Big Bend area officials are asking U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and border wall contractors for more information before they allow the use and potential reconstruction of a county road that leads to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Last week, a subcontractor of Barnard Construction — a company awarded a $2 billion federal contract for border wall building in the region — began what local officials have called unauthorized roadwork on Chispa Road before county officials stepped in to stop the project. The rugged dirt road runs from one of the region’s only highways through Jeff Davis and Presidio counties to the Rio Grande.
With the work temporarily halted, county officials are working to establish rules and procedures for wall contractors to follow moving forward.
Big Bend residents meanwhile showed up in large numbers to county meetings in Marfa and Fort Davis this week to decry the premature roadwork and implore county officials to do everything in their power to stop, or at least slow down, the border wall plan.
“Y'all are the first line of defense,” former National Park Service ranger Michael Ryan said. “I beg you to do everything you can to oppose this wall construction, these man camps.”
On Thursday, Jeff Davis County officials voted to table a decision on accepting what the county had described as a “gift” from Barnard for the reconstruction of Chispa Road. Jeff Davis County oversees a portion of the road, while the majority of it runs through Presidio County.
Jeff Davis County Judge Curtis Evans said the county is liable for what happens to drivers on the road, and before commissioners can allow Barnard to improve the road the company will have to provide detailed construction drawings and sign a formal contract.
“If it was done improper and the road washes out, the county's liable,” Evans said. “So this is why it is halted until we receive a contract that is agreed upon by the county – that has teeth – and by the federal government.”
Most residents at Thursday’s meeting urged county officials not to accept the free roadwork, saying it would only fast-track the border wall plan. Locals also worried the county would be on the hook for costly long-term road maintenance.
Fort Davis resident Annette Carter — who used to work with the Department of Defense and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in operations and real estate — said she is primarily concerned with the destruction of archeological and cultural resources along Chispa Road.
“ Ultimately, the government has not done their duty here,” Carter said. “I worked with them for 30 years and I know what they should have done, and I agree wholeheartedly that the authority they used was inappropriate and therefore the whole action needs to start over if they want to proceed.”
Brewster County resident Travis Dimler said if the contractor’s use of the road is inevitable, officials should ensure it’s properly engineered and enforce control measures like inspections and dust abatement.
“If you are forced into a position to do something that you don't — perhaps delay as long as possible — but if you have to do it, use your leverage to get the most out of the situation,” Dimler said.
Because Chispa Road is an old route, county officials aren’t even sure of its true boundaries. Presidio County Commissioner Deirdre Hisler told Jeff Davis County officials that she and County Attorney Blair Park have asked CBP and Barnard to locate deeds and titles to the road themselves.
“ I'm not sure that y'all know what your county road actually consists of,” Hisler said. “We sure as hell don’t.”
On Wednesday, Presidio County officials tabled an initiative to establish a permitting process for the special use of county roads, citing the need for additional time. Park told Marfa Public Radio the permitting process will likely require contractors to submit detailed plans and a timeline as well as take out surety bonds to protect county infrastructure.
Barnard Construction representatives were originally set to attend the Wednesday meeting but backed out because they were not ready to present, according to Hisler.
David Spencer, a field supervisor with Barnard Construction, declined to comment on the Chispa Road issues.
Contractors previously told Jeff Davis County officials and the Van Horn Advocate that the road may be expanded to be up to 24-feet wide and to allow for speeds up to 50 mph.
Yolanda Alvarado, a fifth generation cattle rancher who frequents Chispa Road, said proper signage of speed limits and road boundaries need to be considered for everyone’s safety.
“ I have experience when the oil field was out there drilling for oil on the land,” Alvarado said. “I passed by many contractors and 18-wheelers and that was the first time I was afraid for my life out there.”
Hisler said CBP officials told her they had no knowledge of the contractor’s roadwork in a meeting with Presidio County officials this week. In that same meeting, Hisler said, Barnard Construction told her they had not surveyed the road but intended to follow its existing path — something she said is problematic because alternate routes have been carved out over the years after rain washed out portions of the road.
Hisler said she was assured that roadwork on Chispa Road is on hold for now, while officials await more information.
“ We, as a community, should offer our suggestions and if we choose to push back, we should push back as much as we can until the dirt is moved on the project,” Hisler said.
CBP is still planning to construct 175 miles of border wall from Hudspeth County through much of Presidio County, but very little has been shared publicly on the plans, which have garnered widespread bipartisan opposition. The Center for Biological Diversity and the Texas Civil Rights Project sued CBP this week over claims that the agency has improperly withheld public records on the plans.
Brewster County Judge Greg Henington said requests for clear communication on the border wall plans — including details on what “detection technology” means — were the subject of a call he participated in this week between five Big Bend area county judges, Sen. John Cornyn and Chief of the U.S. Border Patrol Michael Banks.
According to Henington, CBP officials said on the call that more detailed plans on the Big Bend border wall will be coming out in the next couple of weeks and that the agency wants to hold town halls in each community.
In a statement Friday, a CBP spokesperson said that while the agency is holding “stakeholder meetings with local elected officials,” the agency is not currently planning meetings with the public.
“At this time, there is no plan to hold ‘public hearings,’” the spokesperson said.
This reporting was made possible by generous donations from supporters like you. Please consider making a donation to Marfa Public Radio to fund the journalism you rely on.
