ISSUE 5 · SUNDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2026 · LIFE BY DESIGN, NOT DEFAULT
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND This Week |
Photo: City of Pearland
Monday, October 26 is a long night at City Hall. Council will hold a public hearing on a gas station and a car wash on Main Street, at the corner of English Lake Drive. Both hearings have a split record: neighbors spoke against both at Planning & Zoning last month, and the commission’s two votes went in opposite directions.
Before that, at 3 p.m., council hears the first capital improvement plan briefing of the budget season (facilities and parks), and at 4:30 p.m. council and Planning & Zoning hold a workshop on a proposed mixed-use development at Magnolia Parkway and McLean Road. Two notes from last week are updated in Liberty Watch.
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Liberty Watch |
Photo: City of Pearland
3 p.m. special meeting: capital plan | 4:30 p.m. joint workshop: Magnolia & McLean | 6:30 p.m. regular meeting: two hearings | $170.8M five-year facilities + parks plan |
Monday, October 26, 6:30 p.m. — City Council regular meeting, Council Chambers, 3519 Liberty Dr. Before it starts, council presents proclamations for Municipal Courts Week, Fire Prevention Month and Code Enforcement Month, and a recognition for an International Festivals & Events Association award. On the agenda:
- Two Conditional Use Permit hearings from Benchmark Acquisitions LLC (applicant Nathan Dietrich), east of Main Street and north of English Lake Drive: a gas station without an auto wash on about 1.68 acres (CUP2026-0353), and a self-service tunnel car wash on about 1.03 acres (CUP2026-0401). Council votes on each resolution right after its hearing. Details in Mapping Our Community.
- Consent agenda: minutes of the Sept 14 and Sept 28 meetings; excusing Councilmembers Layni Cade and Rushi Patel from the Oct 12 meeting; board and commission appointments; a reappointment to the Civil Service Commission; a declaration of intent to reimburse project costs from future tax-exempt debt; and a breath alcohol testing interlocal agreement with Galveston County and six other cities.
- Contracts: $893,929 to LJA, Inc. to design rehabilitation of the Alice elevated and ground storage tanks and a new 5-million-gallon ground tank (design takes about seven months; construction is expected to begin in November 2027), and a five-year custodial contract for city facilities with Soji Services (Metroclean) at an estimated $634,393.32 a year, starting Dec 1.
- H-GAC appointments for 2027, and, after a closed session, appointments to the Planning & Zoning Commission, Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone No. 2 and the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
Monday, 4:30 p.m. — joint council and P&Z planned development workshop. Urban Arc Development, for the Herlinda V. Mendez Revocable Trust, brings a concept for 27.468 acres at the southeast corner of Magnolia Parkway and McLean Road: about 10 acres of commercial (six pad sites for restaurants, drive-thrus, a fuel/convenience store, a bank or retail, plus three in-line buildings) and 15.5 acres of build-to-rent duplexes (208 units). Staff makes no recommendation and says the density, height and parking figures in the applicant’s packet are inconsistent and must be revised before a formal filing. Discussion only.
Monday, 3 p.m. — special meeting. First FY2027 capital improvement briefing, facilities and parks. Discussion only. Staff’s slides total the 2027–2031 plan at $108,455,060 for facilities and $62,349,904 for parks.
No minutes from the Oct 12 council meeting are posted yet; the Oct 26 consent agenda approves only the September minutes.
| Updates and corrections: (1) Last week we told you Planning & Zoning would hear the Hillhouse Road and Clear Creek rezoning requests on Oct 19. The city’s portal now marks that meeting canceled. It gives no reason and no new date, and no later P&Z meeting is posted. We cannot say when those two requests will be heard. (2) Last week’s “112 plate cameras” headline was our own sum of the four counts on the police slide (31 city, 48 HOA, 31 private, 2 school district). The slide prints no total, and its arrest and results figures are dated Oct 12, 2025. |
Sources: Oct 26 council agenda packet · Oct 26 special meeting (capital plan) packet · Oct 26 joint workshop packet · Oct 26 council page · Oct 12 council page · Oct 19 workshop page · Oct 19 P&Z page
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Mapping Our Community: Gas Stations and Car Washes at Main and English Lake |
Source: city staff reports, CUP2026-0353 and CUP2026-0401 (Oct 26 council packet). Counts are cumulative.
The site is the northeast corner of Main Street (State Highway 35) and English Lake Drive, part of a larger commercially zoned tract that is still vacant. City staff counted what is already nearby: 2 gas stations within one mile, 7 within two miles and 15 within three; and 0 car washes within a mile, 5 within two and 10 within three.
16 fueling positions proposed | 24 cars the wash line could hold | 16 vacuum stalls proposed |
What is proposed: a 7,800-square-foot building with a 5,520-square-foot convenience store and a 2,280-square-foot drive-thru restaurant space, plus eight fuel dispensers under a canopy; and, on the neighboring parcel, an automated tunnel car wash of about 4,795 square feet. Staff recommends approval of both with conditions, including shared detention off site, canopy columns clad in masonry, and a centralized vacuum system for the wash to limit noise. Both uses are consistent with the “Commercial Center” label on the city’s future land use map.
The record so far: at the Sept 21 hearing the Planning and Zoning Commission voted 3-2 to recommend the gas station and 0-5 against the car wash. Four residents, including the Towne Lake Estates HOA president, spoke against the gas station and two against the car wash, citing traffic, runoff into the neighborhood lake, noise, lights, flooding and home values. Commissioners asked the applicant to meet neighbors before council. Staff told the commission a traffic study is done when the project is permitted, not when the use permit is decided.
The lens worth keeping: a Conditional Use Permit is a yes-or-no on one use at one spot, with conditions. Ask what the traffic study will show and when, who maintains the lake that takes the runoff, and whether the applicant has met the neighbors since September.
Sources: Gas station CUP2026-0353 (council packet) · Car wash CUP2026-0401 (council packet) · Council page
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND From the Council This Week |
 | MONDAY, OCT 26 · THE ELDER Before We Build Anything New, Someone Should Ask What Was Here |
 | TUESDAY, OCT 27 · THE COUNSELOR The Mortar Is the Part Nobody Sees |
 | WEDNESDAY, OCT 28 · THE PHYSICIAN Health Is a Project, Not a Prayer |
 | THURSDAY, OCT 29 · THE PATRON Wisdom That Does Not Transfer Dies |
 | FRIDAY, OCT 30 · THE CLIENT Teach Me: Notes From the Seat That Sits Down to Learn |
Every piece, every figure linked to its source: councilonlocalrelations.org
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Around the Block |
Photo: City of Pearland
| Fall Into Reading Scavenger Hunt — Mon Oct 26 through Sat Oct 31, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., West Pearland Library, 11801 Shadow Creek Pkwy. Find all the clues and win a prize. Ages 12 and up; start at the second-floor Reference Desk. | ||
| Halloween Toddler Storytime — 10:15 and 11:15 a.m., Pearland Library, 3522 Liberty Dr. Ages 1–3. | ||
| Halloween Preschool Storytime — 10:30 a.m., Pearland Library. Ages 3–5. | ||
| Monster Mash Trail — 11 a.m., West Pearland Library. A trick-or-treat trail; costumes encouraged. | ||
| Monster Bookmarks — 2 p.m., Pearland Library Children’s Area. A Halloween craft; all supplies provided. |
Run a Pearland event? Send it by Thursday.
Sources: Scavenger Hunt · Toddler Storytime · Preschool Storytime · Monster Mash Trail · Monster Bookmarks
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Prosperity Spotlight |
 | O’Day Hardware & Rental — six generations in Pearland The O’Day family has been a fixture in Pearland for more than a century, the shop says. Patrick O’Day founded O’Day Drilling here in 1912. In 1984 his son Orlen “Pat” and Pat’s daughter Suzanne opened the hardware store, and they ran it together until Pat died in 2004. Today Suzanne and her son-in-law, Chase, who joined in 2014, share the day-to-day work. The store says its core team has been together for more than twenty years. Besides plumbing, electrical, paint and lawn-and-garden aisles, it lists key cutting, paint color matching, pipe cutting and threading, hydraulic hose assemblies, and a rental department with air compressors, generators, trenchers, ladders and jackhammers. |
| O’Day Hardware & Rental · 6614 Broadway, Pearland · 281-485-6111 Call ahead for hours. · doitbest.com/oday-hardware-and-rentals |
Sources: Store website: About Us · Store website
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Food Scene |
Photo: Killen’s BBQ website
Killen’s BBQ
Ronnie Killen, a native Texan trained at Le Cordon Bleu, opened Killen’s BBQ in Pearland in 2013 as a return to the cook-off barbecue of his youth. The restaurant’s site says the building was once the city’s first school cafeteria.
The menu leans on a bone-in American Wagyu beef rib from Snake River Farms, pork belly burnt ends and brisket, and the site quotes the MICHELIN Guide’s write-up of the place. Weekly specials: chicken fried ribeye on Tuesdays, prime rib on Fridays and fried chicken on Sundays, while supplies last. There is a second Killen’s BBQ in Cypress.
| Killen’s BBQ · 3613 Broadway St., Pearland · 281-485-2272 Closed Mon · Tue–Thu 11 a.m.–7 p.m. · Fri–Sat 11 a.m.–8 p.m. · Sun 11 a.m.–6 p.m., unless they sell out first. · killensbarbecue.com/pearland |
Sources: Killen’s BBQ · Pearland location (hours)
✦ Trivia Question |
In 1898, Pearland had 75 residents, a newspaper and twelve businesses. How many of those businesses were hotels? (Answer at the bottom.)
✦ Quote of the Day |
“A people who mean to be their own Governours, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” — James Madison, to William T. Barry, 1822 (Founders Online)
✦ Secret Little Hack |
Before you speak on a Conditional Use Permit, read the seven criteria the city’s Unified Development Code uses to judge it (section 2.2.3.4). Staff walks through them one by one in the packet’s staff report, so you can say which criterion you think a request does or does not meet, and what condition would fix it. Council asks for three minutes per person, five if you speak for a group. This Monday’s packet is here; the staff reports start about page 70.
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Real Estate Pulse |
Source: HAR Pearland price trends, listings table, read Oct 24 (October is a partial month)
509 single-family homes listed (Oct so far) | $399,999 median list price | −2.4% vs. Oct 2025 | 40 days typical time listed |
HAR’s sold-home table has not added October yet (September’s median sold price was $382,000, 107 sales), so this week we look at homes for sale. October so far shows 509 single-family listings with a median list price of $399,999, down from $409,990 a year ago and from $411,490 in September. The typical listing has sat 40 days, versus 39 last October. This is a partial month, so expect the figures to move. Your move: if you are comparing homes near a busy corner like Main and English Lake, look up what is zoned for the empty land next door before you sign.
Sources: HAR — Pearland single-family price trends (listings table, Oct 2026)
| Looking to buy or sell? Nina Bright, Realtor — call or text 832-689-3170. Full disclosure: Nina is David’s wife. |
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Service Opportunities |
Photo: City of Pearland
Boards: council appoints members to city boards and commissions on Monday (Planning & Zoning, TIRZ No. 2, Zoning Board of Adjustment and others), and the city’s meetings portal shows an “Apply” link beside the boards that take applications, including the Animal Shelter Advisory Committee, the Civil Service Commission and the Library Board. Animals: the shelter at 8311 Freedom Dr. can tell you how to volunteer; ask for Spooky while you are there.
Sources: City boards and commissions (meetings portal)
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Adopt a Friend |
 | Meet Spooky About 6 months · Male (neutered) · Australian Cattle Dog and Alaskan Husky Black and tan, and at the shelter since Oct 12. Ask for him by name. See Spooky’s listing → |
| Shari D. Coleman Animal Shelter & Adoption Center (Pearland Animal Services) · 8311 Freedom Drive, Pearland · 281-652-1970 Wed–Sun 10 a.m.–4 p.m. (closed Mon–Tue; viewing ends 30 minutes before closing) · adoption page |
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Growth & Learning |
Illustration
City staff counted gas stations and car washes within one, two and three miles of a corner on Main Street. Try the same count with your kids this week: draw a one-mile circle around your house on a map, mark every kind of business you can name inside it, then ask what is missing and who decides what gets built on the empty lots. Kids who learn to read a map and a zoning notice grow into neighbors who show up. More at unrivaledacademy.com.
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Local Theory & Remnant Radio |
 | Now playing: The Operator Standard — Local Theory (April 2, 2026 · 15 tracks). Listen. Remnant Radio streams the whole catalog 24/7 at radio.thinkandactlocally.com · Spotify. Thirteen releases. Sovereignty through sound. In the Studio now: DOWN TO THE STUDS. Vote on the mixes. |
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Weather Forecast |
Sun  Mostly sunny 81° 62° | Mon  Mostly sunny 82° 66° | Tue  Partly sunny 82° 67° | Wed  Showers possible 83° 67° | Thu Mostly sunny 83° 67° | Fri  Showers possible 82° 68° |
Warm and mostly dry for Monday night's meetings: mostly sunny near 82, with almost no rain chance. Wednesday brings a 25% chance of showers and thunderstorms, Thursday is mostly sunny, and Friday has a 33% chance of rain. Highs hold in the low 80s and nights in the upper 60s. The forecast does not yet reach Halloween Saturday.
Sources: National Weather Service (HGX), forecast updated Oct 24, 1:21 p.m. CT
✦ CrowdHealth |
 | David and his family left traditional health insurance for CrowdHealth — a community that funds each other’s medical bills. Bills get negotiated down first; no claims department, no denial letters. See how it works. We earn a referral if you join. CrowdHealth is not insurance. David is a paying member. |
✦ Unrivaled Travels |
 | Planning a trip worth taking? Our own travel service books the expedition, cruise, or getaway you’ll remember — at no markup. info@unrivaledtravels.com · 281-241-1994 · unrivaledtravels.com One of our own businesses. |
✦ Unrivaled Candles |
 | Hand-poured jewelry candles — every one hides a piece of jewelry inside, valued from $10 to $10,000. Burn it down and find out what’s yours. Shop Unrivaled Candles. Full disclosure: one of our own businesses. |
✦ Unrivaled Marketing Solutions |
 | You built the business — now make sure your Pearland neighbors can find it. Book a free 15-minute call with David: we’ll look at how your business shows up online and where customers may be slipping past. If you want us to fix it, that’s paid work, and David will go over the price on the call. Book a free 15-minute call. One of our own businesses. |
✦ Sponsor Spot |
This spot is open. Sponsor this spot — reach Pearland neighbors every Sunday, in the one inbox they actually read. Reply to book it.
✦ They Told Him He Was Crazy |
David sold his metals. Not trimmed — sold. He kept the receipts, every decision sourced, so you can decide for yourself: conviction, or crazy? Read the filing →
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✦ Have a Question? Ask It Live |
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✦ Tuttle Twins: For the kids at your table |
 | The Tuttle Twins Monster Sale runs through Halloween. Their graphic novels turn big ideas about money and freedom into adventures kids actually want to reread — and brand-new Season 4 just landed. All four seasons (44 hardcover books) are $349 this month. Get ready for questions at dinner. As a Tuttle Twins affiliate, TAAL may earn a commission if you buy through our link. |
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Community Voices |
Do you live near Main Street and English Lake Drive, or near any corner where a new business is proposed? What do you want council to know before it decides? Hit reply — one or two sentences — and we’ll run the best next Sunday.
✦ Take Action |
- Speak on the gas station or car wash: Monday, Oct 26, 6:30 p.m., City Hall Council Chambers, 3519 Liberty Dr. Citizen comments are on the agenda, with a three-minute limit.
- Watch the early workshop: Monday at 4:30 p.m., council and Planning & Zoning discuss a mixed-use plan for Magnolia Parkway and McLean Road. Citizen comments are on that agenda too.
- Meet a shelter pup: Spooky and others are waiting at 8311 Freedom Dr.; the shelter is open Wednesday through Sunday.
✦ Submit Your Content |
Events, business features, volunteer calls, letters from Pearland: david@thinkandactlocally.com. Deadline: Thursday 5 PM for Sunday.
✦ Answer to Trivia |
Two. In 1898 Pearland had 75 residents, a newspaper and twelve businesses: two general stores, a grocer, two lumber companies, two hotels, a real estate agent, a hardware store, a blacksmith, a carpenter and a wagonmaker (Handbook of Texas).
THE HERALD ✦ PEARLAND Keep the Herald Free |
No advertiser sets our coverage — readers keep it alive. The best thing you can do costs nothing: forward this to the neighbor who lives near Main and English Lake and has not heard about Monday.
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The Herald is published by Think and Act Locally. Its facts come from the public record kept by the Council on Local Relations, which shares a founder with Think and Act Locally. Portions drafted with AI assistance and reviewed before publication. Reply anytime: david@thinkandactlocally.com.
