What’s changed
During a Dec. 10 county meeting, commissioners unanimously approved updates to the transportation plan with Arterial K’s new route, which addresses the public interest’s needs, according to county documents.
Upon its completion, Arterial K will connect I-35 to the East Wilco Highway, according to previous Community Impact reporting.
Precinct 4 Commissioner Russ Boles said the adopted alignment for Arterial K was discussed at a meeting with affected residents.
What they’re saying
Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey, who has been working with Boles and landowners on the project, said she believes this is the county’s best alignment for the road.
“I understand this may not be the resolve that [people we’ve been talking to] want, but they have had an impact,” Boles said. “The alignment has moved; it's gone from a corridor to an arterial [road]. We have been responsive to them in keeping the purpose of future safety and future mobility in mind.”
Public input
Carlton LaBeff with Speedy Stop food stores was planning to develop a convenience store near the intersection of I-35 and Hwy. 195, he said at the meeting. LaBeff was told the new arterial road needs 1.2 acres out of the convenience store’s 14.5-acre property, which has yet to begin development, LaBeff said.
“We want to develop the property, but we got to know what we're going to be able to develop,” LaBeff said.
Updating the route is part of the county’s planning process, and there’s no money for construction or further engineering at this time, Boles said.
“It's your property; if you want to build it where we plan to build a road in the future, we'll address that in the future,” Boles said. “You're not prohibited from developing your property however you want.”
Remember this?
The court’s vote comes after months of public objection on Arterial K, specifically through two community groups that formed in opposition of the road, according to previous Community Impact reporting.
NMAR Georgetown Property Investors LLC purchased land near Arterial K three years ago to develop The Range at Walburg, a housing development, according to previous Community Impact reporting.
Matt Riehs—a Realtor, developer and investor representing NMAR—said he is upset with the court’s decision and hopes additional updates to Arterial K’s route can be made in the future.
“It kills our development,” Riehs said in an interview with Community Impact. “We've had a plat that's been approved for years. Now, our plat’s not any good.”
Commissioners can make additional adjustments to accommodate property owners with a section of the roadway fully on their property, county officials said in an email to Community Impact.
Updates must adhere to general engineering requirements, and officials would not change where the alignment enters and exits a property, the officials said.
What else?
The transportation update includes changes to another proposed corridor on a section of Hwy. 138, which runs from US 183 to Hwy. 195 in Precinct 3, according to county documents.
