“The route as currently proposed would be disastrous to the economy of Hillsboro.”
Hillsboro crowd blasts plan to build Trans-Texas Corridor east of town
July 14, 2006
By Dan Genz
Waco Tribune-Herald
Copyright 2006
HILLSBORO — Hundreds of business owners, ranchers and politicians greeted preliminary plans to build the Trans-Texas Corridor about 15 miles east of Hillsboro with strong reservations at a public hearing at Hill College Thursday night.
“The route as currently proposed would be disastrous to the economy of Hillsboro,” Hillsboro Mayor Pro Tem John Erwin said.
But Texas Department of Transportation officials told the crowd that the state will need a much larger highway system to accommodate projected population growth over the next few decades and said the rural area east of town makes for the best route for connecting Laredo to Oklahoma.
They said after assessing numerous alternatives over the last two years, they believe the best option is within a 10-mile-wide zone announced in March that crosses the eastern portion of Hill County.
Opposition speakers warned the plan would eliminate more than 2,000 acres of Hill County farmland and devastate a thriving commercial sector.
Gas stations, hotels, auto dealers and outlet mall retail stores depend on the existing highway, Interstate 35, for their survival, Erwin said.
Independent gubernatorial candidate and Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn received applause throughout a pointed speech opposing the corridor, calling it the “Trans-Texas Catastrophe.”
State officials said they were not surprised by the heavy turnout — more than 325 attended Thursday’s public hearing.
Department of Transportation spokesman Ken Roberts said one of the toughest aspects of the hearings is that it is much too early in the process to answer the most pressing questions of attendees.
“People want to look at this map and know how this is going to affect them, but we’re not there yet,” Roberts said.
Years away from route
The state is years away from announcing a specific route for the road and construction won’t begin for five years.
He also said convincing the public of the advantages to the new highway has been hampered by misinformation about the project.
He said some opponents presume any territory within the 10-mile proposed zone for the road will be impacted, while the road will make up just a fraction, one-fortieth, of that space.
A state presentation demonstrated how the corridor will be divided between passenger traffic lanes, truck lanes and passenger and freight rail, with each phase developed as demand arises.
Roberts challenged opponents to present other options for meeting the traffic demand.
“It’s easy to say, ‘No.’ It’s easy to say, ‘Don’t build it.’ What we’re not hearing are viable alternatives,” he said.
Strayhorn said the state can build freeways instead of tollways, using bonds to finance the construction. Hillsboro Mayor Will Lowrance and Hill County Judge Kenneth Davis proposed building the road much closer to Interstate 35, instead of in rural territory.
“There is no doubt that the proposed plan is destructive to farmers and to the economy. It is unacceptable, and we cannot accept this as a possibility,” Lowrance said.
Abbott ranch owner Leta Eastland says she sees both sides, because slow traffic along Interstate 35 needs to be relieved somehow, but she hopes it can be done in a way that best accommodates rural landowners.
“Hopefully, they’ll leave the farmland alone, but it’s hectic out here. We need some extra highway, but the land we’re talking about has been in some of these farmers’ families for more than a century,” Eastland said. “It’s not going to be easy.”
dgenz@wacotrib.com
© 2006 Waco Tribune-Herald : www.wacotrib.com
July 14, 2006
By Dan Genz
Waco Tribune-Herald
Copyright 2006
HILLSBORO — Hundreds of business owners, ranchers and politicians greeted preliminary plans to build the Trans-Texas Corridor about 15 miles east of Hillsboro with strong reservations at a public hearing at Hill College Thursday night.
“The route as currently proposed would be disastrous to the economy of Hillsboro,” Hillsboro Mayor Pro Tem John Erwin said.
But Texas Department of Transportation officials told the crowd that the state will need a much larger highway system to accommodate projected population growth over the next few decades and said the rural area east of town makes for the best route for connecting Laredo to Oklahoma.
They said after assessing numerous alternatives over the last two years, they believe the best option is within a 10-mile-wide zone announced in March that crosses the eastern portion of Hill County.
Opposition speakers warned the plan would eliminate more than 2,000 acres of Hill County farmland and devastate a thriving commercial sector.
Gas stations, hotels, auto dealers and outlet mall retail stores depend on the existing highway, Interstate 35, for their survival, Erwin said.
Independent gubernatorial candidate and Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn received applause throughout a pointed speech opposing the corridor, calling it the “Trans-Texas Catastrophe.”
State officials said they were not surprised by the heavy turnout — more than 325 attended Thursday’s public hearing.
Department of Transportation spokesman Ken Roberts said one of the toughest aspects of the hearings is that it is much too early in the process to answer the most pressing questions of attendees.
“People want to look at this map and know how this is going to affect them, but we’re not there yet,” Roberts said.
Years away from route
The state is years away from announcing a specific route for the road and construction won’t begin for five years.
He also said convincing the public of the advantages to the new highway has been hampered by misinformation about the project.
He said some opponents presume any territory within the 10-mile proposed zone for the road will be impacted, while the road will make up just a fraction, one-fortieth, of that space.
A state presentation demonstrated how the corridor will be divided between passenger traffic lanes, truck lanes and passenger and freight rail, with each phase developed as demand arises.
Roberts challenged opponents to present other options for meeting the traffic demand.
“It’s easy to say, ‘No.’ It’s easy to say, ‘Don’t build it.’ What we’re not hearing are viable alternatives,” he said.
Strayhorn said the state can build freeways instead of tollways, using bonds to finance the construction. Hillsboro Mayor Will Lowrance and Hill County Judge Kenneth Davis proposed building the road much closer to Interstate 35, instead of in rural territory.
“There is no doubt that the proposed plan is destructive to farmers and to the economy. It is unacceptable, and we cannot accept this as a possibility,” Lowrance said.
Abbott ranch owner Leta Eastland says she sees both sides, because slow traffic along Interstate 35 needs to be relieved somehow, but she hopes it can be done in a way that best accommodates rural landowners.
“Hopefully, they’ll leave the farmland alone, but it’s hectic out here. We need some extra highway, but the land we’re talking about has been in some of these farmers’ families for more than a century,” Eastland said. “It’s not going to be easy.”
dgenz@wacotrib.com
© 2006 Waco Tribune-Herald :
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Friday, July 14, 2006
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