The Denton County Commissioners Court on Tuesday hosted a second and final bond workshop for the proposed Denton County Transportation Improvement Program 2022 (TRIP 22).
The workshop was conducted under the “committee of the whole” concept in which all attendees are part of the committee and thereby allowed to participate in discussion about the proposed bond election, according to a county news release.
“We have been identifying projects for this list for many years. We have worked with each one of our cities,” said Denton County Judge Andy Eads, adding the county also has worked with the North Central Texas Council of Governments and the Texas Department of Transportation. “These projects do not happen overnight,” he said, likening the process to meeting with a lender first to figure out financials before buying a house.
More than 100 people attended the Tuesday afternoon workshop at the Denton County Administrative Courthouse, including officials from state and local municipalities including Double Oak, Hickory Creek and Shady Shores – to name a few.
“That’s where we are in this process,” Eads said. “I think it’s important that we realize that. If you are concerned about a particular alignment, today’s venue is probably not the meeting for that. There will be a very lengthy and in-depth meeting on environmental clearance where that conversation will talk place.”
As part of the proposed TRIP 22, Denton County is proposing such major projects as Loop 288 West, Loop 288 east frontage roads, FM 1171 West, I-35W frontage Roads, Hwy 377 north and the Outer Loop from I-35 to the Dallas North Tollway at the Denton County line, according to the county. The location of the Outer Loop has not yet been defined, officials said, though considerable discussion centered on how the county would include residents on any upcoming environmental clearance meetings when the project gets underway in the years to come. County officials also told residents that the Outer Loop project is a TxDOT project that will be built, regardless of the outcome of a bond election.
A number of projects, at least 118 to date, are also included in each of the county’s four precincts for a total proposed TRIP 22 bond package of approximately $568 million, which represents Denton County’s costs. In short, Denton County covers the engineering and other start-up costs to ensure projects get to the front of the line to procure funding from TxDOT, officials said. The county also works with municipalities to help fund major thoroughfares.
To date, Denton County Commissioners, working with partners such as TxDOT and local municipalities, have utilized the voter-approved proceeds of $187 million from the 2004 road bond program and $310 million from the 2008 road bond program to fund and construct more than $8.4 billion in roadway projects throughout the county. Eads said the Commissioners Court worked closely with municipalities to draft the list of road projects. And, he said, the average resident may not realize how long it takes to get a road built. Mayors from Lakewood Village, Lewisville, Little Elm and Northlake expressed appreciation and thanked the court for the projects included in the project.
Denton County is just now spending the last of the 2008 bonds. Denton County is fiscally set to issue new road bonds with a strong AAA rating and a healthy balance of $83 million in the fund balance – all of which would likely result in no increase in the tax rate and a potential decrease in coming years as property values continue to increase.
“Going ahead and getting these projects designed, engineered and going will save us a lot of money,” Eads said earlier, adding that having the bond election now would allow the county to keep up with the population growth of 38.1% since 2010 as well as plan ahead at a time when interest rates are lower. Currently, Denton County sees a population growth of 82 individuals every day. It also will result in cost savings to taxpayers, Eads said.
Commissioners Court will consider a vote on Aug. 16 to call a bond election for Nov. 8. A list of the proposed projects can be found here.
