YES Prep. Northside Secondary School

YES Prep. Northside Secondary School is a new two-story secondary school being constructed at 2609 Bennington St. in Houston. The project, registered with TDLR in August 2025, involves the new construction of an 86,353-square-foot facility with an estimated cost of $18,000,000. This development is located in the Eastex-Jensen Area of Harris County and is privately funded on private land.

YES Prep. Public Schools is the owner of record for this specific site. The registered accessibility specialist for the filing is Tim Mullins, and the design firm of record is Element Architects. TDLR completed the plan review in August 2025, clearing the way for physical work to begin. Construction is scheduled to start in May 2026 and is scheduled to finish in August 2027. This timeline represents a build window of 457 days, which is longer than the 219-day median for similar new construction projects in Harris County over the last 24 months.

Project Scale and Context

At $18,000,000, the estimated cost for YES Prep. Northside Secondary School places it in the top quarter of new construction filings in Harris County, well above the county median of $750,000. The cost per square foot is calculated at $208, which is above the county median of $88 per square foot. The size of 86,353 square feet is significantly larger than the median new construction size of 8,962 square feet in the region. These figures indicate a substantial institutional build rather than a small commercial addition.

YES Prep. Public Schools has six other TDLR-registered projects in Houston, totaling $50,050,000, including new schools in the 5th Ward and West Houston areas. Element Architects, the design firm, has also registered six other projects across Texas, ranging from retail spaces in League City to a school in Houston. This pattern suggests a coordinated expansion of educational infrastructure by the owner and a diverse portfolio for the design team.

The site is situated in ZIP code 77093, where U.S. Census estimates for 2023 indicate a population of about 46,091 and a median household income of $41,958. The area is characterized by mostly owner-occupied housing, with a median home value of $122,400. Nearby businesses include an Exxon gas station, Polk's Cut Lounge, and Reading Truck - Houston. The Harris County unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in June 2026, higher than a year earlier, providing a broader economic backdrop for the local labor market during the construction phase.