Everyone, please go to this link and take the survey which will drive the NCTCOG initial review of public opinion about adding rail, or a bike trail or even a new road project to the current 2035 Mobility Plan. The survey is weighted to get you to select some form of transportation improvement. If you don’t know the 2035 Mobility Plan, get the copy and read over the short presentation. Know what is planned so you are not sucked into solving a problem that doesn’t exist or has a programmed solution.

Simple solutions improving our current roads, like banning trucks in the left lane of I30 from Greenville to Garland and/or making the frontage roads one direction each, and those changes alone would reduce traffic that slows movement to and from Rockwall/Garland due to the causeway across the lake. Allowing HWY 66 to become a 4 lane would revitalize Caddo Mills and remove the impact I30 had on the city by bringing local traffic back to 66 from Rockwall to Greenville. Royce City is growing due to their part of 66 being improved, why not Hunt Co. towns and cities getting the same oppurtunity.Choose your selection carefully and remember his survey counts!

The survey is located on the right side of the webpage in a square showing a car and the question written in orange. There is another survey below it about how information is flowing from NCTCOG to you.

http://nctcog.org/trans/corridor/blacklands.asp

Also please write the NCTCOG an email stating your opinion on how the Blacklands Cooridor should be developed or not developed. Each of your emails will become part of the public record. However, it’s easier for the NCTCOG to see a survey results than read hundreds of emails, so make them do their due diligence and submit both.

This issue will be with us for our generation since Hunt Co. joined the Metroplex. We are looked at as flyover/drive thru land. People outside of our area don’t see our communities, only possible profits from our land. Don’t allow your future to be dictated by politicians. Be part of the solution and growth of our community.

The NETEX/Publicwerks Toll Road that was proposed to run from Greenville to HWY 78 and onwards to the GHWB Tollway is no longer being considered. The Cotton Belt RoW was deemed not suitable for the construction of a new roadway.

NCTCOG has a public meeting scheduled to brief the latest developments In Greenville and the North Texas area on the 20th of March. Please visit the NCTCOG website to get the latest information.

http://nctcog.org/trans/corridor/blacklands.asp

There are ongoing plans to amend the 2035 Mobility Plan.

http://northtexasteaparty.org

scroll down to the Far North Dallas Tea Party HD 102 Forum.

This plan to develop a passenger rail along this RoW is one of many proposed amendments to the current Mobility Plan. It is meeting with public resistance since it would be at considerable public subsidy with your tax dollars, so don’t stop paying attention to what our elected officials in the Metroplex are contemplating with our tax dollars.

I expect these proposals to be discussed at the meeting on the 30th of March.

Hopefully you’ve seen the billboard near the intersection of Hwy 205 and 78. It is paid up through mid January. To keep it up for another month, we need $250. If anyone would like to contribute to the cause, please contact us. Thanks!

Here is the lease that TTC/Publicwerks asked the Texas AG to keep out of the public record.It took until last Friday to get the lease made public.
Please note-NETEX had no issue releasing this lease back in January.

AG Letter with Enclosures & copy of lease

The content of this lease was a major reason that there was a 6-5 vote by the NETEX board at the approval meeting in January. Specific changes to the lease discussed in previous meetings that were supposed to be included, were not included in the version that passed. The 5 nay votes do not see this lease as being a good business deal to meet the funding requirements that NETEX requires.
Also, the possibility of a non compete clause is not clarified in this lease and could be required by investors.
Another recent issue is the new bill that was sponsored and introduced by Rep. Dan Flynn that became SB 1110 that now allows local governments to use sales and property taxes to fund toll roads opens the door as a funding tool for public money to be used to fund this toll road. While this hasn’t been suggested yet, the enthusiasm that Judge Horn has shown for this Blacklands Corridor toll road, I could  see him looking for a reason to seek approval to gain access to the tools of this new law to fund this toll road ( and no doubt other projects).

Look over this lease with as much detail as possible and bring up your questions here in the blog and at the NTCOG and RTC meetings and demand answers to your questions.

This proposed bill will affect all Texans, not just the ones against the the Blacklands Corridor proposal.
All of the discussion about no public money being used or our taxes being used for funding this toll road or any toll road is rapidly changing. If/when this bill becomes law, you will pay additional and higher taxes to travel on a toll road funded under this law, Plus the toll fee.
The initial version passed the Senate on 4/2/2013.
A modified version of the bill passed the House today and the revised version goes back to the Senate for final vote.
Contact our Senators ASAP to tell them you are against the use of property and sales taxes to fund toll road construction. The language of this bill is very broad and will lead to increased property taxes across Texas as local governments use it to deem underdeveloped or non developed land into Transportation Reinvestment Zones ( see Bill language in this link below).
SB1110
This Bill, SB1110 was a surprise to NCTCOG and Hunt Co. Commissioner Jay Atkins.
Amanda Wilson with NCTCOG called it to the attention of their legal team so they could take a look at it.
Once again the people that we elected are moving very fast to pass legislation that we have no visibility on and will affect everyone in Texas. Get involved and let our State Senators and Representatives know that you don’t want your property taxes and sales taxes to go to construction of toll roads. They won’t use current rates, government always raises taxes.
Even if you are for toll roads are you for paying for road construction with your property tax, every time you purchase any item and then the toll to use the road?

Just heard a rumor that Public Werks is in Austin shopping amendments that would help them get around some of the obstacles they are facing in getting approval for the Blacklands Toll Road. Apparently they don’t want to have to deal with NCTCOG/RTC, NTTA, local officials, and especially the PUBLIC! I have not been able to get any specifics, but we have to stay ahead of this. PLEASE contact the House and Senate transportation committees, and let them know there is much public opposition to this project. Tell them why this is a bad idea for our communities and how this corporation is seeking to profit on the backs of private citizens. Public Werks does not care what the public wants, and they don’t want you to speak out. They are denying the public the transparency we deserve. Let them know you are still here and you are not going to be silent. Click the link below to email everyone on the House & Senate transportation committees. If you can, call some of the members as well, especially those closest to this area. Their phone numbers are below. (Be sure to include your full name, address, and phone number in all correspondence.)

Email Transportation Committees

House Transportation Committee
Rep. Larry Phillips (Sherman-Denison/Grayson Cty area) – 512-463-0297
Rep. George Lavender (East Texas) – 512-463-0692
Rep. Allen Fletcher (Houston) – 512-463-0661
Rep. Debbie Riddle (Houston) – 512-463-0572
Rep. Linda Harper-Brown (Irving/North Texas) – 512-463-0641
Rep. Yvonne Davis (Dallas) – 512-463-0598
Rep. Cindy Burkett (Mesquite/North Texas) – 512-463-0464
Rep. Ruth McClendon (San Antonio) – 512-463-0708
Rep. Joe Pickett (El Paso) – 512-463-0596
Rep. Mando Martinez (Hidalgo County/the Rio Grande Valley) – 512-463-0530
Rep. Robert Guerra (Hidalgo County/the Rio Grande Valley) – 512-463-0578

Representative Dan Flynn – (512) 463-0880
Representative Scott Turner – (512) 463-0484
Representative Jodie Laubenberg – (512) 463-0186
Senator Bob Deuell – (512) 463-0102
Senator Ken Paxton – (512) 463-0108
Senator Craig Estes – (512) 463-0130

The Texas AG has denied CottonBelt Turnpike LP request for an exception to the Public Information Act to prevent certain parts of the lease with NETEX from being made public. ( NETEX had no issue with releasing the lease, but the NETEX lawyer made the request based on a request from TTC/Publicwerks after several FOIA requests were made.) The NETEX lawyer, Mr. Banowsky has been very professional during this entire process.

AG FOIA NETEX letter 4-11-2013

Please read the entire letter from the TX AG office as it does explain what TTC/ Publicwerks was attempting to call proprietary information and prevent our examination of the lease that NETEX signed with them on 1/9/2013 with a vote of 6-5.

The nay votes were all very concerned with the language contained in the lease, and specific language (they were assured would be included from a previous review of a draft) not contained in the lease that was approved .

All of the nay votes included issue with how the lease affected NETEX’s ability to make any profit by leasing any RoW to TTC/ Publicwerks and allowing them to run a private toll road as a means to raise funds for the NETEX Rural Railroad District.

When we have a copy of the lease we will post it.

The lawyer from this firm was involved in the I-635 build, DFW airport expansion, Love field and other ED issues.  They only work for land owners. I recommend that we use him as the legal representative to each person that is directly affected by this proposed toll road if the route takes your land or home. Even if you want to take compensation that is offered, you will get much less without legal representation.
Texas is quite brutal with who the law considers as affected by a project like this road, so what would seem as a normal compensation for disruption of farming, vibrations from traffic that cause your home foundation to crack are non compensatory. While there are ways to form a case for folks indirectly impacted by this project, it will require legal representation to achieve any compensation for those who will be adjacent to the proposed toll road.
The meeting with the lawyer was very productive and informative.
We are still too soon to plan for any legal action since we don’t know the route of the proposed toll road.
We need to focus on a strong public showing at all public hearings about this proposed toll road to demonstrate we are against this project.
One fact is clear, you will not be compensated as much if your property is taken if you do not have legal representation. If you try to deal with this alone, you will get a lower ammount.
We are working with a highly reputable attorney that will tell us the truth with regards to the law, this toll road project, he will make sure that those whose property is condemned are compensated to the maximum ammount according to the market and those also directly affected are able to be compensated for the impacts the toll road has on their land, home.
He has asked us to work on these items now-
He has asked us to continue to have as large a homeowners organization as possible and to have a large a showing as possible at all Public hearings where this project is discussed. The project backers are counting on us the home owners getting tired or no longer involved. This will also help with any legal fees because the more we spread this across, the lower the individual costs.(this is not a class action type suit, but we can use our numbers to support each other in each individual settlement).
The upcoming RTC meeting is the most important meeting to date and as many of us as possible need to be there. This arena is our best chance to stop the toll road.
Once the route is announced, he has asked us to be ready to hire an engineer to see what impacts this road will have with regards to possible flooding issues of your land if this toll road is put in.
With the route announcement we will know who exactly will have their homes condemned and those will have portions of their land condemned. These folks will obviously form the core of the individual complaints and the others that are affected by potential flooding, or other indirect impact issues( he explained what these were but I didn’t want to bring these out in public since we are preparing for possible legal action)will be the rest of the individuals forming the group using legal means to ensure that they are as compensated as much as possible according to the law.
We will have a local meeting soon to explain why we recommend this lawyer, passing out TX ED information packets and going over all of our options for those directly affected and those adjacent to the proposed toll road.

NCTCOG has 3 meetings planned for March 11, 12, and 13. We need a really good showing at at least one of these meetings. Times and places are listed on the events page. The one most convenient is probably at 6:30pm on March 12 in Richardson. Please post on this site or facebook if you can attend. These are meetings where public input is encouraged. They need to hear us loud and clear regarding the toll road. The regular RTC monthly meeting, which is on March 14, is open to the public, but the public is not allowed to speak. From we understand, this month the Blacklands Toll Road is still an information item. Next month at the RTC meeting, it will be voted on as an action item to add it to the Metropolitan Transportation Plan. Then things may really get interesting.