Beyond Texas Big

The largest gas station in the world? Buc-ee's will make its case with new TexasCity behemoth

Buc-ee's has provided many a weary Texas traveler with a clean restroom, a cold drink and a warm snack, attracting something of a cult following since its first gas station convenience store opened in 1982.

The store is now a fixture along major interstate highways. Huge billboards — often witty and sometimes placed hundreds of miles before the actual stop — and a good reputation ensure constant crowds at stores along the routes to DFW or San Antonio.

And soon you'll be able to stock up on that Buc-ee's merch (think tie-dyed T-shirts and beaver bumper stickers) on the way to the beach.

The city will benefit from mentions below the Buc-ee's logo on that larger-than-life signs, and will reap the benefits of the 150 jobs that the store is expected to add.

As The Galveston Daily News first reported, Texas City commissioners approved an agreement with Buc-ee's for a (minimum) 60,000-square-foot store along southbound I-45, the 33rd store in the Lake Jackson-based chain.

That will make it the biggest Buc-ee's "in the world," according to KHOU.

That agreement, reached between Mayor Matt Doyle and Buc-ee's owner Beaver Aplin over a burger, includes a one-cent sales tax rebate to the business over the next 15 years to defray construction costs and a one-time allowance for the store to plant its trademark 100-foot-tall signs outside (the city typically does not allow signs of such soaring height).

The city will benefit from mentions below the Buc-ee's logo on that larger-than-life signs, and will reap the benefits of the 150 jobs that the store is expected to add.

"I want to be the stop between Houston and Galveston," Aplin told The Daily News. "My job is to get (travelers) to stop in Texas City."

unspecified

Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

undefined

Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”