A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit by Indian River County to block a proposed high-speed passenger railroad that will travel through Vero Beach as part of a West Palm Beach to Orlando route.
County officials could not be reach for comment, but County Commissioners have previously said they would appeal if the ruling was not in their favor. Officials for Virgin Trains USA, previously known as Brightline, said the company was ready to move forward.
“The court’s decision adds momentum to our efforts of connecting Orlando to South Florida,” Brightline (Virgin Trains) spokeswoman Ali Soule said in a written statement. “We remain focused on exploring locations for a Brightline station in the Treasure Coast and are encouraged by the tremendous amounts of support we have received in the region. We appreciate Judge Cooper’s well-reasoned ruling.”
U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper made his ruling on Monday. He issued a summary judgement to Virgin Trains USA, dismissing the County’s lawsuit that alleged that the U.S. Department of Transportation wrongly granted permission for the company to use private activity bonds to finance the project.
Cooper also dismissed the County’s argument that challenged the validity of an environmental impact statement the U.S. Department of Transportation conducted.
The U.S. Department of Transportation on Dec. 21 granted Virgin Trains USA officials an extension to sell $1.75 billion worth of private activity bonds to help finance the construction.
Initially, the company was told it had to sell the bonds by Dec. 30, or it would lose the bonds. Officials decided to seek an extension because the County’s lawsuit included an effort to block Virgin Trains USA from using those bonds.
Comments