🏷️UT-Arlington wins large Navy contract; Costco to join H Mart in Haltom City; TechFW launches online biz training.

A Costco Business Center and Fuel Center will open at 4909 NE Loop 820 in Haltom City early next year, according to the city. The nearest Business Center is located in Dallas. The project represents millions in capital investment and will create more than 100 jobs. The store will have all the household staples, groceries, and signature Costco products; in addition, there is a specialized selection of professional-grade kitchenware and industrial supplies, an expanded selection of bulk items and restaurant equipment. 

UT-Arlington was awarded a $75,480,869 Navy contract, which could reach $86.4 million, for surface combatant ship design and engineering efforts for land-based testing of shipboard power systems. Work will be performed in Arlington and is expected to be completed by April 2031. The contract was competitively procured by the U.S. Navy. 

TechFW launched ThinkLab OnDemand, an online platform that expands access to TechFW’s incubator startup framework. Entrepreneurs can validate their ideas and get assistance determining whether to move forward, pivot or refine their concept. It has eight modules and the price is $450. Modules include concept validation, customer discovery, market evaluation and early business strategies.

Access to healthcare was the phrase of the day as leaders with the JPS Health Network broke ground on a major expansion designed to serve patients regardless of income or ability to pay.

A jury decided that Live Nation acted as a monopoly and violated antitrust laws in a victory for the multitude of states suing the company. Live Nation owns Ticketmaster, owns, controls or manages hundreds of venues, and services for artist bookings and sponsorship sales.  

Charles Schwab announced a phased rollout to retail clients of Schwab Crypto™ is just weeks away. The firm will provide direct access to bitcoin and ethereum trading, combined with educational content and experienced professional support.

The Baylor Scott & White Health Plan will stop offering Texas Medicaid and individual marketplace health insurance plans this year. The Medicaid Managed Care Program ends in August; the marketplace plans at the end of the year. Together, approximately 225,000 people are being displaced. The hospital system says the changes are "impacting" 321 jobs across the state, including 65 in north Texas.

Cooper Street Annex Ltd., a limited partnership managed by Weitzman, acquired Cooper Street Annex, an 87,857-square-foot retail center in Arlington near the Parks at Arlington mall. Weitzman will manage the center, which was fully leased at the time of sale. Tenants include Boot City, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Chuck E. Cheese Adventure World and WellMed. 

Robert Cluck, Mayor of Arlington when the Dallas Cowboys moved to town, passed away at 87.

Service Compression, a provider of natural gas compression services, closed its acquisition of substantially all assets of Axip Energy Services. With the acquisition, Service Compression expands its horsepower, enhances its presence in attractive large-horsepower categories, and deepens its position in key operating regions, including the Permian Basin. Rhett Newberry is Chief Executive Officer of Service Compression.

$27 million — Amount raised in first three months by Texas Rep. James Talarico in his U.S. Senate race, the largest sum for a Senate candidate — in any state. During previous Texas Senate races, Colin Allred raised more than $9.5 million in the first quarter of 2024, and Beto O’Rourke brought in $6.7 million in 2018 — and both lost.

U.S. regulators are examining the distribution of streaming rights for Major League Baseball as part of a larger federal probe into how professional sports leagues provide their games to online platforms. Reports of regulators examining NFL streaming rights came earlier this week. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said he's listening to baseball fans who are complaining about where to watch MLB games. 

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. was awarded a $17,519,461 modification contract that adds scope to procure material modification kits and special test and tooling equipment necessary to support retrofit and modification efforts for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program for the Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy, Foreign Military Sales and non-U.S. Department of War participants. Work will be performed in Fort Worth and is expected to be completed in December 2028.

Carroll ISD’s board of trustees held a special workshop to discuss next steps for selling the Don T. Durham Intermediate School property after it closes at the end of the 2026-27 school year and consider a plan to replace buses that do not comply with new state mandated requirements. Community Impact has the details. 

A state district judge is expected to order Camp Mystic, a Texas Hill Country girls' camp where 27 people died during last summer's deadly flood, not to alter, demolish, repair or remove structures affected by floodwaters. It comes at the request of the parents of Cecilia "Cile" Steward, an 8-year-old girl who's still missing.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County completed the purchase of its first brick-and-mortar Boys & Girls Club in Lewisville. It is located at 195 W. Corporate Drive, in an 8,000-square-foot former fire station gifted to the organization by the city.

The head of the International Energy Agency said Europe could face flight cancellations “soon” if oil supplies remain blocked by the Iran war. He called it “the largest energy crisis we have ever faced."  Read more.  

Prim Construction has completed Holiday Gordon Ford in Gordon Texas for Matt Johnson's auto group. It’s a 26,000-square-foot facility with an interesting design. The exterior is constructed of brick, inspired by the historic Thurber, Texas brick plant that provided the bricks for Camp Bowie and the Fort Worth Stockyards.

Speed Fab-Crete Corp, a design-build construction company headquartered in Kennedale, completed construction of the Rowlett Fire and Police Station No. 5, located at 1301 Easy Street. It serves the growing Sapphire Bay district along Lake Ray Hubbard.

The Cold War-era Lockheed AH-56 Cheyenne was among the world’s most advanced helicopters. The AH-56 was so fast, and its features so ahead of its time, that the U.S. Army has decided to port over its name for its highly anticipated Bell MV-75 tiltrotor, now officially named the Cheyenne II.

Painted Tree Boutiques closed all of its 60+ stores, blaming rising costs, shifting market conditions and changes in consumer shopping behavior. North Texas stores included Mansfield, North Richland Hills, Frisco, Grapevine, Highland Village and Lewisville.

Launch Family Entertainment, an indoor franchised family facility, has announced it will open May 1 at 4907 S Cooper St. in Arlington.​ Hemanth Kumar, President of Zion Capital Management, heads a group that has the rights to three area locations. Features include trampolines, bowling, a ninja course, a ropes course, virtual reality, arcade games, mini golf, interactive darts, and pixel floor, along with the brand’s signature Krave restaurant and bar.

Believe it or not: In 2001, the average price of a new car was $21,474. According to Kelley Blue Book, the average manufacturer’s suggested retail price for February 2026 was $51,440, a 139.55% increase in 25 years. Using the Bureau of Labor Statistics Inflation Calculator, $21,474 in February 2001 had the same buying power as $39,917 in February 2026. Go Banking Rates explains why it seems to be so much more expensive to buy a new car today.

Snippets:

• Want to be a concessionaire at D-FW International Airport? Learn during this free webinar May 14 from 10-11:30 a.m. Register here.

• The new board of FWISD reveals its plan to "elevate" the performance of the public school system.

• TLC Jet private flights teams with American Airlines' AAdvantage program. 

• A north Fort Worth QuikTrip shopper wins $2 million playing lottery Powerball. 

Significant stat: The average U.S. home insurance premium increased 57% — or $794 — from 2019 to 2024, per the Dallas Fed. By comparison, Texas homeowners insurance premiums increased 73%, or $1,400.

Daily digit: 800 = The number of franchised Nothing Bundt Cakes in the U.S. and Canada. The company was started in Dallas in 1997. 

Announcements:

• Coltala Aerospace: Names Phil Bathurst Group President.

• Yondr Group: Hires Beth Thurman as Legal Director.

• Luther King Capital Management: Gary Walsh, Principal and Portfolio Manager, announces retirement.

• Texas: Gov. Greg Abbott appoints Lynn Gravley, Founder & CEO of NT Logistics, to the University of North Texas System Board of Regents.

• Paul Mitchell: Hires LIndsey Cronje as Senior Manager-National Accounts.

• Maple Park Capital Partners: Hires Robert Zell as Chief Financial Officer. 

• UT-Arlington: Promotes Sebastian Fuentes to Director of Graduate and International Admissions in the Division of Enrollment Management. 

• Massey Services: Names Glenn Kilgore sales director for four regions in Texas and Oklahoma. He most recently was leading the Euless Residential Service Center.

• StubGroup: Hires Joe Ladehoff as Chief AI Officer.

• JSX: Promotes Carlos Ruiz to Director of Talent Acquisition. 

• Comerica Bank: Promotes Jennifer Asplet to Financial Center Manager.

• ClearSky Rehabilitation Hospital: Names Lucky Deenna Fischer Chief Executive Officer. 

• Fidelity Investments: Promotes Jonathan Pattie to Associate Financial Analyst. 

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