Thursday night, about 180 people packed the covered patio of an East Austin restaurant to get a close look at State Representative Joaquín Castro. He’s running in the new Congressional District 35, and this was his first campaign event — staged in the backyard of Congressman Lloyd Doggett, his potential 2012 Democratic primary opponent.

The wooden benches in Judge Tessa Herr's courtroom looked especially pew-like at Wednesday morning's preliminary skirmish for the murder trial of Jon Thomas Ford. The 43-year-old is accused of killing ex-girlfriend Dana Clair Edwards in the early-morning hours of January 1, 2009. The families of the victim and the defendant sat straight and somber in neat rows, Dana Clair's parents in the front, Ford's family arrayed behind them, like Protestant congregants awaiting a sermon. It was an unusually well-dressed and proper crowd for the halls of justice. There was no small talk.

Last week, I had the occasion to visit both the Office of Cultural Affairs and the Bexar County Appellate Public Defender. Here's what they have in common: they've both recently moved to new locations. The Public Defender, which handles appeals for criminal defendants who can't afford an attorney, is now housed in the County's new Paul Elizondo Tower, while OCA has taken up residence in the bright and airy International Building in a colorful space filled with contemporary sculpture.

Here's what's different: OCA's website is current, so if you check it before you head downtown, you'll end up at the right location rather than at the old Casa de Mexico on Houston Street, where a printed notice taped to the doors alerts wayward visitors to the change of address. The Public Defender's virtual home still directs you to a dark and forbidding hallway behind a locked glass door in the tattered Heritage Plaza building on South Main. So does the inside signage, for that matter. Its published staff roster is equally misleading, listing attorneys who are no longer with the office.

After weeks of gauging support and trying to shoo away San Antonio rivals, State Representative Joaquín Castro said Friday that he’ll run in the brand-new Congressional District 35 in 2012, potentially pitting him against Congressman Lloyd Doggett of Austin in the Democratic primary.

On Monday, CPS Energy and Mayor Julián Castro will make what’s expected to be a splashy announcement touching on a handful of deals aimed at raising San Antonio’s green-technology profile. The CPS agreements involve as many as five companies that will either relocate here or open regional offices, bringing hundreds of jobs, sources told Plaza de Armas.

It's no secret that State Representative Joaquín Castro has been eying the newly created 35th Congressional district for a possible 2012 election run. Friday night, however, Castro and his brother, Mayor Julián Castro, went public with that interest, in nearly matching Facebook posts asking for support.

Joaquin's post read: "Friends, I am very seriously considering a run for the new 35th Congressional district that runs from San Antonio to Austin. Will you help me if I run?"

By Saturday morning, he had nearly 100 Facebook comments enthusiastically offering support, and nearly 200 people who responded that they "Like" the idea.