The following stories are in order of most page views.
1. Houston ISD approves 2025-26 academic calendar with an additional instructional day
Houston ISD board managers approved the district’s academic calendar for the 2025-26 school year in February. The school year began Aug. 12, 2025, and will end June 4, 2026. The new calendar added an extra instructional day this school year and raised the schedule to 181 total days.
Read the full story.
2. Meet the candidates running for Houston City Council at-large Position 4 in November
Fifteen candidates participated in a race to fill the vacant seat on Houston City Council in the November election. Candidates were asked to complete a questionnaire in September from Community Impact to gauge each candidate's experience, priorities and thoughts.
Since the original story ran Sept. 22, a winner has been claimed. Alejandra Salinas came out victorious against Dwight Boykins in a December runoff race. Salinas received 58.56% of the vote, which translated to 25,796 votes cast in her favor across Harris, Fort Bend and Montgomery counties.
Houston City Council canvassed the election Dec. 23, declaring the official results of the special election. Her term will end Jan. 1, 2028.
To see election results, read here.
3. Chick-fil-A to offer free breakfast to Houstonians every Tuesday in January
In 2025, Chick-fil-A restaurants in the Houston area offered a free menu item every Tuesday in January. Guests could redeem rewards in-restaurant at any of the 118 participating restaurants during breakfast hours.
As of Dec. 29, Community Impact has not received a news release stating whether Chick-fil-A will revive the program in 2026.
Learn what happened.
4. Houston ISD announces Sandi Massey to serve as chief of schools
In early January, Houston ISD announced the appointment of Sandi Massey to serve as the district’s chief of schools in an effort to ensure high-quality instruction across the district’s 272 campuses. Massey had served as a principal, regional director, deputy chief of schools and chief of leadership and strategic initiatives for the district prior to her promotion. Massey is still in her role.
Find out the rest of the details.
5. ‘The system is broken:’ Harris County commissioners seek 5 additional district courts to address backlog
In May, Harris County commissioners decided to move forward with a request to Texas lawmakers for the creation of five additional civil district courts by 2027 to address the county’s longstanding court backlog. In June, the Texas Legislature approved the bill that provided three courts in 2025 and will provide two more in 2026.
Read the latest update.
6. Molly Tea to bring the essence of Eastern tea culture to Houston
A project filing by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in June showed that the popular tea brand was expected to remodel an existing 1,600 square feet of office space along Bellaire Boulevard.
Molly Tea is a modern tea shop originally from Shenzhen, China, that specializes in floral milk teas, with options such as jasmine, gardena, osmanthus and peach oolong. The shop is slated to open in March 2026.
Check out more details.
7. Southern comfort food restaurant Mia’s Table coming to Bellaire Triangle shopping center
The popular Southern comfort restaurant announced in July that it will open a new location in the Bellaire Triangle shopping center. The casual family-friendly eatery will be located at the former site of the CounterCommon brewery. The restaurant sells a variety of burgers, tacos, sandwiches and seafood options. It is anticipated to open in fall 2026.
Revisit the story.
8. Harris County downtown building renamed after Sylvester Turner
In March, Harris County commissioners voted to rename the 20-story office building known as Lamar Plaza to honor former mayor Sylvester Turner, who died in March. Located at 1010 Lamar St., Houston, the building was officially renamed on Dec. 17 in a dedication ceremony. The building will now be known as the Harris County Sylvester Turner Administration Building.
See the latest update.
