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How a new house turned into a "starter, middle, and ending" home for this Texas woman

May 10, 2024
"I'm just attached to it because it's taken care of me and I'm taking care of it," said Violet O'Brien on why she's choosing to age in place in her Houston home.
Violet O'Brien has decided to age in place in her Houston home.
Courtesy Violet O'Brien

Amtrak wants to build a bullet train in Texas. Could it kickstart a rail revolution?

May 10, 2024
The project would cut the Dallas-to-Houston trip to 90 minutes. It’s one of a few high-speed rail projects that’s been getting attention lately.
Japan Central’s N700 high-speed train, above, would be the same train used for the Texas Central railway between Houston and Dallas.
Courtesy Texas Central

Millions more Americans travel to bird-watch. Texas businesses are cashing in.

May 8, 2024
Up to 10,000 birders visit High Island each spring, boosting business for the small restaurants and motels near and along the coastal area.
Visitors watch for warblers and other migratory birds at the Boy Scout Woods bird sanctuary in High Island, Texas.
Elizabeth Trovall/Marketplace

Texas' electric grid is feeling the strain, and it's not even that hot yet

Apr 16, 2024
A big part of the problem: Power plants usually go offline for maintenance in April.
April is annual maintenance time for Texas power plants, making it harder for the grid to handle a heat spike.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

After dreaming of living in a dome home for decades, this Texas woman made it a reality

Mar 7, 2024
"I'm not getting any younger. If I'm going to have a dome, I need to get on with it," said Paula Stone of Fredericksburg, Texas.
Paula Stone's home is made up of five connected monolithic domes that she designed herself.
Courtesy Stone

When the local paper folds, who's left to cover the news?

Checking in with the remaining reporters in Val Verde County, Texas, three years after its last daily newspaper folded.
Del Rio, Texas, lost its daily newspaper in 2020. Media researchers have labeled Val Verde County, in which Del Rio is located, a "news desert." But that doesn't mean it's a complete vacuum of information.
David Brancaccio/Marketplace

How voters in a Texas news desert get their information

Researchers have labeled 204 counties in America as "news deserts" — places that lack access to credible, reliable news sources. That includes Val Verde County, Texas.
Del Rio is county seat of Val Verde County, Texas — one of more than 200 counties in the U.S. classified as a "news desert."
David Brancaccio/Marketplace

For public good, not for profit.

Amid a national housing shortage, Texas is an exception

Feb 7, 2024
"This market is just really wacky right now," says Houston-based broker LaTisha Grant.
The number of homes for sale in Texas has more than doubled from its low during the pandemic.
Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Why do so many companies incorporate in Delaware?

Feb 2, 2024
More than two-thirds of the Fortune 500 are incorporated in the First State, but Texas is gunning for a share of that.
The state flag of Delaware, where roughly two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies are incorporated.
WilliamSherman/Getty Images

Texas' education funding revamp brings big changes

Jan 5, 2024
The new funding approach puts more money into the system and more emphasis on outcomes rather than enrollment totals.
Texas' new funding approach for community colleges puts more emphasis on outcomes rather than enrollment totals. Above, the campus of Richland College in Dallas.
Strekoza2/Getty Images