🗺️ MICROPLEX NEWS 🗺️
Jail escapee indicted • 3,800 homes planned • Sunny, 76 👇
📅 October 19th, 2026AD
The top 10 stories everyone around the Hood County Microplex is talking about right now.
📋 TODAY’S TOP 10
1. ⚖️ Jail escapee among 18 indicted
2. ☀️ Sunny, 76; 86 by Thursday
3. 🏘️ Brown Ranch to add 3,800 homes
4. 💧 $2.75M water plant design vote
5. 🏈 Yellowjackets win 23rd straight
6. 🗳️ Somervell votes, no local races
7. 🎓 Hill College wins $3M grant
8. 🚙 Council weighs 14-vehicle lease
9. 🚰 Aledo joins county water agency
10. 🎉 Parade closes streets Wednesday
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⚖️ ERATH GRAND JURY INDICTS JAIL ESCAPEE, 17 OTHERS
An Erath County grand jury last week indicted 18 people, including a man accused of escaping from the county jail this summer, Beneath the Surface News reported.
Treston Cane Nolte escaped Aug. 3 and was recaptured hours later near the head of the Bosque River Trail in Stephenville, the news site reported.
Jail cameras showed him tossing his pants into a basketball goal in a recreation yard and climbing into the roof, the complaint says. Inmates alerted jail officials.
Other charges in the batch include sexual assault and assault on a peace officer. The 18 indictments are formal accusations, not findings of guilt.
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☀️ SUNNY, 76 TODAY; WARMING TO 86 BY THURSDAY
It was 50 degrees and clear at the Granbury airport at 8:15 a.m., the National Weather Service reported.
Expect mostly sunny skies today with a high near 76 and a southeast wind up to 10 mph, the weather service says. Tonight turns mostly clear with a low around 54.
The warm-up continues with a high near 80 Tuesday, 83 Wednesday and 86 Thursday.
No weather watches, warnings or advisories are in effect for Hood County.
🌡️ Granbury, 8:15 a.m.: 50°, clear
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🏘️ BROWN RANCH SALE PAVES WAY FOR 3,800 HOMES
Developer Hines has bought the 1,476-acre Brown Ranch north of Walsh Ranch, where about 3,800 homes are expected at full buildout, The Community News reported.
The community lies within Aledo ISD. Plans also call for about 70 acres of commercial development, at least three amenity centers and 10 neighborhood parks.
Six homebuilders are involved, including Beazer, Meritage and Pulte. Questions about possible land for schools went unanswered, the paper reported.
Parker County grew about 25% from 2020 to 2025, to nearly 185,000 residents, according to Census figures cited by Hines.
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💧 MINERAL WELLS WEIGHS $2.75M WATER PLANT DESIGN
Mineral Wells City Council members will consider a task order of up to $2.75 million with HDR Engineering on Tuesday for design work on the Hilltop Water Treatment Plant, the posted agenda shows.
It covers basis-of-design services, a collaborative delivery evaluation and 30% design documents.
Council members will also hear findings from the city’s completed Master Drainage Plan.
Other items include up to $900,000 for road maintenance materials and an $83,959 valve and hydrant maintenance trailer.
📅 Tuesday, Oct. 20
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🏈 STEPHENVILLE ROLLS 55-21 FOR 23RD STRAIGHT WIN
Stephenville beat China Spring 55-21 Friday night for its 23rd straight win, MaxPreps reported.
The Yellowjackets, now 7-0, led 48-21 after three quarters.
Their quarterback threw for 390 yards and four touchdowns, his fifth straight game with at least three scoring passes. The defense had four sacks, its most since Aug. 28.
Stephenville faces Jarrell at 7 p.m. Friday.
📍 Next: Jarrell, Friday, 7 p.m.
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🗳️ SOMERVELL EARLY VOTING OPENS WITH NO LOCAL CONTESTS
Early voting starts today in Somervell County in the County Annex conference room, 102 Vine St. in Glen Rose, the county elections office says.
Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Friday, Oct. 23; 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24; 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25; and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 26-30.
The Nov. 3 ballot has no contested local races or propositions, Elections Administrator Christy Presley said, according to the Glen Rose Reporter.
Election Day voting is at the Expo Center, 202 Gibbs Blvd. Ballot-by-mail applications are due Oct. 23.
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🎓 HILL COLLEGE WINS $3M GRANT FOR RURAL STUDENTS
Hill College has won a $3 million, five-year U.S. Department of Education grant, the college announced.
It aims to help students in Hill, Johnson, Bosque, Somervell and nearby counties go from high school to a college credential and a career close to home.
Students will be able to earn up to 45 hours of college credit before graduating, through new Teaching Studios in rural high schools.
Four short-term credential programs are planned, including medical assisting and skilled trades.
“This award is not a reward for what we have done; it is a responsibility for what we must now do together,” President Thomas Mills said.
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🚙 GRANBURY COUNCIL WEIGHS LEASE OF 14 NEW VEHICLES
Granbury City Council members will consider leasing 14 new city vehicles from Enterprise Fleet Management for up to $232,000, according to Tuesday’s agenda.
Also on the consent agenda: up to $250,000 in fiscal 2027 for water and electric meters, meter parts and a support agreement with Aqua-Metric Sales Company.
The city manager is set to update the council on economic development in Granbury.
📅 Tuesday, Oct. 20, 6 p.m., City Hall, 116 W. Bridge St.
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🚰 ALEDO JOINS NEW COUNTYWIDE WATER AGENCY
Aledo has voted to join a new countywide agency meant to plan and pay for future water supplies, The Community News reported.
Membership, approved Oct. 1, costs the city $20,000 a year. The agency forms only after all 14 named members, including Parker County and Weatherford, adopt the resolution by May 31.
Parker County pays a fixed $100,000 a year.
Joining gives Aledo a board seat but doesn’t commit it to any project, City Manager Candice Edmondson said.
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🎉 HOMECOMING PARADE CLOSES GRANBURY STREETS WEDNESDAY
Parts of Jones, Rucker, Crossland and Pearl streets in Granbury close Wednesday, Oct. 21, from 5:30 to 7:15 p.m. for the Granbury High School Homecoming Parade, the city said.
Plan ahead, use caution near the parade and allow extra time to get where you’re going, the city advises.
On the football field, the Pirates, 2-5 after Friday’s 54-20 loss at Weatherford, play Sam Houston at 7 p.m. Friday, MaxPreps reported.
🕒 Closures: Wednesday, 5:30-7:15 p.m.
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THE BOTTOM LINE
⚖️ An Erath grand jury indicted 18, including a jail escapee.
🏘️ Brown Ranch is set for about 3,800 homes in Aledo ISD.
🗳️ Somervell early voting opens today at the County Annex.
☀️ Sunny with a high near 76, warming to 86 by Thursday.
Six counties. One region. Plenty happening.
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Hood County Express — Est’d 1/26 🚂
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