The Brazos Valley Council of Governments (BVCOG) renews its opposition to Texas Central’s high speed rail project.
The resolution, which was first adopted in 2016, did not receive a unanimous vote among the city and county leaders from the seven county region.
College Station mayor John Nichols voted no, saying that the city and the chamber of commerce are both on record supporting the high speed bullet train.
Grimes County judge Joe Fauth said the reason to renew the resolution is to keep it in front of state lawmakers. Fauth said during a trip to Austin earlier this year, about half the people they spoke with thought it was a dead issue.
Also speaking in favor of continuing the resolution, were Leon County judge Byron Ryder, Leon County commissioner Joey Sullivan, and a Robertson County member of the BVCOG board, Jimmie McCullough of Hearne.
The resolution states the Texas Central project will not meet the threshold of public benefit that historically justifies the use of eminent domain.
Click below to hear comments from the November 8, 2023 BVCOG board meeting.