Multiple transportation projects are moving forward around the Tomball and Magnolia area, including FM 1488 widening work and Hwy. 242 improvements.

According to a June construction update from the Texas Department of Transportation, two FM 1488 projects are underway in Magnolia, while a Hwy. 242 widening project is expected to continue through late 2026.

Check them out below. This list is not comprehensive.

FM 1488 widening west of Magnolia
Project: FM 1488 is being widened from two to four lanes with a continuous left-turn lane between the Waller County line and FM 1774 in Magnolia.

FM 1488 widening through Magnolia
Project: FM 1488 is being widened from two to four lanes with a continuous left-turn lane between FM 1774 in Magnolia and west of FM 149.

Hwy. 242 widening
Project: Hwy. 242 is being widened as a divided highway between I-45 and FM 1488.

Nourished For You offers patrons all-organic meal preps consisting of locally grown ingredients.

What's on the menu: Featured items include freshly pressed juices, grass-fed proteins, gluten-free breads, tallow-based chips, and even facial products and soaps.

• Opened May 30
• 903 Honea Egypt Road, Ste. H, Magnolia

The Transportation Advocacy Group of the Houston Region, or TAG Houston, held a webinar on the future of advanced air mobility June 3.

What’s happening: Sergio Roman, Texas Department of Transportation's director of emerging aviation technology under the aviation division, led a “pragmatic discussion” on the future of advanced air mobility. This includes unmanned drones and electric vertical takeoff and landing—or eVTOL—aircraft, to transport people and materials.

“We've all seen all the marketing sketches and autonomous passengers, drones zipping over gridlocked highways and completely untethered from the realities of public policy, physical concrete or power grids,” Roman said.

Explained: In March, the Federal Aviation Administration bestowed TxDOT with Project Nexus under the integration pilot program, or eIPP.

While Project Nexus encompasses Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and the Choctaw Nation, Roman said Houston will make its role vital in this undertaking as an immense industrial coastal corridor.

On the horizon: “In a perfect world,” Roman believes Phase 3 would begin in August or September of 2028.

Harris County commissioners requested additional information to create a new county committee that aims to streamline the process for moving infrastructure projects forward at the county level. The action follows concerns regarding the county's transparency and efficiency in addressing large infrastructure needs.

The big picture: County Administrator Erica Lee Carter presented the committee's structure and scope during the June 11 meeting, stating it will focus on creating standardized processes and procedures for infrastructure-related projects across all county departments. The committee would also keep track and create standardized reports for multiple infrastructure initiatives that have been operating under their own committees, including:

• Downtown Master Plan
• Vision Zero workgroup
• Transportation Master Plan
• Hardy Connector committee
• 2018 Flood Bond workgroup

From Juneteenth concerts to a fish fry, there are several events to celebrate Juneteenth across the Greater Houston area. 

Juneteenth Celebration: This fourth annual event celebrates Juneteenth and features live music, entertainment, a variety of food trucks, local vendors, face painting and interactive attractions.

• June 19, 4-9 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• Redemption Square, 250 Assay St., Houston

• June 19, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
• $25 (fish fry)
• Sleepy Hollow Multipurpose Building, 9847 Sleepy Hollow Road, Conroe

• June 19, 5 p.m. (celebration starts), 8:15 p.m. (musical performances start)
• Free (admission)
• 6000 Hermann Park Drive, Houston

Harris County officials are urging caution as the National Weather Service has forecasted multiple days of heavy rainfall across the Greater Houston area.

What you need to know: Officials with the National Weather Service are maintaining a flood watch over a large swath of southeast Texas through June 18. The watch stems from a semi-stationary front moving across the region alongside a disturbance in the Gulf with a 60% chance of developing into a tropical storm before bringing additional rainfall to the region, NWS officials said. 

What’s being done? Gov. Greg Abbott signed a disaster declaration for 101 counties in southeast Texas, including Brazoria, Harris, Montgomery, Fort Bend and Galveston counties June 15. Harris County and the city of Houston have also activated emergency response initiatives, such as lowering Lake Houston levels ahead of additional rainfall.

Before you go: State and county officials are asking residents to remain aware of weather changes through the end of the week due to forecasted heavy rain and flash flooding.