ISSUE 1 · SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2026 · LIFE BY DESIGN, NOT DEFAULT
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND This Week |
Welcome to the first Richmond Herald. Every Sunday: what your local government is about to decide, what’s happening around town, and one thing you can do about it — sourced, local, and short enough to finish with your coffee.
Richmond’s new budget year starts Thursday, October 1, and the numbers are set. The headline is good news — the tax rate went down. The fine print is worth two minutes of your Sunday.
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Liberty Watch |
$0.62 2026 tax rate per $100 | $0.63 last year’s rate | $0.6049 no-new-revenue rate | 4% homestead exemption |
The rate: the Fort Bend County tax-rate portal lists Richmond’s adopted 2026 rate at $0.62 per $100, down from $0.63. It’s still above the no-new-revenue rate of $0.604894 — the rate that would raise the same money as last year from the same properties.
Your exemptions went up. For FY 2027 the city raised the homestead exemption to 4%, with a $5,000 minimum. The over-65 exemption stays at $6,000. Make sure yours is on file with the appraisal district.
Water: the Commission approved applying to the Texas Water Development Board for $3,600,630 to replace the Downtown Water Plant well.
Also on the September 21 agenda: the FY 2026–27 budget, changes to water, wastewater and garbage rates, and a rezoning at 114 Golfview Drive. We’re confirming the final votes for next week.
| Your move: the Commission meets the third Monday of each month at 4:30 p.m., City Hall Annex, 600 Morton St. — next on Monday, October 19. If the utility-rate change shows up on your next bill, that’s the meeting to ask about it. |
Sources: Fort Bend County tax-rate portal — Richmond · City exemptions notice · Water grant notice · Sept 21 agenda summary · Commission meetings
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Mapping Our Community: The Rate Went Down. Did Your Bill? |
A lower rate and a higher bill can both be true. The rate is only half the math; the other half is what your property is worth on the tax roll. When values rise faster than the rate falls, the city collects more.
$0.62 adopted rate | $0.6049 rate that raises last year’s money | +$15.11 per $100k of value, our math |
That last number is our arithmetic, not the city’s: at $0.62, the city takes about $15 more per $100,000 of taxable value than it would at the no-new-revenue rate — roughly 2.5% more than a revenue-neutral budget. The bigger homestead exemption offsets some of that for owner-occupied homes.
The lens worth keeping: Richmond is one of the oldest towns in Texas, surrounded by some of the fastest-growing suburbs in Texas. Every new street and pipe the region adds is a bill somebody maintains forever. The question for a small, old city in a boom is whether its growth pays its own way.
| GO DEEPER The Richmond record is being built. The Council on Local Relations publishes sourced city records — see how it works at councilonlocalrelations.org. Start here — the Primers: 01 The Long Flat Line (how the family changed) · 02 The Documents We Live Under (the written rules that limit power) · 03 The Household (what a household buys, priced in years of work) · all primers → |
Sources: Fort Bend County tax-rate portal — Richmond · City exemptions notice
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Around the Block |
| Bilingual Family Story Time (Hispanic Heritage) — 10:15 a.m., George Memorial Library, 1001 Golfview Dr. | ||
| New fiscal year begins. Plus at George Memorial: a documentary screening on Latin culture and traditions, 10:30 a.m., and Pajama Night Story Time, 6 p.m. | ||
| Beginning Hispanic Genealogy — 10:30 a.m. (registration required), and a Rumba, Flamenco & Jazz Showcase with guitarist John Acevedo, 2 p.m. Both at George Memorial Library. | ||
| City Commission — 4:30 p.m., City Hall Annex, 600 Morton St. |
Coming up: Fort Bend Museum’s Haunted History Tours of historic downtown, October 16, 17, 23 and 24. Run a Richmond event? Send it by Thursday.
Sources: Fort Bend County Libraries events · Fort Bend Museum — October
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Prosperity Spotlight |
Sandy McGee’s — since 1986
Sandy started in 1986 serving chicken salad, fruit salad, and broccoli cheese soup from a little house in Rosenberg. In 1996 she moved to 4th and Morton, into a building from 1900 that had been the Richmond Motor Car Company, then a post office and confectionery, then the Post Office Pharmacy with its burger counter. She kept the history — and the burgers, malts, and shakes. That’s what an old downtown is for.
| Sandy McGee’s · 314 Morton St, Richmond · (281) 344-9393 · Mon–Sat 10 a.m.–9 p.m. |
Sources: sandymcgees.com — Our Story · sandymcgees.com
✦ Trivia Question |
A president of the Republic of Texas is buried in Richmond, alongside the woman called the “Mother of Texas.” Who are they? (Answer at the bottom.)
✦ Quote of the Day |
“Town meetings are to liberty what primary schools are to science.” — Alexis de Tocqueville
✦ Secret Little Hack |
Sign up for the city’s eNotifications at richmondtx.gov: email alerts for Commission meetings, emergency news, road closures, and weather. And paying the water bill doesn’t need a login — Utility Quick Pay takes just your account number (payments after 4 p.m. post the next business day).
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Real Estate Pulse |
$370,500 median sold price, single-family (Aug) | 34 days on market | 238 homes sold (Aug) | $2,315 median rent |
HAR’s Richmond figures cover the whole Richmond mailing area, including the fast-growing subdivisions outside the city limits — which is exactly the growth that shapes the old town’s future. Your move: check your value and exemptions at fbcad.org.
Sources: HAR — Richmond price trends
| Looking to buy or sell? Nina Bright, Realtor — call or text 832-689-3170. Full disclosure: Nina is David’s wife. |
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Service Opportunities |
Help a neighbor find their roots: the library’s genealogy session on Saturday is a good excuse to bring along someone older and record their family story. Know your history: the Fort Bend Museum runs on members and volunteers — ask how to help at fortbendmuseum.org.
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Growth & Learning |
Take the kids to Morton Cemetery and find Mirabeau Lamar’s grave. Then ask them: why would a Texas president be buried in a small town instead of a capital? Richmond was one of the places Texas was built from — and history you can walk to beats history you scroll past. More at unrivaledacademy.com.
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Local Theory & Remnant Radio |
 | Now playing: Sovereign Ground — the latest Local Theory album (April 3, 2026 · 15 tracks). Listen · vote on the mixes. Remnant Radio streams the whole catalog 24/7 at radio.thinkandactlocally.com · Spotify. Fourteen releases. Sovereignty through sound. |
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Weather Forecast |
Sun Mostly sunny 94° 75° | Mon Sunny 94° 75° | Tue 20% rain 93° 77° | Wed 60% rain 93° 78° | Thu 80% rain 89° 75° | Fri 80% rain 85° 73° | Sat 60% rain 83° 72° |
Hot and sunny to start, with highs in the low-to-mid 90s Sunday through Wednesday; the National Weather Service puts Monday’s heat index as high as 101. A slight chance of storms arrives Tuesday afternoon. From Wednesday on, showers and thunderstorms are likely — 80% on Thursday and Friday, and some Thursday storms could produce heavy rain — with highs easing to near 83 by Saturday. Nights stay in the 70s.
Forecast for Richmond from the National Weather Service (HGX), retrieved Sep 27. Check the latest before you plan outdoors.
Sources: National Weather Service
✦ CrowdHealth |
 | David and his family left traditional health insurance for CrowdHealth — a community that funds each other’s medical bills. Bills get negotiated down first; no claims department, no denial letters. See how it works. Referral link. David is a paying member. |
✦ Unrivaled Travels |
 | Planning a trip worth taking? Our own travel service books the expedition, cruise, or getaway you’ll remember — at no markup. info@unrivaledtravels.com · 281-241-1994 · unrivaledtravels.com One of our own businesses. |
✦ Unrivaled Marketing Solutions |
 | You built the business — now make sure your Richmond neighbors can find it. Grab a free digital audit and we’ll show you where you’re leaving money on the table. No pitch. Book your free audit. One of our own businesses. |
✦ They Told Him He Was Crazy |
David sold his metals. Not trimmed — sold. He kept the receipts, every decision sourced, so you can decide for yourself: conviction, or crazy? Read the filing →
David’s own account; affiliate link. Support never touches coverage.
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Community Voices |
This is issue one, and this section belongs to you. Who in Richmond deserves a thank-you this week? The crossing guard who knows every kid’s name, the neighbor who mows the widow’s lawn, the team that brought home a trophy. Hit reply — one or two sentences — and we’ll run the best next Sunday.
✦ Take Action |
- Check your exemption: the homestead exemption is now 4% ($5,000 minimum). Make sure yours is on file.
- Sign up for eNotifications at richmondtx.gov.
- Mark Monday, Oct 19, 4:30 p.m. — the next City Commission meeting.
✦ Submit Your Content |
Events, business features, volunteer calls, letters from Richmond: david@thinkandactlocally.com. Deadline: Thursday 5 PM for Sunday.
✦ Answer to Trivia |
Mirabeau B. Lamar and Jane Long. Both rest in Morton Cemetery on North Second Street, first used as a cemetery in 1825 (Handbook of Texas).
THE HERALD ✦ RICHMOND Keep the Herald Free |
No advertiser sets our coverage — readers keep it alive. This is the first Richmond edition, and it grows one neighbor at a time: forward this to someone who’d want to know what their commission decides next.
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The Herald is a project of the Council on Local Relations. Portions drafted with AI assistance and reviewed before publication. Reply anytime: david@thinkandactlocally.com
