Tri-county partnership could focus on Outer Loop development

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December 29, 2009

Anonymous The Zope Gazette Tue Dec 29, 2009, 03:13 PM CST

By Jim Hardin

Herald-Banner Staff

Rockwall County commissioners may at some time in the future consider becoming part of a tri-county focus on developing an outer loop from Interstate 35 to Interstate 30.

Collin County is leading the effort to develop a partnership that also would include Denton County.

“The bottom line is Collin County is looking to develop a plan for the outer loop, fully within their county if necessary, but they also would like to get to I-30 and I-35,” consultant John Polster told county commissioners Tuesday.

Polster said Collin County is already talking with private sector firms which are interested in this type of project.

“One of the things they are going to hear, if they haven’t already, is that you need to get to I-30 and I-35,” he added.

Polster said the Outer Loop, a connected ring of multi-lane roads which would circle the Metroplex, is a developing process.

“I don’t think there are any decisions that need to be made by anybody at this point in time,” Polster told commissioners. “I think Commissioner (David) Magness may be asking if there’s any thought you have, is there any guidance you want to give us back as we have more meetings on this.”

Magness said his reason for putting this topic on the commissioners’ work session agenda was an effort to keep everyone informed.

“This is strictly transparency, to make sure everybody‘s aware of what‘s going on as it goes on,” Magness said. “We’re not far enough along to make decisions, but I want to make sure the court is aware of what we have heard on this.”

Royse City City Manager Bill Shipp, Fate City Manager Vicki Mikel and Larry Lott, executive director of Royse City Economic Development, also were on hand to learn more about planned countywide improvements to State Highway 66.

In the original scope of services, Polster said, the plan had two couplets in this corridor, one through Rockwall and one through Royse City.

Polster described a couplet as a two-way facility that breaks apart when it comes into a community. It becomes one way so you don’t have all the traffic traveling through a community on one road.

Part of the scope of services, Polster said, “obviously has to be to ensure that those couplets are consistent with what those jurisdictions want.”

“The intent will be early on to not do schematics right off, but to meet with Rockwall and Royse City and do a planning analysis and make sure what we are providing to the state is consistent with what Rockwall and Royse City want,” Polster said.

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