Races for Comal County judge and commissioners for Precincts 2 and 4 are shaping up for the March 3 primary.

No Green Party or Independent candidates filed for the primary, according to the Texas Secretary of State website.

What’s on the ballot: As of the Dec. 4 filing deadline, three Republican candidates have put their hats in the race for Comal County judge, including local business owner Deb Hindman, firefighter Kayne Parrish and previous Comal County Tax Assessor-Collector Kristen H. Hoyt, who stepped down from her seat to pursue the judge’s position, according to the website.

Three Republican candidates have also filed for the Precinct 2 County commissioner position. Candidates include retired service member Steven Rollins, rancher John Stratemann and New Braunfels ISD board secretary Steve Minus, the website states.

New Braunfels' Oakwood Baptist Church broke ground on a new 52,000-square-foot worship center in November, according to a Facebook post.

The details: The new, $28 million worship center will provide the additional space needed by the church, which currently has three services and uses overflow space for two of them, Oakwood Pastor Rusty Rice said.

The center will be located within the original complex, Northeast of the main church building. The construction will yield a new worship center, additional parking and infrastructure improvements. The new center is expected to open around Easter 2027, Rice said.

• 2154 Loop 337, New Braunfels

A lawn care service serving the Greater San Antonio area celebrated an anniversary this month.

In a nutshell: TLC Total Lawn Care is celebrating its 25th anniversary in December, according to a Facebook post from the business.

The company, run by President Gerry Bower, serves the San Antonio area as well as San Marcos, the Rio Grande Valley, Laredo and Corpus Christi.

TLC Total Lawn Care offers commercial landscape maintenance, irrigation installation, forestry mulching and commercial fencing.

• 18820 FM 2252, San Antonio

A new shift in Northside ISD's schedule and dining updates highlight Community Impact's coverage of the San Antonio Metro the week of Dec. 8-12.

• Northside ISD closing campuses during high school lunch periods
• A new all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant open in New Braunfels
• Texas Roadhouse debuts in New Braunfels
• Other dining updates like a new McDonald's and Topgolf
• NBU begins work on $7 million project

Texas has grown rapidly in recent years, and data indicates that development is not slowing down. The Lone Star State gained about 168,000 jobs from September 2024-September 2025, leading the nation in job growth, according to the Texas Workforce Commission.

The overview: Texas is attractive to businesses looking to relocate or expand their operations due to its tax incentives and grants, lack of a personal income tax and roughly 200 higher education institutions, business leaders said during a Dec. 10 summit held in College Station by industry network YTexas.

As businesses of all sizes continue to move to Texas, local governments and associations also need to “support the ones that are already here,” said Dean Browell, the chief behavioral officer for Feedback, a digital ethnographic research firm.

Zooming in: In an October study, Feedback found that long-term Texas residents want to live in growing communities with strong education systems and plentiful job opportunities. That growth, however, can lead to rising property taxes and living expenses before residents begin feeling the benefits, Browell said.