Located in a gated property away from large roads, Yepes Animal Hotel was inspired by the desire to create a safe animal hotel where people could leave their pets during the busy seasons of their lives, co-owner Laura Yepes said.

Quote of note: “I grew up with a lot of pets myself, and we could never travel because we could never find anywhere that we could trust, that we felt comfortable and safe, leaving them while we were gone,” Yepes said. “So it wasn't a vacation for us if we were worried about our pets back at home, so that’s what inspired this.”

What's special about it: Laura Yepes said at Yepes Animal Hotel, guests can be assured that their pets are left in trusted hands with experienced pet care professionals. Offering services to a wide variety of pets, including dogs, cats, small pocket pets and some exotic animals, Yepes Animal Hotel offers each pet the personalized care they need.

Check out what's happening in the New Caney and Porter area this weekend, Dec. 5-7.

The Highlands Holiday Helpers: The Highlands will host a holiday social and toy drive at The Highland Pines Golf Club. Donations accepted include board games, blankets, holiday cookies, hot cocoa, marshmallows, festive candy, sugar cookie mix, icing, sprinkles, pancake mix, syrup and $25 grocery store gift cards. Donors will receive one raffle ticket per donation, and raffle prizes will be drawn during the holiday social.

• Dec. 5, 6 p.m.
• 6700 Highland Pines Dr., Porter

• Dec. 6, 5-9 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• 21680 Market Place Drive, New Caney

The Houston-Galveston Area Council is hosting public meetings for its Safety Action Plans, a measure to improve transportation safety and reduce serious roadway injuries and fatalities, officials announced in a Dec. 1 news release.

With nearly 20% of traffic deaths in Texas—760 people a year, or two people a day—and another 3,725 people annually experiencing life-altering injuries on roads in the Houston-Galveston region, H-GAC created the SAP projects to generate plans to reduce the number of fatal or serious accidents.

Get involved: Community members can provide feedback on roadway safety online or attend a first-round public meeting for the local SAPs, per the release.

Meetings include:

• La Marque: Dec. 1 from 5-7 p.m. at La Marque City Hall
• League City: Dec. 3 from 6-8:30 p.m. at the Johnnie Arolfo Civic Center
• Sugar Land: Dec. 6 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at the T.E. Harman Center
• Pearland: Dec. 10 from 5-7 p.m. at the Pearland Chamber of Commerce
• Regional Joint Meeting (H-GAC/METRO/Gulf Coast Rail District): Feb. 12, 2026, from 6:30-8 p.m. at the Houston-Galveston Area Council

A dozen new Texas laws are scheduled to take effect Dec. 4. The new laws come 90 days after the end of a special legislative session that took place this summer.

The overview: Some of the bills becoming law Dec. 4 include:

• House Bill 8, which will replace the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR, with three shorter exams beginning in fall 2027
• House Bill 18, which is designed to deter future legislators from leaving the Texas Capitol to prevent a legislative chamber from considering legislation, known as breaking quorum
• Senate Bill 54, which will roll back a short-lived rule that allowed registered Texas voters who moved within a county to update their address at the polls and immediately vote in their new precinct