BRADENTON, Fla. - Another Florida county has formally announced plans to take legal action against the All Aboard Florida private passenger train project.
The Martin County Commission voted unanimously April 14 to hire Chicago-based McDermott, Will & Emery LLP to institute litigation.
The vote included permission to spend $250,000 to negotiate a contract with McDermott, file one or more lawsuits, and hire a public relations firm. The county previously set aside more $1.4 million from reserves to fund its case.
Stephen Ryan, a partner at McDermott based in Washington, D.C., had already been working with the county the last two months on certain issues and studies involving All Aboard's project. Ryan also represents CARE, a group of homeowners called Citizens Against Rail Expansion.
County attorney Michael Durham told commissioners that Ryan has prepared two lawsuits, though he did not explain the litigation publicly or say when and where the suits would be filed.
Legal strategy will be discussed privately with individual commissioners or in future closed-to-the-public executive sessions, he said.
"When a government is behaving in an abusive way to another government and its own citizens, litigation unfortunately or fortunately is the only path on which we can seek protection and redress," said Commissioner Anne Scott, apparently referring to federal agencies reviewing the project and lack of response to problems raised by the county.
Scott called the abuse egregious and said, "Washington's complicity in this is really disturbing."
Martin County is among several east coast counties where no train stops are planned as All Aboard Florida sends 32 passenger trains a day along the 235-mile Miami-to-Orlando route.
The county has expressed numerous concerns about the project, including whether there could be structural deficiencies with the 100-year-old St. Lucie River drawbridge that will be used by the passenger service.
On March 31 nearby Indian River County filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Department of Transportation improperly gave All Aboard approval to issue $1.75 billion in tax-exempt private activity bonds to help finance the $3.2 billion project.
Indian River claims that USDOT violated the National Environmental Policy Act by awarding the bonds before All Aboard received final federal environmental clearance for phase 2 of the route from West Palm Beach to Orlando.
The project already has approval for phase 1 where stations are planned in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach.
