This Week's Hot Headlines

Change in low-level marijuana policy tops this week's 5 hottest Fort Worth headlines

Editor's note: A lot happened this week, so here's your chance to get caught up. Read on for the week's most popular headlines.

1. Fort Worth will now ticket for low-level marijuana, instead of arrest. Law enforcement agencies in Fort Worth and Tarrant County will begin issuing tickets to those found with small amounts of marijuana, instead of arresting them and taking them into custody. In a joint release from The Tarrant County Law Enforcement Executives Association and the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney's Office, the agencies highlighted their new policy in which people detained for certain low-level, misdemeanor crimes may now be issued a citation.

2. The official list of top 4th of July events and fireworks around Dallas-Fort Worth. What a difference a year makes, as the Dallas-Fort Worth area has no shortage of events from which to choose this Fourth of July weekend. We've rounded up the biggest and best events for your oohing — we mean viewing — pleasure. And here are some local restaurants and bars hosting fireworks-viewing parties.

3. Latest species to invade Fort Worth is an icky super-long predatory worm. As if red ants and killer bees aren't bad enough, there's another invasive species in Texas that has slithered into Fort Worth: an extra-long worm — it can be nearly a foot long — disgusting on its own, but also predatory. It's called a hammerhead flatworm, and The Texas Invasive Species Institute confirms that they're starting to be spotted in the Fort Worth area.

4. Stunning Hill Country pool cannonballs onto Condé Nast Traveler list of top swimming holes. As Mother Nature cranks up the heat in Texas, it's time to think about a getaway to cool off in the country’s best swimming holes. A new list in Condé Nast Traveler magazine crowns Hamilton Pool in the Hill Country — west of Lake Travis and north of Dripping Springs — as one of eight “stunning” swimming holes in the U.S. (But before you jump in the car and drive south from Fort Worth, there's something to know — read on.)

5. Blockbuster dine-in theater and entertainment venue coming soon to Southlake. A massive new dine-in theater and entertainment center is bringing movies, bowling, bumper cars, and more to a vacant movie theater in Southlake Town Square: Austin-based EVO Entertainment will make its Dallas-Fort Worth debut in the former Harkins Southlake 14, which closed in November 2020.

Po-po will give you a ticket but not haul you in.

Photo by Scott Davidson/Wikipedia

Po-po will give you a ticket but not haul you in.

This Week's Hot Headlines

Best neighborhoods for Christmas lights lead Fort Worth's top 5 stories

Photo by Stacy Luecker

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Editor's note: Christmas is just around the corner, and Fort Worth is in the holiday spirit. This week's most-read stories include a complete guide to DFW's best neighborhoods for Christmas lights, plus where to eat and drink during the holiday season.Catch up on the five hottest headlines of the week below.

Looking for the best Fort Worth events of the weekend? We have those here.

1. Best Fort Worth-area neighborhoods for magical 2024 Christmas lights. Fort Worth-area residents have decked their halls, merry and bright, for the holiday season. Homes, streets, and entire subdivisions are dazzling with lights so spectacular, they can be seen from the North Pole. Here is our expert guide to the best neighborhoods for a Christmas light pilgrimage during the 2024 holiday season. For a longer list of spectacular Fort Worth Christmas lights, check out this story.

2. Where to drink in Fort Worth right now: 14 bars oozing Christmas cheer. The holiday pop-up trend has erupted across the country as more and more bars jump on the bandwagon every year. Consumers are craving a big dose of Christmas cheer in the form of over-the-top decor, Christmas music, and Christmas-inspired cocktails. Stress of the season got you down? Here are 14 bars in Fort Worth that are making spirits bright.

Curfew Christmas cocktails at Curfew. Curfew Bar/Facebook

3. Where to eat in Fort Worth: 9 restaurants to take your holiday guests. The holidays draw near and for many of us, that means one thing: family’s coming to town. Cook your heart out for them, yes, but take advantage of Fort Worth’s thriving restaurant scene and show off some of our city’s finest places to eat.

4. Novel Thai restaurant in north Fort Worth comes with its own market. A mom-and-pop Thai restaurant in north Fort Worth comes with a unique twist: Called Bangkok Thai Street Food & Market, it’s a restaurant serving traditional Thai food but also a market selling all sorts of goods, from cooking ingredients to clothing to household gear.

5. Grab subs and pizza at new family-owned Lunch Break Cafe in Fort Worth. A well-regarded cafe serving sub sandwiches has risen in east Fort Worth: Called The Lunch Break Cafe, it’s a family-owned restaurant that opened in early December at 7251 Stoneway Dr. N. 400, in the former Riverbend Bistro space at River Bend Plaza.