot space. It will feature a seating area, a sanctuary with an altar, restrooms, a choir loft and sacristies—also called preparation rooms.

• Location: 230 Post Oak Drive, Dripping Springs
• Estimated timeline: July 1-Jan. 31, 2028
• Estimated cost: $17 million 

• Location: 800 Heatherwilde Blvd., Pflugerville 
• Estimated timeline: March 1-June 30, 2027
• Estimated cost: $5.5 million 

• Location: 3375 S. Interstate 35, San Marcos
• Estimated timeline: July 20-Feb. 26, 2027
• Estimated cost: $4 million

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.

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.