The Dispatch: Bunkhouse's New Hotel, New York's Tolls and The Future of EVs

Bunkhouse Hotels, the company credited with transforming South Congress in Austin with the Austin Motel, Hotel San Jose and more and introducing the world to El Cosmico, the nomadic campground in Marfa (though it is no longer a part of Bunkhouse), has opened a brand new 71-room hotel in Houston called Hotel Saint Augustine. This one's pretty fancy.

The hotel opened in mid-January in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood on Museum Row, adjacent to the Menil Collection campus and the Rothko Chapel. Saint Augustine is Bunkhouse’s first hotel in Houston, but it's been long-gestating. As far back as 2008, Bunkhouse's plans to open a hotel in Houston's bustling cultural neighborhood have been public.

Saint Augustine boasts 71 hotel rooms and suites, an event space and a circular courtyard pool. Dining-wise, the hotel has the Augustine Lounge and Listening Room, which serves breakfast, an all-day menu alongside a full bar and doubles as a listening room—one of the more on-trend bar formats in 2025. Its marquee restaurant is Perseid, a French-bistro-style restaurant steeped in Gulf Coast influence by way of chef and restaurateur Aaron Bludorn—a semifinalist for the 2024 James Beard Awards. His namesake restaurant was also recommended by the Michelin Guide last year, after its first trip to Texas.

Naturally, as it is situated in the heart of a beautiful four-square-mile neighborhood flush with museums, Saint Augustine has a high focus on design. Across five two-story buildings on 2.2 acres, each building is connected by open-air bridges and porches; the hotel grounds are enlivened by courtyards, outdoor pathways, heritage oak trees and gardens featuring eyelash sage, dwarf rock palm and blue rabbit’s foot fern. On the inside you'll find a lobby desk made of burled walnut with marble accents, moody dark-painted walls and antique mirrors. — H. Drew Blackburn

For more information and to book a stay visit bunkhousehotels.com/hotel-saint-augustine.

A fight has been brewing over commutes in New York City.

On Jan. 5, the city launched a congestion pricing program, which charges passenger cars up to $9 (and more for trucks and buses) at peak times when entering something called the Congestion Relief Zone near Central Park.

The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) says fees support public transit improvements while reducing traffic, improving quality of life and environment, and speeding up emergency vehicle response times. At month’s end, Juliette Michaelson, the MTA Deputy Policy Chief, says the numbers show “transformative improvements” including faster crossing times at tunnels and bridges and an uptick in public transit ridership.

Opponents of the plan include New Jersey’s Gov. Philip D. Murphy, who advocates for commuters from his state, and President Trump, who has vowed to end the program, which could set off a legal battle between state and federal government. - Jennifer Justus

When the new Scout Traveler SUV and Terra pick-up truck hit the market in 2027, they’ll be packing more than just impressive off-road capabilities and stylish good looks. The EVs will also come with built-in satellite internet connectivity, allowing them to serve as Wi-Fi hotspots at home or the campsite. That means even when wandering off-grid, you can still watch Netflix, post to social media, and ask ChatGPT what to make for dinner with what’s in your cooler. - Kraig Becker

A few months back, Wildsam offered a wide-ranging report we called The Future of the Road. And while our stories touched on many aspects of travel, if you had to pick a theme, it was probably electricity.

Our many interviews with industry and technology experts tended to circle back to the on-going electrification of road travel, from immediate improvements to battery technology to sci-fi-sounding possibilities. (An electrified road? Giant charging pads at RV parks?) The advent of a new federal administration has, of course, carved some new bends into the road—notably, President Trump’s executive order rescinding a previous mandate that 50 percent of U.S.-made vehicles be EVs by 2030.

Funding for state deployment of EV charging stations is also on hold. But as with many current and unfolding developments, the true outcome of these moves is likely to be nuanced, in the view of many who watch the related industries closely. One such expert, EV-specialist attorney Levi McCallister, told National Public Radio: "Let's say they roll back everything … Is there a demand for these products? And if there is, there will be manufacturing for those products." - Zach Dundas