diff --git a/CHANGES.md b/CHANGES.md
index e865ca89c..400ab264b 100644
--- a/CHANGES.md
+++ b/CHANGES.md
@@ -15,7 +15,41 @@
 [Unreleased](https://github.com/bird-house/birdhouse-deploy/tree/master) (latest)
 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-[//]: # (list changes here, using '-' for each new entry, remove this when items are added)
+## Changes
+- Allow `env.local` to use delayed eval var immediately
+
+  Before, `env.local` can not immediately use any of the delayed eval var
+  because their real values are only available after `env.local` is fully read.
+
+  So something like this in `env.local` do not work because `JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR`
+  is a delayed eval var:
+  ```sh
+  export JUPYTERHUB_README_FR="$JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR/jupyter-readme/LISMOI.ipynb"
+
+  # Error, file not found even if the file is actually on disk
+  # because JUPYTERHUB_README_FR resolve to "${BIRDHOUSE_DATA_PERSIST_ROOT}/jupyterhub_user_data/jupyter-readme/LISMOI.ipynb"
+  # because JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR is a delayed eval var.
+  if [ -f "$JUPYTERHUB_README_FR" ]; then
+    (...)
+  ```
+
+  `env.local` could simply append `JUPYTERHUB_README_FR` to `DELAYED_EVAL` list
+  but since we need to use its value immediately in `env.local`, we need to
+  eval it immediately.
+
+  With the new `eval_delayed_var`, we can do the following, because
+  `JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR` is a delayed eval var, any vars that depend on it
+  should also be delayed eval'ed.
+
+  ```sh
+  export JUPYTERHUB_README_FR="$JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR/jupyter-readme/LISMOI.ipynb"
+  eval_delayed_var JUPYTERHUB_README_FR
+
+  # Now this works because JUPYTERHUB_README_FR resolve properly to  "/data/jupyterhub_user_data/jupyter-readme/LISMOI.ipynb"
+  if [ -f "$JUPYTERHUB_README_FR" ]; then
+    (...)
+  ```
+
 
 [2.21.2](https://github.com/bird-house/birdhouse-deploy/tree/2.21.2) (2026-02-05)
 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/birdhouse/README.rst b/birdhouse/README.rst
index 918f77ad9..0afe3b223 100644
--- a/birdhouse/README.rst
+++ b/birdhouse/README.rst
@@ -109,6 +109,14 @@ See `env.local.example <env.local.example>`_ (:download:`download </birdhouse/en
 Most variables that can be set in the local environment file (``env.local`` by default) can also be specified as environment variables when running ``bin/birdhouse`` 
 commands. Environment variables will take precedence over those specified in the ``env.local`` file.
 
+In `env.local`, if you wish to immediately use any of the delayed eval variable value, you can use `eval_delayed_var DELAYED_VAR_NAME`
+to compute their value. If not, their real values are only available after `env.local` is read.  If that delayed eval variable depends
+on another variable that you override in `env.local`, then you should define the override before calling `eval_delayed_var`.  Ex:
+`JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR` is a delayed eval var because it depends on the value of `BIRDHOUSE_DATA_PERSIST_ROOT` which can be
+overridden in `env.local`.  So if you need the value of `JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR` immediately in `env.local`, you need to
+`eval_delayed_var JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR` and if you need to override `BIRDHOUSE_DATA_PERSIST_ROOT`, then you need to override it
+before calling `eval_delayed_var JUPYTERHUB_USER_DATA_DIR`.
+
 If the file `env.local` is somewhere else, symlink it here, next to `docker-compose.yml <docker-compose.yml>`_ (:download:`download </birdhouse/docker-compose.yml>`) because many scripts assume this location.
 If autodeploy scheduler job is enabled, the folder containing the `env.local` file needs to be added to `BIRDHOUSE_AUTODEPLOY_EXTRA_REPOS`.
 
diff --git a/birdhouse/read-configs.include.sh b/birdhouse/read-configs.include.sh
index 8e815f003..203304857 100644
--- a/birdhouse/read-configs.include.sh
+++ b/birdhouse/read-configs.include.sh
@@ -372,6 +372,16 @@ check_required_vars() {
 }
 
 
+# env.local can call this function if it wishes to use a delayed eval var.
+# Otherwise all delayed eval vars are only available after env.local is fully read.
+eval_delayed_var() {
+    DELAYED_VAR_NAME="$1"
+    v="`eval "echo \\"\\$${DELAYED_VAR_NAME}\\""`"  # should keep new lines and leading empty spaces
+    value=`eval "echo \"${v}\""`
+    eval 'export ${DELAYED_VAR_NAME}="${value}"'
+}
+
+
 # All scripts sourcing default.env and env.local and needing to use any vars
 # in DELAYED_EVAL list need to call this function to actually resolve the
 # value of each var in DELAYED_EVAL list.
@@ -382,9 +392,7 @@ process_delayed_eval() {
           # only eval each variable once (in case it was added to the list multiple times)
           continue
         fi
-        v="`eval "echo \\"\\$${i}\\""`"  # should keep new lines and leading empty spaces
-        value=`eval "echo \"${v}\""`
-        eval 'export ${i}="${value}"'
+        eval_delayed_var ${i}
         log DEBUG "delayed eval '$(env | grep -e "^${i}=")'"
         ALREADY_EVALED="
           ${ALREADY_EVALED}