Collin County Commissioners on Monday authorized county staff to begin condemnation proceedings, otherwise known as using eminent domain, to acquire the right-of-way needed for a portion of the Collin County Outer Loop between the Dallas North Tollway and Preston Road. The property owners have declined the county's offer for compensation, which was equal to or greater than the fair market value of the property as appraised, according to county documents. The Collin County Outer Loop would extend east from the Denton County and Collin County line south to Rockwall County. It is expected to help relieve traffic on US 380 and SH 78. A final alignment for the roadway was approved in December 2017. The proposed loop already has a two-lane service road that runs between US 75 and SH 121 in Melissa. Construction is projected to eventually begin on another service road from the DNT to SH 121, and eventually run east of SH 78 and south to I-30. The road would be the “next I-635” in terms of moving people across the county, County Judge Keith Self said in a previous interview with Community Impact Newspaper.