254 Biz newsletter: Friday, Oct. 30, 2026
A $550M data center shell in Hutto, a $20.5M Bell County annex, Temple's sales tax jump and 552 new sales tax permits across the 254.
Latest
Permits and filings: Austin Retina, Central National Bank and a $20.5M Bell County annex lead October's state filings
Owners registered 39 projects worth about $119.9 million with the state in McLennan, Bell and Coryell counties from Sept. 30 to Oct. 28.
Oct. 30, 2026
Temple's sales tax allocation jumps 16.6% as 254-area cities collect $25.6M in October
The Comptroller sent $25.6 million in October sales tax allocations to 77 cities across the 254, up 10.5% from a year ago.
Oct. 30, 2026
Last call, first call: The Beltonian Theatre, Thai Cafe and The Cave among October's new TABC licenses
TABC issued 41 new permits and licenses in the 254 area from Sept. 30 to Oct. 29, and 29 more applications were pending.
Oct. 30, 2026
Who poured the most: The Backyard tops Waco and Cadence Bank Center leads Bell County in September drink sales
The top mixed-beverage sellers in McLennan and Bell counties in September, from Comptroller gross-receipts reports.
Oct. 30, 2026
A low-voltage contractor based in Clifton, J&J Technical Services installs security cameras, structured cabling and networks for businesses along the I-35 corridor from WinStar to San Antonio. Call (254) 978-5534 or visit jandjtechserv.com.
Permits & Filings: newest state filings
| Registered | County | City | Project / owner | Est. cost | Sq. ft. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-29 | Williamson | Cedar Park | Whole Foods Market Cedar Park - Market Expansion IVT Parke Cedar Park, LLC | $7,000,000 | 37,390 |
| 2026-10-29 | Williamson | Georgetown | Vertiv Manufacturing Renovation Sl6 Class A Industrial LP | $2,000,000 | 142,247 |
| 2026-10-29 | Williamson | Round Rock | Trellis Company | 1st Floor Remodel Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corp d/b/a Trellis Company | $180,000 | 1,172 |
| 2026-10-28 | McLennan | Waco | Austin Retina Associates Ara - Waco, LP | $8,000,000 | 14,845 |
| 2026-10-28 | Somervell | Glen Rose | CPNPP New Company Park Comanche Peak Power Company, LLC | $4,294,000 | 479,160 |
| 2026-10-28 | Bosque | Meridian | Goodall Witcher - Meridian Clinic | $3,000,000 | 3,292,486 |
New Businesses by county
| County | New sales tax permits | New companies |
|---|---|---|
| Williamson | 476 | 181 |
| Bell | 170 | 37 |
| McLennan | 117 | 49 |
| Hood | 36 | 12 |
| Coryell | 27 | 5 |
| Hill | 25 | 8 |
| Erath | 22 | 6 |
| Navarro | 20 | 6 |
Sept. 30 to Oct. 24, 2026. All counties
Sales Tax tracker: October 2026
| City | County | Oct. 2026 | Oct. 2025 | Change | Year to date | YTD change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waco | McLennan | $5,187,526 | $5,014,957 | +3.44% | $51,664,679 | +1.26% |
| Temple | Bell | $3,515,024 | $3,015,795 | +16.55% | $33,262,586 | +3.93% |
| Killeen | Bell | $2,831,386 | $2,813,015 | +0.65% | $29,931,942 | +0.39% |
| Corsicana | Navarro | $1,041,843 | $907,325 | +14.82% | $9,552,253 | +4.63% |
| Granbury | Hood | $1,027,647 | $1,076,902 | -4.57% | $11,506,452 | +3.12% |
| Stephenville | Erath | $1,004,750 | $787,033 | +27.66% | $9,138,696 | +12.31% |
| Harker Heights | Bell | $915,901 | $874,636 | +4.71% | $9,881,052 | +3.33% |
| Belton | Bell | $830,412 | $783,339 | +6.00% | $8,303,669 | +3.68% |
Liquor Licenses: newest
| Issued | County | City | Business | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 29, 2026 | Bell | Killeen | Max Mart | Package store (wine only) |
| Oct. 29, 2026 | Bell | Temple | El Rancherito Family Kitchen | Wine & beer retailer (on-premise) |
| Oct. 28, 2026 | Hood | Granbury | Acton A Fool Grill | Mixed beverage |
| Oct. 28, 2026 | Williamson | Liberty Hill | Lhtx Rv Resort | Wine & beer retailer (on-premise) |
| Oct. 28, 2026 | Williamson | Leander | Zeytun Grill | Wine & beer retailer (on-premise) |
| Oct. 27, 2026 | Brown | Brownwood | Fusion Grill | Mixed beverage |
| Oct. 23, 2026 | Bell | Belton | The Beltonian Theatre | Wine & beer retailer (on-premise) |
| Oct. 23, 2026 | McLennan | Waco | Kesbi | Wine & beer retailer (off-premise) |
Counties
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