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Commissioner reports highlight TxDOT delays on SH‑205 and include controversial remarks on mosque development
Summary
Commissioners reported on TxDOT negotiations regarding the John King/SH‑205 exchange and utility relocation costs, and Commissioner Galana made public remarks opposing a proposed mosque development, saying "Islam is not a religion" and pledging to oppose it; the court's road-related discussions included concerns about funding and railroad agreement delays.
During commissioner reports following the business agenda, commissioners updated the court on recent meetings with TxDOT and other stakeholders about the John King/State Highway 205 exchange and construction timing.
Commissioner Galana said TxDOT indicated utility relocation could cost the county an estimated $8 million and that the department had moved money among project segments; he said railroad crossing agreements could take multiple years and that the county would press for project staging and escalatory advocacy to keep work moving. "We're not waiting 2 to 3 years to start this project in Rockwall County," Galana said, urging continued escalation to RTC leadership if necessary.
In the same report, Galana addressed an unrelated land-use matter: a mosque proposed at Turtle Cove and Ridge Road. The commissioner stated his position explicitly: "My personal opinion is that Islam is not a religion. It is a political movement, and I don't want it in Rockwall County. And I plan to fight it with everything that I have all the way to the very end," he said, and encouraged attendance at the planning commission's meeting that evening. Those remarks were offered during commissioner reports and represent the speaker's opinion.
The court did not take further action on the mosque at the meeting; several commissioners noted they planned to attend the P&Z hearing. Separately, commissioners reiterated the need to keep SH‑205 and related projects on the RTC and TxDOT schedules and to pursue local advocacy to resolve funding and staging questions raised by district staff.
