Bellaire City Council approved a roughly $222,000 grant May 18 from the Texas Department of Transportation for a project to improve 14 signals throughout the city.

About the project: Improvements will include installing new LED signal heads, backplates with reflective borders and flashing yellow arrows at major highway intersections, according to the agenda item.

The project is part of TxDOT's Highway Safety Improvement Program, which requires that 90% of project costs be paid through federal funding. The estimated total construction cost is $247,096, with state funding covering $222,386. The city's 10% contribution will amount to approximately $24,710.

The timeline: Construction is expected to start around February 2027, city officials said.

Houston officials officially dedicated George Bush Intercontinental Airport's Terminal E in honor of the late former U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in a May 18 ceremony, officials announced in a May 18 news release.

Career history: Jackson Lee represented Texas' 18th Congressional District—which includes IAH—for more than three decades. Jackson Lee died at age 74 in July 2024 following a battle with pancreatic cancer, as previously reported by Community Impact.

During her tenure, Jackson Lee advocated for aviation security, federal transportation investment and infrastructure improvements, and helped secure more than $125 million for Houston airports, per the release.

The impact: Houston City Council voted unanimously to rename Terminal E to "Sheila Jackson Lee Terminal E" in April 2025, as previously reported.

During the May 18 ceremony, a 500-pound memorial plaque featuring a portrait of Jackson Lee was unveiled. In the coming weeks, the plaque will be permanently installed inside the terminal's international concourse beyond the TSA security checkpoint.

Houston residents interested in speaking at City Council meetings will now be able to sign up online.

What this means: Houston City Council approved an ordinance that will add online registration as an option to sign up to speak during council meetings.

Previously, if residents wanted to speak during a City Council meeting’s public session, they could only sign up in person, by calling or by sending an email.

Council member Alejandra Salinas introduced the ordinance to allow online registration May 14, using Proposition A, which allows council members to put items on the City Council agenda.

“This is a much-needed improvement to our sign-up process, allowing folks to sign up online to participate at City Hall,” Salinas said. “I think this is a great continuation of the work that council has already been doing to make City Hall more accessible by having evening [public session] meetings, and I hope there are more initiatives like this.”

The Houston Police Department will decrease its budget allocated to overtime by 22%.

What this means: During a fiscal year 2026-27 budget workshop presentation May 19, HPD Executive Chief Thomas Hardin said that while the budget decreases, it does not mean that overtime itself will decrease in the department.

Hardin said the $832 million police union contract helped with raises, which also means that overtime rates go up by the hour.

“Our overtime spending is down 22% compared to last year, but it's down 27% by hours worked,” Hardin said. “It’s not just the financial amount that’s important, but it’s the number of hours that accounts for that financial amount as well.”

Breaking it down: Hardin said that the department will make operational changes in patrol. Patrol officers at seven stations will now work 10 hours for four days instead of eight hours for five days.

“The three days off are showing to have tremendous benefits for our officers, for our staff and our budget,” Hardin said.

The April Housing Market Update from the Houston Association of Realtors reports an increase in inventory in the Houston market this month. Along with the increase in inventory, the average price for a single-family home decreased.

By the numbers: According to HAR, the average single-family home price decreased in April by 1.4% to $428,709—a drop from $434,925 last April. Active single-family listings grew by 6.5% year over year, allowing home buyers to have more options in a more stable market, according to the report.

This increase in property sales is in line with the HAR report released in March. As previously reported by Community Impact, the single-family home sales in March increased by 3.7% with 7,644 homes sold.

“More inventory is giving buyers room to breathe again,” HAR Chair Theresa Hill said. “Homes are still moving, but consumers have more time to make decisions and more leverage during negotiations.”