The Dallas Morning News

A popular Christmas store is putting up its first retail shop in North Texas. Madisonville Christmas Co. — which has its flagship site more than two hours of south of Dallas — is set to open a pop-up shop in Plano in September, according to a company statement. The store will be in the former Weir’s Furniture store on Preston Road near Spring Creek Parkway. The Dallas-Fort Worth shop is set to be available throughout the holiday season, according to Ashley Rentz, founder of the store that’s located in the city of Madisonville. By Brian Womack

Dallas property investment and development giant Crow Holdings aims to raise $3.25 billion for a new real estate investment fund, which would be its largest ever. Crow Holdings has already raised nearly $1.1 billion from 49 investors, according to an Aug. 24 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The investment pool, Crow Holdings Realty Partners XI, L.P., is the latest in the firm's series of value-add funds devoted to improving multifamily, industrial and specialty properties. By Charlotte Kramon

The French Room inside Dallas’ 113-year-old Adolphus hotel has been closed for regular dinner service since 2020, making it one of the most iconic North Texas restaurants that hasn’t fully reopened since the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers continue coming for afternoon tea, but for more than six years, this chic dining room has mostly been empty after dark. Mark your calendars for 2028. By Sarah Blaskovich bit.ly/45TxRCe

Federal prosecutors accused former Child and Family Guidance Center CFO Jeffrey Scott Keehn of a scheme that stole about $2.1 million from the nonprofit from 2016 to 2023. Keehn, 55, used the nonprofit's checking account to write fraudulent checks to himself. He falsely claimed the payments were being made to medical providers and other vendors. https://lnkd.in/eY6NMReH

Publisher Grant Moise writes: We're making it easier for you to ask us why we covered a story the way we did, why we chose one headline over another, why a name was or wasn’t included, or why we made an editing decision you disagreed with ... and getting a real answer. We're introducing the Reader Response Editor. This person’s job is to be your direct line into the newsroom, helping track down your questions, talking to the journalists involved, and making sure an editor responsible for that content gets back to you with a real answer. bit.ly/4xn0DqS

What to know about three-year degrees in Texas Read more in the comments. https://lnkd.in/eh29bk8x

Bird nests across North Texas may look ordinary on the outside; but a closer look reveals an unusual trend: strips of plastic bags and styrofoam cups. Birds in the area are increasingly using human waste products like these to build their nests. Researchers say it reveals an alarming trend about how trash is impacting our ecosystem. Tap the link in our bio to read more. 🐦⬛ (✍️: María Ramos Pacheco / Staff Writer 📹️: Joe Snell / Video Producer)

A Tennessee airport where Southwest Airlines has a major presence may be renamed after the late country music icon Dolly Parton, who died earlier this week. Parton, a Tennessee native, died at age 80 on Tuesday after a brief battle with cancer, according to previous news reports. https://lnkd.in/eb3suicT

Researchers are tracking how birds incorporate humans’ trash into their nests across North Texas. The project is still in its early stages, but when completed, the details will be shared with Texas Parks and Wildlife. https://lnkd.in/et6SV-XN

Gov. Greg Abbott made a playlist of 16 Texas-themed songs. So we asked the DMN newsroom: What are your go-to Texas songs? 🎧️ Here are the tracks our staff would put on their Texas playlist. What are you adding? 👀 📹️: Shannon Worley / Social video producer