Read my lips....
County officials reiterate view on toll roads
February 10, 2006
By Ron Maloney
The Herald-Zeitung
Copyright 2006
How loudly do you have to holler “No!” before someone hears you?
Comal County Judge Danny Scheel is beginning to wonder.
County commissioners, who have voted unanimously against paying for any roads through tolls, said Thursday they are being “spammed” with e-mails from folks whose concern is the commissioners supposed support for toll roads.
Commissioners more than two years ago looked into legislation that gave local governments the authority to create a sort of miniature road-building body called a “Regional Mobility Authority.” But they discarded the idea because they thought placing toll lanes on roads already paid for through the gasoline tax and state money would be tantamount to double taxation.
Scheel, County Engineer Tom Hornseth, District Attorney Dib Waldrip and other officials met with state and regional staff of the Texas Department of Transportation to work out instead another arrangement for paying for new highway capacity through the county under a scenario called “pass-through” financing in which the county helps finance new construction by issuing bonds later repaid by the state.
Scheel, heatedly discussing the issue at commissioners’ court Thursday, stopped somewhere just short of a rolling boil.
“I got 40 e-mails just this morning from individuals in the north and west parts of the county,” Scheel said. “We have been opposed to toll roads, and there will be no toll roads in Comal County, and we have repeated that position again and again. Their concern is our supposed support for toll roads. I get so upset because I just don’t know how else to get across there are no toll roads in Comal County and we don’t support them — period.”
Scheel noted he has been in newspapers and spoke on the radio addressing the issue.
“I don’t know how else we can get it across that there are no toll roads for Comal County,” Scheel said. “If anyone would like proof, I have a letter on my desk saying just that.”
The pass-through financing agreement the county has negotiated with TxDOT and the Texas Transportation Commission, Scheel said, is unique.
“This is not a common thing,” Scheel said. “It’s a real sweetheart deal for our county. We’ve negotiated hard in bargaining with TxDOT to accomplish this.”
The letter Scheel referred to was one he wrote to TxDOT officials late last year that sets out the funding scenario that was negotiated in this county for U.S. 281 and Texas 46.
“Under the present scenario, the county would pay for 10 percent of the cost of right-of-way and relocation of utilities as usual but, in addition, would loan TxDOT $16 million per project to be repaid by TxDOT in four to five years,” Scheel wrote. “The only new expense in these projects would be the interest on the $16 million during the repayment period, which would be divided proportionately between New Braunfels, Comal County and Bulverde.”
TxDOT could begin acquiring right-of-way for the project this year, and construction could begin in 2008, Scheel said.
“Without our participation, the projects could be 10 to 15 years out,” Scheel said. “I think everyone would agree that with a projected county population of 144,000 residents by the year 2012, we cannot afford to wait.”
Precinct 4 Commissioner Jan Kennady, who last year at the Texas Legislative Conference loudly and publicly confronted Texas Transportation Commissioner Ric Williamson over the toll road issue, saying commissioners and their constituents would never sign on to transportation improvements involving toll roads, has also seen some of the e-mails.
“We’ve been bombarded by people who are against toll roads and who are saying how bad toll roads are,” Kennady said. “The truth is, we have said over and over on numerous occasions that we’re opposed to toll roads. We’ve taken a stand that we do not want toll roads, there will not be any toll roads and U.S. 281 in Comal County will not be a toll road.”
© 2006 The Herald-Zeitung herald-zeitung
February 10, 2006
By Ron Maloney
The Herald-Zeitung
Copyright 2006
How loudly do you have to holler “No!” before someone hears you?
Comal County Judge Danny Scheel is beginning to wonder.
County commissioners, who have voted unanimously against paying for any roads through tolls, said Thursday they are being “spammed” with e-mails from folks whose concern is the commissioners supposed support for toll roads.
Commissioners more than two years ago looked into legislation that gave local governments the authority to create a sort of miniature road-building body called a “Regional Mobility Authority.” But they discarded the idea because they thought placing toll lanes on roads already paid for through the gasoline tax and state money would be tantamount to double taxation.
Scheel, County Engineer Tom Hornseth, District Attorney Dib Waldrip and other officials met with state and regional staff of the Texas Department of Transportation to work out instead another arrangement for paying for new highway capacity through the county under a scenario called “pass-through” financing in which the county helps finance new construction by issuing bonds later repaid by the state.
Scheel, heatedly discussing the issue at commissioners’ court Thursday, stopped somewhere just short of a rolling boil.
“I got 40 e-mails just this morning from individuals in the north and west parts of the county,” Scheel said. “We have been opposed to toll roads, and there will be no toll roads in Comal County, and we have repeated that position again and again. Their concern is our supposed support for toll roads. I get so upset because I just don’t know how else to get across there are no toll roads in Comal County and we don’t support them — period.”
Scheel noted he has been in newspapers and spoke on the radio addressing the issue.
“I don’t know how else we can get it across that there are no toll roads for Comal County,” Scheel said. “If anyone would like proof, I have a letter on my desk saying just that.”
The pass-through financing agreement the county has negotiated with TxDOT and the Texas Transportation Commission, Scheel said, is unique.
“This is not a common thing,” Scheel said. “It’s a real sweetheart deal for our county. We’ve negotiated hard in bargaining with TxDOT to accomplish this.”
The letter Scheel referred to was one he wrote to TxDOT officials late last year that sets out the funding scenario that was negotiated in this county for U.S. 281 and Texas 46.
“Under the present scenario, the county would pay for 10 percent of the cost of right-of-way and relocation of utilities as usual but, in addition, would loan TxDOT $16 million per project to be repaid by TxDOT in four to five years,” Scheel wrote. “The only new expense in these projects would be the interest on the $16 million during the repayment period, which would be divided proportionately between New Braunfels, Comal County and Bulverde.”
TxDOT could begin acquiring right-of-way for the project this year, and construction could begin in 2008, Scheel said.
“Without our participation, the projects could be 10 to 15 years out,” Scheel said. “I think everyone would agree that with a projected county population of 144,000 residents by the year 2012, we cannot afford to wait.”
Precinct 4 Commissioner Jan Kennady, who last year at the Texas Legislative Conference loudly and publicly confronted Texas Transportation Commissioner Ric Williamson over the toll road issue, saying commissioners and their constituents would never sign on to transportation improvements involving toll roads, has also seen some of the e-mails.
“We’ve been bombarded by people who are against toll roads and who are saying how bad toll roads are,” Kennady said. “The truth is, we have said over and over on numerous occasions that we’re opposed to toll roads. We’ve taken a stand that we do not want toll roads, there will not be any toll roads and U.S. 281 in Comal County will not be a toll road.”
© 2006 The Herald-Zeitung
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Friday, February 10, 2006
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