Residents urge Brazos County to halt proposed Inner East Loop, cite land loss and eminent domain concerns

Residents and landowners used the public comment portion of the Brazos County Commissioners Court meeting on June 10 to press elected officials to halt planning and contractual steps toward a proposed Inner East Loop on the county’s east side.

Speakers repeatedly raised concerns that the proposed alignment could take homes and ranchland, disrupt livestock operations and wildlife habitat, increase noise and pollution, and accelerate unwanted commercial development. Several called on the court to cancel work by the consultant or the private contract they said was guiding the project.

“I just wanted to say I thank y’all for what y’all do… but progress is good, but sometimes when you have progress, you take many, many things away,” long-time resident Patrick Giamalva said, describing worries about parks and pastures. Karen Ponder, a resident who said she travels widely for work, said, “I have never once looked at the decay that is found inside all of these loops and wish that for our community,” arguing Brazos County did not have the kind of traffic the loop would serve.

A letter read on behalf of David and Gail Hayden by Beverly Greenwood said the road would “jeopardize our way of life” and specifically urged commissioners to end related contracts: “You have the power to cancel Quiddity’s contract and drop this whole agenda,” Greenwood read from the letter.

Russ Ford, chairman of the Republican Party of Brazos County and a former county commissioner, urged the court to make a public commitment against using eminent domain for the alignment. “Tell them that you will not support any alignment that’s gonna take people’s homes and people’s ranches,” Ford said.

Speakers suggested alternatives such as improving and adding overpasses to existing routes — including Highway 30 and FM 158 — widening existing roads, repairing intersections, and addressing flooding at local creeks rather than building a new loop. Diane Crane and Chastity Crenshaw spoke explicitly in opposition; Crenshaw said she rose “in strong opposition to the proposed Inner East Loop.”

Some speakers noted limited transparency and asked for additional public engagement. Nick Pellow and others said preliminary funding and design questions remain, including whether the county would acquire full right-of-way now or build two lanes first and add capacity later.

Ray Arrington, a Bryan city council member who addressed the court during the public comment period, thanked commissioners for participating in a recent town hall and urged continued collaboration among city, county and state officials on transportation planning.

County commissioners did not take an immediate action on the proposed loop during the meeting. Several speakers asked the court to schedule more public town halls and to avoid use of eminent domain; commissioners did not record a public commitment on those requests during the June 10 session.

The public comment segment on the loop threaded across multiple speakers and concluded before the court moved to agenda items; the court took no formal vote on the loop during this meeting.