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Right of Way · Eminent Domain &Got a TxDOT letter or a survey request? Call or text (469) 484-7960Status checked October 27, 2026 against TxDOT's own records
US 83 between Eden and I-14 at Junction is part of the future Interstate 14 system. TxDOT is turning about 37 miles of it, from the Concho County line through Menard to I-10 at Junction, into a four-lane divided highway, with frontage roads to follow. To do it, TxDOT proposes a much wider road strip, up to about 470 feet on the north project where today's is about 100 to 120. That land comes from the ranches, homes and businesses along the road. Below: where the two projects run, what TxDOT has scheduled, and what a first offer on a highway taking usually leaves out.
Almost every condemnation case is a fight about a number, not about the law.
Almost every condemnation case is a fight about a number, not about the law.
A photo of the offer is enough — a senior consultant reads it and tells you what we see.
Text (469) 484-7960 →Four documented matters, each traced from the original offer letter to final settlement — two utility easements and two highway condemnations, labelled on each. Not an average and not a prediction; when we look at yours and think the number is close to right, we tell you so. National ROW is a right-of-way consulting firm, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice.
| Official project names | US 83 North of Menard (Concho County line to US 190 north of Menard) US 83 from RM 2291 south of Menard to I-10 north of Junction |
| Agency | Texas Department of Transportation, San Angelo District |
| TxDOT jobs (CSJ) | North: 0035-05-059 · South: 0035-05-060, 0035-06-033, 0035-07-045 |
| Counties | Menard, Kimble |
| Length | North about 11 miles (TxDOT's pages give 10.6 to 11.3) · South about 26 miles |
| Road strip today | North about 100–120 feet (TxDOT's pages differ) · South 120 feet |
| Proposed road strip | North about 470 feet (2026 notices) · South 370 feet (2024 fact sheet) |
| What gets built | Phase I: four-lane divided highway. Phase II: frontage roads on both sides, to interstate standards, depending on funding |
| Public hearing | September 29, 2026, Menard Community Center · comments closed October 14, 2026 |
| Displacements | None anticipated on the north project (TxDOT notice, May 2026) |
| Land purchases (TxDOT schedule) | North 2027–2029 · South: 2026–2028 on the 2024 fact sheet, but newer bid dates suggest later |
| Expected bids (Project Tracker) | North Jan 2028 · South Feb 2029, Mar 2030 |
| Estimated construction cost | $188.1M across the four jobs (Project Tracker) |
| Construction (TxDOT schedule) | 2029–2032, pending funding |
| TxDOT San Angelo District | (325) 944-1501 · 4502 Knickerbocker Road, San Angelo |
Also searched as: US 83 widening Menard, US 83 Junction to Menard, US 83 four lane Menard County, I-14 Menard, future interstate US 83 Kimble County.
A one-page map of both US 83 projects, with their limits, road widths and TxDOT's schedule, drawn from TxDOT's own project data. Print it, take it to your appraisal district, or send it to whoever is advising you.
Download the US 83 project map
US 83 is one of the spurs of Interstate 14. See every I-14 route in Texas, and the TxDOT jobs scheduled on each.
Enter an address to see roughly how far it sits from the center of TxDOT's US 83 projects.
Tell us about your property. A senior consultant reads every one of these and calls you within the hour, 8am–6pm Central, Monday to Friday. Outside those hours, first thing the next morning.
Your case is in review. A senior consultant reads everything you shared and calls you within the hour, 8am–6pm Central, Monday to Friday. Outside those hours, first thing the next morning.
In the meantime, don't sign anything and don't feel pressured to respond to their representatives.
TxDOT is handling US 83 as two projects, with a gap through the town of Menard. Here is where each runs, what TxDOT has published for it, and how far along it is.
Tap a project to open it.
From the Concho County line south to US 190 north of Menard, all in Menard County. Today it is a two-lane road with alternating passing lanes on a strip about 100 to 120 feet wide. TxDOT proposes about 470 feet. Phase I widens it to a four-lane divided highway, and Phase II adds frontage roads. The project also realigns the FM 3463 intersection, about half a mile, and improves the US 83 and US 190 intersection.
This is the furthest along: the public hearing was held September 29, 2026, Project Tracker puts its estimated cost at $84.1M with bidding expected in Jan 2028, and TxDOT's schedule shows land purchases in 2027 through 2029.
From RM 2291 south of Menard to I-10 north of Junction, through southern Menard County and Kimble County. TxDOT's 2024 fact sheet shows the same approach: four lanes first, frontage roads later, with the road strip growing from 120 to 370 feet.
| TxDOT job | Where / what | Status | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0035-05-060 US 83 · Menard County | RM 2291 to 0.5 MILES SOUTH OF RM 2291 Highway Improvement | Bid Feb 2029 | $2.0M |
| 0035-06-033 US 83 · Menard County | SH 29 to KIMBLE COUNTY LINE Highway Improvement | Bid Feb 2029 | $43.1M |
| 0035-07-045 US 83 · Kimble County | Menard County Line to IH 10 Highway Improvement | Bid Mar 2030 | $58.9M |
The 2024 fact sheet scheduled land purchases for 2026 through 2028, but TxDOT's newer bid dates for these jobs are 2029 and 2030, so we expect land buying here to start after the north project.
The I-14 route continues north on US 83 to Eden. We have not found a widening job for that piece in TxDOT's Project Tracker yet. TxDOT lists passing-lane jobs farther north on US 83 in Concho County, toward the Runnels County line.
Miles of the two TxDOT projects in each county, measured from TxDOT's own project lines.
Menard County. Ranch and hunting country along the San Saba River, with pecans in the bottoms. Big tracts sell to hunting and recreational buyers, so values often run above what the land earns from cattle, and a highway strip along the frontage can affect access to the whole ranch.
Kimble County. Hill Country ranch and recreational land around Junction and the Llano River. Recreational buyers set many of the prices here, so the comparable sales TxDOT's appraiser chooses matter a great deal.
Concho County. Farm and ranch land around Eden and Paint Rock at the north end of the I-14 spur.
Send us the TxDOT letter, the plat, or just your county and the nearest crossroads. We will tell you where your land sits against the project and what happens next.
Free review by a senior consultant →Or call or text (469) 484-7960 — a senior consultant answers owners the same day.
US 83 between Eden and Junction is a two-lane road with passing lanes that connects I-10 at Junction to San Angelo, Abilene and the rest of West Central Texas. TxDOT's stated goals for the project are safety, connectivity and mobility on a road that carries growing truck and through traffic.
In 2021 Congress made this stretch of US 83 one of the spurs of Interstate 14. That is why TxDOT's plans show two phases: a four-lane divided highway now, and frontage roads later so the main lanes can become an interstate with controlled access. TxDOT is asking for the wider road strip in this project, so the land question is being settled now even though the second phase depends on future funding.
The public hearing is done. Here is what comes next for owners along the road, and where your leverage sits.
Tap any step to see what happens.
TxDOT held public meetings in December 2023, April 2024 and January 2025 while drawing the layout.
TxDOT presented the interim and ultimate schematics in Menard. Comments closed October 14, 2026.
After its environmental decision, TxDOT surveys the exact strip it needs from each property and hires appraisers to value it.
TxDOT sends a written initial offer with the appraisals it has from the last ten years and the Landowner's Bill of Rights, then waits at least 30 days before a final offer.
The final offer must be at least TxDOT's own written appraisal, with the Bill of Rights sent again at least seven days before. You get at least 14 days to respond.
TxDOT files a condemnation case and a judge appoints three local landowners as special commissioners, who hear both sides and set an amount.
Either side may object to the commissioners' award and take the amount to court.
On a highway project TxDOT normally buys the land outright. The strip becomes road for good. That is very different from a pipeline or power line, where you keep the land under an easement.
TxDOT's notices describe the north project's road strip growing from about 100 to 120 feet to about 470 feet, and the south project's from 120 to 370. If the extra width came evenly from both sides, that is roughly 42 to 45 acres for every mile of road on the north project and about 30 on the south. On a ranch with a mile of frontage, that is a lot of land. On a home site or a store close to the road, it can be the front yard, the parking lot or the building itself.
Along US 83 most of the land is ranch and hunting country. The questions that drive value are rarely the per-acre price of the strip. They are where the new fence goes, what happens to the gates, cattle guards, pens and water near the road, how hunting and recreational use of the rest of the place changes, and how a buyer would see the ranch with a divided highway and, later, frontage roads along it.
A divided highway adds a median, which can change where you can turn in and out. When frontage roads come, the main lanes become controlled access. In Texas, a loss of access is compensable only in some situations, so it has to be documented carefully with how the property actually works today.
In almost every highway case the biggest items besides the land are damage to the remainder and the cost to cure: moving fences, gates, wells, pens, signs and driveways so the property works again. Those are the items a first offer most often leaves thin.
A senior consultant will walk your numbers with you: the land TxDOT needs, what it does to the rest of the ranch, and the value a first offer tends to leave out. No cost and no obligation.
Free review by a senior consultant →Or call or text (469) 484-7960 — a senior consultant answers owners the same day.
When TxDOT's offer arrives it will not say "here is our opening bid." It comes as a package: a cover letter, the appraisal or a summary of it, a right-of-way map of the part TxDOT wants, and the Landowner's Bill of Rights.
| Component | What it pays for | Typically |
|---|---|---|
| Value of the part acquired | The strip itself, priced per acre against comparable sales | Largest single line |
| Damages to the remainder | Lost value to everything you keep — shape, access, frontage, use, marketability | Frequently understated |
| Cost to cure | What it costs to fix what the taking broke — fences, gates, cattle guards, wells, pens, driveways | Frequently omitted |
How much does the back half matter? In one recent Texas highway offer package our team reviewed, damages to the remainder made up about 39% of the total offer and cost to cure another 29%. Nearly seven of every ten dollars came from something other than the raw land price. If your offer is almost all a per-acre land number with little for damages and cure, that is not because your property has none. It is because nobody quantified them.
TxDOT's appraiser works for TxDOT. That does not make them dishonest — it makes them the other side's expert. These are the items that most often come in low or not at all.
Tap each one to see what it means on your tract.
A ranch with a wider highway along its front, a house that ends up closer to the traffic, a corner cut off by a realigned intersection. What you keep is worth something different afterward.
Miles of new right-of-way fence, new gates and cattle guards, and pens or traps near the road are a cost to cure that belongs in the offer.
A well, tank, trough or water line inside the strip has to be replaced or moved so the pasture still works.
In Menard and Kimble counties many ranches sell on their hunting and recreational use. Noise, access and a wider road along the front can affect that value.
A median and, later, frontage roads change how you get in and out. How the ranch works before and after has to be documented.
A house, barn, sign or business close to US 83 can lose its yard, parking or setback even if the building itself is not taken.
Mature pecans and shade trees along the road are not priced like pasture.
Room TxDOT uses only during construction has its own value, for the time it is actually used.
Send it over with the appraisal if they gave you one — a photo of the pages is enough. A senior consultant will tell you what we see.
Free review by a senior consultant →Or call or text (469) 484-7960 — a senior consultant answers owners the same day.
We are on the owner's side of the right-of-way. We are paid out of the increase, which means we do not get paid unless you do better.
Send us whatever they sent you — a survey permission form, a letter, an appraisal, an offer. We read it and show you what it does and does not account for. No charge, no obligation.
We bring in independent, certified appraisers to value the part acquired and, critically, to document damages to the remainder and cost to cure.
We deal with the land agents and their appraisers directly, with documentation behind every number, so you are not negotiating alone against people who do this full time.
Our fee is a percentage of the increase above the original offer. If we do not improve it, you owe us nothing.
Tap any question to see the answer.
Yes, in stages. US 83 from Eden to I-10 at Junction is one of the routes Congress added to the I-14 system in 2021. TxDOT's plan is a four-lane divided highway first, then frontage roads on both sides later to bring it to interstate standards. TxDOT says that second phase depends on funding and interstate planning.
It depends on where your tract sits and which side of the road TxDOT widens toward. On the north project, TxDOT's 2026 notices describe today's road strip as about 100 to 120 feet wide and the proposed one as about 470 feet. On the south project, its 2024 fact sheet shows 120 feet growing to 370 feet. If the full extra width came from both sides evenly, that is roughly 42 to 45 acres per mile on the north project and about 30 acres per mile on the south. That is our arithmetic on TxDOT's published widths; your own share will come from TxDOT's right-of-way map.
For the north project, TxDOT's project page shows land purchases in 2027 through 2029, and Project Tracker expects bidding in Jan 2028. The south project's jobs are expected to bid in Feb 2029, Mar 2030, so land buying there should follow later. As of October 27, 2026, TxDOT's public right-of-way parcel map shows no parcels being bought yet on these jobs.
The formal comment period for the September 29, 2026 hearing closed on October 14, 2026. TxDOT's environmental decision comes next. You can still contact the San Angelo District about your property at (325) 944-1501, and what you say to TxDOT's right-of-way staff later still matters.
TxDOT's May 2026 notice for the north project said no homes or other buildings were expected to be displaced at that time. That can change with final design, and TxDOT has not published a building count for the south project. If a structure on your property is close to the road, have it looked at.
The north project ends at US 190 north of Menard and the south project starts at RM 2291 south of Menard, so US 83 through town is not part of either widening as TxDOT has described them. The north project also includes about a half mile of FM 3463 and a short piece of US 190 where they meet US 83.
In the first phase, a divided highway adds a median, which can change where you can turn in and out. In the second phase, frontage roads carry local traffic and the main lanes become controlled access. How your gates, crossings and pens work before and after is part of what you should be paid for, so document it now.
No. National ROW is a right-of-way and condemnation consulting firm, and we represent property owners only, never the agency. We do the valuation and negotiation work. When a case needs a lawyer, we say so and coordinate with condemnation counsel.
The review is free. If you engage us, we work on contingency: our fee is a percentage of the increase above the original offer. If we do not improve it, you owe us nothing.
TxDOT posted the notice, fact sheet, presentation, exhibits and both the interim and ultimate schematics on its US 83 hearing page. The links are in the sources below. You can also inspect the files at the San Angelo District office, 4502 Knickerbocker Road, by appointment.
A TxDOT letter, survey request, appraisal or offer — whatever stage you are at, we will read it and tell you where it is weak. Free, and there is no obligation to go further.
Free review by a senior consultant →Or call or text (469) 484-7960 — we answer owners the same day.
Project lines, costs and bid dates come straight from TxDOT's Project Tracker and are refreshed whenever this page is rebuilt. County miles were measured from those lines against Census county boundaries. Acres-per-mile figures are our arithmetic on TxDOT's published road widths, not TxDOT numbers.
