It’s a great day for the little guys who put their heads together and created a legal strategy that blocked a major transportation corridor project in Texas that was supported by both Governor Rick Perry and former President George W. Bush. For months (or possibly years) the federal government denied existence of a plan to build a massive NAFTA superhighway project from Mexico to Canada that included The I-35 Trans Texas Corridor. The plan would have included the “condemnation of 146 acres per mile to build the highway.”
Last Oct I met with the local activists fighting this quarter mile wide freeway when Attending an Americans for Prosperity’s “Defending the American Dream” Summit in Washington. As our state did not offer a property rights topic I attended the state of Wisconsin’s break out session where I learned of the Stewards of the Range activity and met Fred Kelly Grant, their President, who is one of the leaders. Their combined groups found a loophole in Chapter 391 of Texas local government code that enabled the “grass roots” opposition to eventually block the state of Texas Master Plan. You can read that Orange Juice post dated Oct 13, 2008.
For those not familiar with the corridor “containers coming from China to a Chinese port in Mexico will be loaded onto sealed Mexican trucks that will be driven north and pass scanners in the “Smart Port” terminal in Kansas on their way to Canada.”
This I-35 corridor was to be the first link in this massive interstate system.
The Oct 7th-8th Press Announcement reads in part: “In a press conference in Austin, Texas, Amadeo Saenz, executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT), announced on behalf of Texas Governor Rick Perry, that the Trans-Texas Corridor, I-35 segment is dead. TXDOT will be recommending the “No Build” option to the Federal Highway Administration.”
Big bucks were behind this massive freeway including the Spanish firm Cintra-Zachary a “75% Spanish owned corporation that was to collect tolls, lease income and fees generated for 50 years.” The press release reveals that “$6.1 million was spent by TTC Contractors for paid lobbyist(s) to get the project through.”
A sweat property rights victory for sure!
The full Press Announcement can be read a the following link:
http://stewards.us/strategies/strategies_pdfs/I35Victory.pdf
Great win for white property owners. Where were these lawyers when Rio Grande Valley border land owners were trying to save their property from being stolen for the building of a border fence. Until you bring down the border wall and return the property to the rightful owners you self conservatives can shut up and stop telling me you all are for property rights. That includes you Seany Hannity, and those who said just build it, they are unamerican, how dare they try to keep the government from building the wall, wait a minute government can’t do anything right, on second thought yeah the government is right, well maybe this time only, build it, take their land, protect Hannity And Rush And Beck. Better said you all are for your own property rights. One nation, with liberty and justice for some.