Convenience Big Store: Inside the fall of Houston's ICE policy

April 30, 2026

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⛅ Temperature check: High of 83; low of 65. Forecast: Storm development is likely as that cold front I mentioned recently stalls out. How much rain you get depends on where the front ends up.

Good morning, Houston.

Here's what you should know to start your day:

Need to know: Go on a road trip around the region and by the time you stop to get your car washed you'll realize very quickly that there are a ton of lovebugs out there. Why is this year so different?
Top of the chart: One of the most-read stories on our site yesterday was our look at the most expensive private schools in Houston.

Here's the rest of the news.

1

After months of debate about how to handle a federal immigration crackdown in one of the nation’s most diverse cities, Houston City Council voted to limit how police interact with by federal immigration agents – then reversed that policy after Gov. Greg Abbott threatened to pull $114 million in grants. This is the inside story of how Houston’s ICE policy unraveled.

Inside the fall of Houston's ICE policy: 'You're going to burn the city down.'

It's been a tumultuous spring at 901 Bagby.

In case you've been out of the loop these last few weeks, a debate over how Houston police interact with federal immigration authorities set off a fight that would encompass all levels of government.

It essentially started when Houston City Council voted 12-5 to enact the ICE policy. It came to an end weeks later when city leaders reconsidered what they had done and voted 13-4 to reverse themselves.

In the time between those votes, millions of dollars in public safety grant funds suddenly came into play. Did the city have the stomach to play chicken with the governor? And how did politics play into it all?

Abby Church and Matt deGrood have put together an account of one of the most heated fights in local politics in recent history, a battle that Houston Mayor John Whitmire would call "a crisis situation."

2

Eli Lilly's GLP-1 lawsuit against Houston's Empower Pharmacy is partially dismissed.

Eli Lilly alleged that Empower lured customers away from their brand-name GLP-1 products and toward the pharmacy's less-regulated version, interfering with its business and putting patients at risk.

3

Paxton sues a Houston-area care center for alleged 'birth tourism.'

The lawsuit against De’Ai Postpartum Care Center alleges its employees have engaged in the practice for more than 20 years and have bragged about facilitating the births of more than 1,000 babies to mothers who enter the country to have their children.

4

Lawmakers urge state regulators to block Camp Mystic from reopening.

After two days of heart-wrenching testimony about Camp Mystic's failings during the July 4 floods, one thing was clear: state lawmakers who had been skeptical of the camp's actions before were now even more intent on closing its doors.

5

The Woodlands’ proposed park rule changes include a ban on sexually oriented shows.

The updates to the policy also include allowing street performers in parks and increasing the fees for renting township park facilities.

6

Behind Lovers Lane: Floyd Parrott’s life of fake badges, aliases and arrests.

Houston authorities say Parrott hid behind a double life of fraud and impersonation long before his arrest on a capital murder charge.

Also: A man accused of shooting and killing an 11-year-old boy who was playing ding-dong ditch in a Houston neighborhood last year was indicted.

7

This Texas billionaire’s nuclear-powered data center company faces collapse.

Texas billionaire Toby Neugebauer is having a stretch of bad luck, and so is anyone who has invested in his companies, writes columnist Chris Tomlinson.

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🍴 Bao’s Review

****

Restaurant critic Bao Ong gave Yiayia’s Greek Kitchen four out of four stars in his latest review.

What to order: Start with a mix of cold and hot mezédes such as hummus, eggplant dip, dolmades, shrimp Athena, saganaki and grilled octopus. For seafood, the pasta Lena, red snapper and Mediterranean sea bass. Lamb chops were by far the best meat dish, but if you’re not sure, try the very shareable pastitsio or lamb shank. Add on sides such as gigantes and lemon-roasted potatoes. Dessert? The baklava cheesecake is a staple, but the chocolate sokolatopita is a must.

Prices: $8-$22 cold mezédes, $14-$33 hot mezédes, $34-$59 seafood entrees, $27-$56 meat entrees, $9-$14 sides, $11-$15 desserts.

🏀 Sports

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) posts up against Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) during Game 5 of a first-round NBA playoff basketball series at Cyrpto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Wednesday, April 29, 2026.

Photo by: Elizabeth Conley, Houston Chronicle

Rockets: Facing elimination and without Kevin Durant, the Rockets beat the Lakers again to send their first-round series to Game 6.
Astros: This is hardly the start the team envisioned, an abysmal opening month that will require them to defy precedent for a second time in three seasons. How to dissect a difficult first 30 games? Here are 10 numbers that help tell the tale.
Rockets: After surgeries kept him sidelined the past two offseasons, Joseph Tugler will get Kelvin Sampson's full attention in summer workouts.

🗣️ Opinion

Border security is not an abstract policy debate where I live. It is part of everyday life. I see firsthand both the progress that has been made and the challenges that remain, writes Joanna E. MacKenzie, Hudspeth County Judge

🍽️ Restaurant Roundup

Gelato from La Rosa, a new gelato and sandwich shop from the team behind Mimo, is photographed in Houston, Saturday, April 25, 2026.

Photo by: Raquel Natalicchio, Houston Chronicle

La Rosa, a shop from the team behind Mimo, opens in the East End with mortadella sandwiches, gelato and plans for wine.
Kirkwood represents the Mac Haik Restaurant Group’s first foray into standalone, full-scale restaurants. Its menu sticks to country club classics. Its design goes all out.
Joe & the Juice, a popular juice bar and coffee shop, is poised to debut in Houston. The health-focused chain will open its first Texas location at Uptown Park with both indoor and outdoor seating, the real estate owner and developer EDENS said.

📅 Events at the Chronicle

EVENT: How to save on property taxes with chief appraisers

Houston Chronicle and Chron.com readers are invited to a virtual event on April 30 at noon CST featuring local appraisal leaders and Chronicle journalists discussing 2025 property trends, tax-saving exemptions, and the protest process.

In recent days, four digits have added up to cause a whole lot of trouble for former FBI Director James Comey.

An Instagram post of seashells forming the numbers "8647" resulted in the second indictment against Comey recent months. A federal grand jury in North Carolina indicted him on charges of threatening President Donald Trump's life through the post.

You might be wondering how something like "8647" can land someone on the wrong side of the law. Jarrod Wardwell explains the controversy.