Lamar Consolidated ISD officials said the district will need to increase the cost of meals in the 2026-27 school year to comply with federal meal program regulations.

Chief Operations Officer Greg Buchanan said the changes come after the district’s required annual review to ensure no federal funds are being spent on the cost of the meals for paying students.

The cost: The increases—which were presented at a March 17 board meeting—will raise breakfast by 15 cents and lunch by 25 cents, Buchanan said. The total cost increase per year for both breakfast and lunch would be $69.20, equating to a $6.92 monthly increase based on the 10-month school year.

Looking ahead: The meal pricing item does not require board approval, so no further action will be taken before its implementation in the 2026-27 school year, district staff said.

In the last five years, Fulshear has grown at a 252% rate, according to five-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. As the city grows, Fulshear has completed or is undergoing several downtown street projects and could soon bring up a new idea: one-way pairings.

What it means: Instead of widening Main and Harris streets, which may require acquiring and tearing down existing buildings, the city would make each a one-way, with Wallis Street designated as a “release valve,” City Manager Zach Goodlander said.

“If you have a very wide road, a major artery in downtown like that, it just means you’re going to have higher speed traffic, more traffic on just one particular road,” Goodlander said.

Zooming out: Goodlander cited Rosenberg and Conroe—where the downtowns are split by Hwy. 90A and US 105, respectively—as Houston-area cities that already employ the pairing systems.

Going forward: While the city continues to develop, Tommy Kuykendall, the Economic Development Corp.'s B-board president, said it’s important to keep the city's “small town feeling.”

In honor of Women's History Month, which runs March 1-31, here are a few women-owned businesses located in the Greater Houston area.

​​Retail Therapy
After years of responding to emergencies as an EMT, Kimberly Smith found a different way to take care of people in 2006. Smith now serves the community through a consignment store she took over 20 years ago with used brand-name clothing in Cypress.

Beyond resale, the shop extends its mission by donating clothing to a local women's shelter, turning gently worn pieces into a source of identity and fresh starts for women in need.

• 10782 Grant Road, Houston

• 2757 Rayford Road, Spring

Need to catch up on Community Impact’s coverage from this week? Check out five trending stories in the Greater Houston area from March 23-27.

• 25-year old Seabrook Mexican restaurant reopened just six days after closing from strong community support

• A ‘face-lift’ for downtown: Montgomery commencing with downtown upgrades, new plans

• League City to consider rezoning land along League City Parkway from residential to commercial

• Houston to return historic Freedmen’s Town bricks to the neighborhood after restoration

• Conroe City Council ends executive contracts, approves nearly $1.85M in payouts