CITY COUNCIL, COMMISSIONERS TO DISCUSS TxDOT CONCEPTS FOR 290/36 INTERCHANGE
The Brenham City Council may decide Thursday which of the five concepts it prefers for TxDOT’s proposed redesign of the Highway 290 cloverleaf interchange with Highway 36.
The council will meet with Washington County Commissioners Thursday in a joint workshop to discuss TxDOT’s planned improvements to the interchange.
The meeting will provide the council and commissioners an opportunity to review and discuss each proposed plan and work together to prepare a resolution or letter of support for one of the plans. That resolution or letter will be considered for approval at the council’s regular meeting Thursday, then forwarded to TxDOT for their consideration.
At TxDOT’s initial meeting with local officials in March of 2019, three design concepts were presented. One of those concepts, a southern direct connection placing new lanes for Highway 290 just south of the current interchange, has been revised since that first meeting, while two other design options are now up for consideration. The southern direct connection seemed to be preferred by councilmembers and commissioners at that meeting.
A virtual public hearing hosted by TxDOT is open through Friday, allowing the public to watch a video outlining each of the five concepts and provide comments on them. Comments can be emailed to Steve.Higgins@txdot.gov, or by using the comment form on the TxDOT website.
TxDOT expects public hearings on the project to continue next year through 2023, with right of way acquisition taking place in 2024 and 2025. Construction is expected to begin in 2026.
The workshop will be held Thursday morning at 10 a.m. at the ballroom of The Barnhill Center.