After first beginning an engineering study in 2003, the Texas Department of Transportation held a public meeting Sept. 22 to receive input on the proposed Magnolia relief route.

“TxDOT is pursuing the project because of the high level of congestion on FM 1488 and FM 1774, particularly at the intersection of FM 1488 and FM 1774 in downtown Magnolia,” said Deidrea George, TxDOT Houston District public information officer. “In addition, TxDOT is pursuing the project at the request of Montgomery County, who has identified this as a priority project.”

The $49.9 million project is designed to funnel traffic around the city’s downtown area through an alternate four-lane roadway.

After the TxDOT study was complete in 2005, the project was temporarily shelved due to a lack of funding but project development resumed in May, George said.

Montgomery County Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley said he has allotted $10 million for right of way acquisition toward the project in the $280 million Montgomery County road bond that will go before voters on the Nov. 3 ballot.

“A lot of people say that if you put a relief route or bypass around some little town, it’s going to dry up,” Riley said. “That’s not what this is going to do. This is just going to help people who are trying to get around Magnolia.”

If the bond is approved by voters, TxDOT is anticipated to fund the remaining $39.9 million needed to construct the 5.3-mile loop roadway beginning at FM 1488 west of downtown Magnolia to FM 1488 on the east side in the coming years, George said.

“We are in the preliminary engineering stage of project development,” George said. “We do not have a projected construction timeline as this project is currently unfunded.”

The project would feature grade-separated overpasses at FM 1774 and the Union Pacific Railroad intersection as well as along the proposed Hwy. 249 extension that would intersect the relief route near the east side of FM 1488, George said.

A number of residents at the Sept. 22 public meeting in Magnolia expressed concerns about the project and its proximity to homes and businesses.

Magnolia resident John Brinkley said the identified preferred route will cross through his 48-acre property near his home along Dogwood Trail.

Brinkley said he might be forced to relocate if the road is constructed.

TxDOT officials will accept public comments regarding the project via mail and email until Oct. 6. All written comments are expected to be compiled into a public meeting summary report by the end of October.