By Kimberly Miller Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
An estimated 50 people from Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast will trek to Tallahassee this week, hoping to block All Aboard Florida’s request for $1.75 billion in tax-exempt bonds needed to finish the passenger rail line.
A bus paid for by Citizens Against Rail Expansion will begin picking travelers up at 3 p.m. today in Jupiter. It will make stops in Stuart and Vero Beach on its way to a Monday morning hearing before staff members of the Florida Development Finance Corp.
Elected officials from Martin and St. Lucie counties are also expected to attend, as some see the 9 a.m. hearing as one of their last chances to derail the Miami-to-Orlando project.
But other All Aboard Florida foes say they were dissuaded from attending the hearing because the ultimate decision makers — the board of the corporation — will be absent.
“Why should I take the better part of two days to drive up to Tallahassee to be at a public meeting where I’m limited to three minutes and expected to address an audience that doesn’t even include the board?” said Peter Conze, a commissioner with the Town of Jupiter Island, and president of the Guardians of Martin County, which runs the opposition group Citizens Against the Train. “The Guardians will, and have, sent commentary to the Florida Development Finance Corporation expressing why we are in opposition.”
The hearing will be held in a Residence Inn conference room that holds 200 people.
There is no way to listen to the meeting remotely or watch it via webcast.
Comments can be submitted by mail.
All Aboard Florida plans to run 32 passenger trains per day on the Florida East Coast Railway tracks, which cut through many downtowns as they hug the state’s east coast from Miami to Jacksonville.
The trains are expected to travel up to 110 mph between West Palm Beach and Cocoa before hitting 125 mph as they jog west to Orlando.
The trains will stop only in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, leaving many northern Palm Beach County and Treasure Coast residents fearing increases in noise, traffic congestion at railroad crossings and disruption to boaters, without the benefit of a station.
“We expect 15 to 20 people to be there, which is quite impressive considering no board members will be present and the restrictions placed on those who wish to participate ,” said Indian River County Attorney Dylan Reingold, whose commissioners are fighting All Aboard Florida. “This demonstrates how important this issue is.”
It was unclear Friday how many supporters of the project, which has already begun construction on the Miami to West Palm Beach section, will attend the hearing. All Aboard Florida confirmed it would have at least one representative there.
At a high-profile meeting in Brevard County in October, about half of 40 speakers were in favor of the train.
Many were from Miami, but Ron Jon Surf Shop President Debbie Harvey and Cocoa Mayor Henry Parrish also voiced their support.
All Aboard Florida applied for $1.75 billion in tax exempt private activity bonds in the fall.
The U.S. Department of Transportation provisionally approved the bonds in December, but they must also be approved by the Florida Development Finance Corp., which will act as their conduit issuer.
One noticeable absence from Monday’s meeting will be KC Traylor, a Palm City resident who founded the group Florida Not All Aboard and jump-started Treasure Coast opposition to All Aboard Florida.
Traylor said she had a previous commitment but spent a few days in Tallahassee before the meeting lobbying lawmakers.
She said she’s hopeful the Florida Development Finance Corp. will listen to concerns but is disappointed board members won’t be at Monday’s hearing.
“By just reading comments after the event, they will lose the emotion and impact that comes when you actually listen to people speak,” Traylor said. “I do hope we get to speak to the board members at some point.” kmiller@pbpost.com
