Home > Eye on the Road > Archives > 2008 > February
February 2008
Eminent Domain
The most emotional and controversial aspect of the TTC project is the taking of private land for public use by the government. Those whose property is at risk say no amount of money the government offers is enough because their property isn’t for sale.
But this process, known as eminent domain, is nothing new. All levels of government can take land in the name of the public interest.
Here’s a selection from an article The Daily Sentinel published last year about the issue. The process of eminent domain begins when a federal, state or local jurisdiction determines that private property (or a piece of it) could be useful for construction of a public works project, such as a highway, railroad or water tower. Nacogdoches uses calculations from an independent assessor to offer a fair price for the land. The city is usually receptive to small negotiations, but City Manager Jim Jeffers concedes that property valuation isn’t always simple.
“While there are standards for appraisers to use,” explains Jeffers, “there is also a certain amount of subjectivity, a certain amount of art in determining what the value of a piece of property is.” Because appraisal values assume a willing buyer and a willing seller, the actual value of the property might be different from what the city offers.
If, after all reasonable negotiations, the owner refuses to sell or wants more money than the city is willing to pay, the city can vote to condemn the property, the next step towards the forced acquisition.
Of course, in the TTC example, the state, not the city, would condemn land.
The opinionated and well-researched blog Gideon’s Trumpet has done a remarkable job of discussing some of the case law and historical precedent for eminent domain, which is a murky and outraging concept to many.
To help decipher the law in Texas, the state attorney general publishes a handbook called “Eminent Domain Made Easy” (PDF).
Regardless of legal provisions, it’s obviously from public comments that land owners aren’t giving up without a fight.
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Gas Wells in Corridor Path
Gas wells are on the list of environmental items considered in the DEIS. Without a handy map, however, it’s hard to visualize exactly what’s at stake in East Texas, where gas wells are a common sight.
Philip Sovinsky has prepared this interesting overlap map, plotting the locations of Nacogdoches county gas wells over the proposed route of the TTC.
It looks like there are about 13 wells in the path of the preferred corridor east of the city of Nacogdoches. It’s hard to tell if this is all the wells for sure or if the map is aligned exactly right, but it sure does present an interesting visual for a probably under-imagined consequence of building a new highway.
Thanks, Philip.
Nacogdoches County Commissioners oppose TTC
The Nacogdoches County Commission passed a resolution Tuesday opposing the Trans Texas Corridor, saying Gov. Rick Perry’s vision would “dissect rural Texas” and unnecessarily burden the county.
The resolution (viewable here or in PDF format) calls for the legislature to allow for more public input on the project.
Phillip Russell on CNN
I’ve posted a clip dated Feb. 19 from Lou Dobbs on CNN where TxDOT official Phillip Russell (subject of our previous posts here and here) articulated TxDOT’s reason for building the TTC. In short, he said Texas must find a way to accommodate the truck traffic coming through Texas from Mexico.
The clip is also notable because it shows Ron Paul, presidential candidate and U.S. Rep. from Texas criticizing the corridor project.
What I want to know is the result of the poll Dobbs promotes at the very end of the clip. Did anyone participate in that?
Finance Follow-up
During yesterday’s remarkable address at the Lone Star Legislative Summit — after Phillip Russell said there would likely be no superhighway in East Texas — a surprisingly unfazed audience asked about railroads and fuel prices, shedding some light on another huge issue lurking in the background of the whole state transportation issue.
TxDOT is running out of money, can no longer depend on federal financing, and should probably start tolling roads, said a series of independent financial audits presented to the agency last summer.
This audit finds that despite the availability of new funding mechanisms, there are fundamental weaknesses in transportation finance.
TxDOT has also apparently learned from a federal report released earlier this month that says the U.S. transportation system
…is in a physical and financial crisis because current revenue is insufficient to maintain and improve this country’s highways, public transportation systems and intermodal connectors.
Recommendations from that report, available in an easy-to-read release here and on the TxDOT Web site, include raising the fuel tax and tolling roads more heavily.
No surprise, then, that this is exactly what Phillip Russell suggested during his talk yesterday. He said the gas tax has been static since 1991 and does not increase as gas prices increase. He also pointed out that TxDOT only receives a percentage of the tax, since part of it is funneled into other programs. Plus, increased vehicle efficiency in the past few years has reduced the amount of gas consumed, weakening the solvency of the gas tax. Something needs to change. Russell said:
The gas tax probably does need to be increased a little bit … From a TxDOT viewpoint — whatever the legislature — whatever tools they give us — we’re gonna utilize. If it’s a gas tax, were gonna use it. If it’s Trans Texas corridor, we’re gonna use it.
And the amount of fuel tax increase Russell’s talking about? About a dollar per gallon.
I’m curious what sits better with readers: paying a dollar extra per gallon, or paying to drive on new roads? From the data and reports, it seems like we’re soon in store for either a tax hike or toll roads — or both.
UPDATE: All of this comes as Reuters is reporting a new probe into TxDOT accounting practices. According to the article, The Texas legislature has
asked the auditor to probe included forecasts for higher maintenance costs that do not “seem to show a complete and accurate financial picture.”
TxDOT likely to expand U.S. 59
It’s hard to judge how much to weigh this apparent bombshell, but a prominent TxDOT official said repeatedly Thursday that in the wake of public outcry, he believes the state transportation agency will build additional lanes on U.S 59 instead of the huge superhighway so reviled by rural East Texans.
Can we stop it? Absolutely it can be stopped. We have a long environmental process ahead of us, and if we come to a point that we don’t think for whatever reason that we cant build it, then it’s not built … We’ll see what happens with the rest of these public hearings that will be occurring over the next 3 or 4 weeks. I’d be very surprised if we hear any other comments other than “stay on 59 if you build it.” I would anticipate — me as one person at TxDOT — thats where my view is, that we need to look very closely at 59, add lanes to 59….
Is it still possible that it might make sense to have all (the utilities) in a single corridor? Yes. But it is it more likely that it’ll be separated and there will be pieces here and there? Yeah. I think clearly that’s the direction we’re heading. — Phillip Russell, assistant executive director of innovative project development for TxDOT
Now, to be clear, this is only one man’s view of the situation, and there’s a whole legally-mandated process to wade through yet. But at the very least, the remarks are proof that TxDOT has gotten the message that lots of folks are not happy about the TTC.
But how significant are these comments? First, Russell is pretty non-committal. He hasn’t promised anything, only that he suspects TxDOT will look extra-hard at alternatives to building a whole new corridor. TxDOT policy is to do that anyway. Next, cynics will suspect this is just a PR move to help make a bitter pill a bit easier to swallow.
Maybe the most interesting part of Russell’s comment is the idea of splitting off railroads from utilities from highways in different areas. I asked Russell after his talk if the maps for the study area or preferred corridor would change. He said no. Those plans will not come until the Tier Two documents sometime down the, uh, road.
If there is one take-away point from all this, it’s that some people at TxDOT are paying attention. Send in those comments.
TxDOT reps to address timber concerns
The Angelina/Nacogdoches Counties Forest Landowners Association will meet at 9 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 23, at the Angelina County Extension Service Building in Lufkin. Speakers will include Cheryl Flood with TxDOT who will present further information on the Trans Texas Corridor. Assisting her will be Steve Bartlett with Barwin Consulting in Nacogdoches. Richard Scott, procurement forester with International Paper Co., and Buddy Hawkins, procurement forester with G&S Lumber Co., will discuss the buying and selling of timber in East Texas. Business of the association will be the election of new officers and board members. The meeting will adjourn following lunch.
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Comment deadline?
March 19 is the deadline for comments on the DEIS. But that doesn’t mean it’s the last time you’ll have a chance to comment.
Following the release of the FEIS (final environmental impact statement), TxDOT will begin a process called “scoping,” where landowners can identify homes, historic sites, bodies of water and other items in the preferred corridor that will lead to the drafting of a series of Tier Two statements, according to Jack Heiss of TxDOT.
All substantive comments will go into the series of documents likely to comprise the Tier Two statements, which will identify the final alignment options for construction of the highway. These documents will likely trigger a whole new round of hearings and comments. So March 19 is the end of commenting for now, but not forever.
But what about this “substantive comments” deal? Heiss said all comments submitted to TxDOT are evaluated but only those that address issues TxDOT can actually do something about will receive serious attention. Foreign investment, border security and the North American Union are issues TxDOT really has no control over, Heiss said. Here’s Heiss on:
Public Comments
A quick point of clarification: while it’s true that no developer has been selected yet, there are two bids out. One is with the Madrid-based Cintra (also called Bluebonnet Infrastructure), and the other is with the San Antonio based Zachry American Infrastructure.
Reminder:Comments can be submitted to TxDOT online here; by mail to I-69. TTC P.O. Box 14228 Austin, TX, 78761; or at one of the remaining public meetings this month.
You have until March 19. Kind of.
The clever and creative folks behind this video deserve some recognition. Who knew the complicated issues surrounding the multi-billion dollar infrastructure upgrade could be summarized in a catchy 12-bar blues?
We looked around on YouTube for some other TTC related videos and found quite a number. Though we can’t vouch for the accuracy of the claims, you’ll find some interesting arguments made here and here.
What do you feel about these videos? Video is a very powerful medium and can hold a lot of sway. But it’s also easy to use video as a distraction and gloss over some of the details. Are videos really any different from printed fliers and brochures?
Have you used the Internet to get your opinion out there? Have clips? Web links? Send them in. We’d love to share them.
The AP story, published here in the Houston Chronicle, examines the struggles of officials in the Rio Grande Valley who are trying to rally support for the highway, hoping that that neglected part of the state finally wins an interstate. It’s interesting to compare the situations in South Texas with the reaction here.
We’ll keep our eye on the wires for other big stories about the TTC. The maps of the TTC route show some interesting splits here and there, most notably up north, where one big orange band - the preferred corridor - heads North through Marshall, and another swings east through Louisiana towards Shreveport. What’s the deal?
Jack Heiss, a project manager for TxDOT explained that the eastern route is not officially part of the TTC, but is the connecting route to the federal Interstate highway 69. The Northern route, which heads to Texarkana, is the official TTC route. The state plans to build both of them around the same time. We’ll continue to look into the other mysterious tendrils of highway that appear on the maps. The Tier One Draft Environmental Impact Statement - the huge document that is the source of most information about the TTC project, also known as the DEIS - is available online, but for those without Internet access or those who really want to pore over the details with a hard copy, you can find it at the Nacogdoches and Lufkin public libraries. Color copiers are available.
Call the Nacogdoches library at (936) 559-2970 or the Lufkin library at (936) 630-0560.
Let’s also take a minute to discuss what exactly is in the document. All “environmental” factors that the TTC would affect are discussed here, but that not only includes what you’d think of normally when you hear “environment,” like bodies of water and endangered species, but also population makeups, air quality, and economic concerns.
The DEIS narrows the original study corridor to several options for where the highway will go. According to TxDOT rules, the agency will examine expanding existing routes like U.S. Hwy 59 first, but will also consider building nothing and building a whole new highway. The purpose of the public meetings this month are to receive public input on this decision.
Maps contained in the DEIS are also published separately here. Nacogdoches and Lufkin are between sections D and E.
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Welcome to “Eye on the Road,” the newspaper’s new blog about the Trans Texas Corridor and its effect on East Texas. Let’s just say citizen reactions to the project has been pretty intense. Over 700 people showed up for the Nacogdoches public meeting at the Fredonia Hotel last week. Many have been following the issue carefully, wading through dense literature provided by TxDOT and rallying at unofficial town meetings in their communities.
This new venture is not alone in tracking the TTC project. Porkus Maximus Tex has assembed a huge amount of information already, and Corridor Watch has also proven to be a dominant force both online and at public meetings.
“Eye on the Road” will try to keep tabs on these and other online reactions to the superhighway and report on new developments that may not be reported in the newspaper. Hopefully the resources of our news-gathering team can help shed some new light on this controversial and important project.
As we start out, I’m curious what readers what to see here. Would you like better, more detailed maps? Would you like analysis or explanation about certain parts of the project? Or do you want specific questions answered about different parts of the project? Leave a comment and we’ll do our best to comply.We listen to them all. Things that are beyond our purview we can’t answer.
Foreign InvestmentNot applicable in this corridor because no developer has been selected yet.
Border SecurityBorder security is a federal matter. We are not putting any new crossings of the border with this facility.
If you could sing your problems away…
TTC makes big news
Which way?
Draft Environmental Impact Statement
A new undertaking
