MCKINNEY, Texas -- Collin County commissioners are committed to spending more than half a billion dollars on new freeways in the coming years. But pinpointing the timing of that expense is the looming question.
With a recommendation from the county planning board, the commission was poised on Monday to consider calling a bond election for November. But discussions revealed a split on how to proceed.
Commissioners Duncan Webb and Susan Fletcher wanted an election this fall so money would be available sooner to improve mobility. But the remaining three commissioners wanted more specifics in the plan to ensure buy-in from taxpayers.
"We need consensus on this court before we move forward," County Judge Keith Self said. "We ought to have a county vision to build these new highways."
Getting focused
The focus has been on the extension of U.S. Highway 380, particularly west of U.S. Highway 75, an extension of Spur 399 east of the end of the Sam Rayburn Tollway, a north-south route in the peninsula of Lake Lavon and the Outer Loop west of U.S. Highway 75.
But exact routes are on hold until the Texas Department of Transportation conducts feasibility studies. That could takes months.
And citizen support could depend on which routes are chosen. Commissioners talked about waiting until November 2018 to hold a bond election, but no decision was made.
Collin County is one of the fastest-growing counties in the nation with Frisco and McKinney among the nation's fastest growing cities. Projections show the county's population will reach between 2.5 million and 3.5 million people by 2050. As of Jan. 1, its population was estimated at 932,530.
"We have more people moving here to Collin County than currently live here now," Fletcher said in urging the county to act now.
"We know about how much money it's going to cost, and no bonds would be sold until we knew exactly where that money would be spent," she said. "We've earned the respect and the trust of our constituency to make those decisions."
Postponing the vote also means that the county's costs will likely be higher, Webb said, whether it's in right-of-way purchases, engineering costs or interest payments.
"I'm real concerned that if we don't keep pushing the accelerator here... we're going to send a message to our residents that transportation infrastructure is not as important as we led everyone to believe over the last year and a half," he said.
Too many unanswered questions
Shep Stahel is a member of the county's planning board that recommended the bond election be held this fall. And while the board's recommendation has not changed, Stahel said his opinion has. The success of Collin College in winning voter approval for a $600 million bond package last month suggested to him that the county needed a more detailed transportation plan.
"In order to increase the odds of success, if possible, we need to better define the routes, particularly the route of 380 through the McKinney-Farmersville area and particularly the north-south route from 380 down to the Wylie-Murphy area," Stahel said.
Commissioner Cheryl Williams said there are too many unanswered questions.
"I'm just not prepared to ask people to vote on something without a lot more specificity and clarity to it," she said.
Commissioner Chris Hill acknowledged that there is a danger in moving too slow and losing momentum for new highways. But being too aggressive and not getting enough buy-in also carries risks.
"In the end it's our citizens that are going to have to embrace this vision," he said. "It's the citizens who will have to vote for a $500 million-plus bond, and it's the citizens who will have to pay those taxes."
