GUEST COMMENTARY

HONEY MINUSE

As we entered 2014, the IRNA Land Use Committee meetings were dominated by concerns arising from the high-speed train proposed by All Aboard Florida (AAF). The train would run from Miami to Orlando through Vero Beach with intermediate stops only at Ft. Lauderdale and Palm Beach without stopping at Vero. We wanted only the facts about the project – not the fluff.

At the same time, the Indian River Chamber of Commerce was facing a similar situation, seeking information about the proposed train that would speed through the community without servicing its residents – not railroad propaganda.

The AAF lobbyists were ubiquitous around town, attending and speaking at meetings, hosting events for various interest groups, and generally going all-out to paint a rosy scenario and sell their project. And throughout, we were told that a train already runs through our county, the adjacent lands are already “disturbed” and therefore there will be no additional impact. No sweat!

Local governments — originally supportive of the venture — started to peel away as more became known about the fast train to elsewhere. Vero Beach appointed a High Speed Train Committee to make recommendations to the City Council, and governments became focused on the additional costs that would be required for enhanced railroad crossings and the creation of quiet zones. There were efforts in the community to block any form of public financing for AAF and others sought to raise funds to hire expert attorneys.

Lost in all the clamor were the concerns of local businesses, residential communities and various land interests throughout the County. That changed when the IRNA joined with the Indian River Chamber of Commerce to merge our many and diverse interests to face these threats to the quality of our lives. Meeting for the first time in March of 2014, the two groups represented neighborhoods, businesses, historic centers, and non-profit organizations. Florida’s Sunshine Laws were carefully observed as representatives of local governments also attended these joint meetings.

The outcome of the March meeting was (1) to acknowledge that AAF was a private venture on private land and (2) to unanimously agree that we would become a Coalition with the sole purpose of factually identifying impacts on the human and natural environments throughout our County in accordance with the policy directed by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Addressing this specific policy was significant because AAF was seeking a federal loan and in so doing was required by the NEPA to produce an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Coalition was intent on ensuring that the final EIS was credible and addressed every impact the fast train would have on our Cities and County.

The Coalition further stressed that mitigation of adverse impacts was an integral component of establishing high-speed train service and that such mitigation was entirely the responsibility of AAF. If mitigation challenged their business plan, which they were keeping under wraps, that was wholly their problem — not ours. Our only concerns were to protect our many residential and business communities from any threats to health, safety and welfare that these trains potentially represent.

As the work of the Coalition progressed, more people joined our effort, including representatives from the School District, the Sheriff’s Department and several neighborhoods in Brevard and St. Lucie counties. It was not necessary to advertise our work as the information easily spread among our many communities as we set about identifying specific impacts the fast trains would bring. Our work would be public when the Draft EIS was released and public comment was invited.

In September, the long-awaited Draft EIS was released, and it was almost completely oblivious to any impact the fast train would have on any place in our cities or county. In fact, references to Indian River County were usually merged with comments about counties to the south of us. This lack of local knowledge is not surprising when you consider that when Sebastian, Vero Beach and the County governments all individually requested Cooperating Agency status to provide such information they were summarily rejected by the Federal Railroad Administration (FAR), a division of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The Coalition’s formal response to the Draft EIS was technical. It pointed out the absence of identified impacts such as noise, vibration, vehicular travel and construction on our residential and business communities with respect to property values, real estate taxes, business vitality and employment factors.

The response also stated there was a complete omission of all data on incidents related to school buses, pedestrians and responses by emergency, fire and law enforcement personnel, all of which prevented any thoughtful response. It further stated there was no study of impacts to the natural environment such as the St. Sebastian River and the Indian River Lagoon when the old bridge over the St. Sebastian River would be demolished and two new rail track bridges built.The response further noted there was no analysis of any impact on the historic Old Vero Man Ice Age archeological site which is directly adjacent to the current track.

It is the responsibility of the FRA to respond to these statements.

One issue, however, remains outstanding: freight trains. The Draft EIS contains repeated references to expanded freight traffic with no further explanation. The Coalition requested a clarification of this issue so an opportunity for response could be provided. Such clarification should be an analysis to include estimates for projected speed, length and crossings per day and per hour for lines shared by passenger and freight trains. Only then can a study of the full impact of freight trains be conducted.

While our focus has been on the Miami to Orlando run, AAF last summer was acquiring land from Cocoa to Jacksonville for the stated purpose of another high-speed rail venture. Will expanded freight be referenced there as it was on our DEIS? Or, will private monies such as bonds be used, perhaps eliminating the need for an impact statement? If there is expanded freight on this track north of us, will it cause an exponential increase in rail traffic in our community? These questions and more can only be answered by comprehensive studies required by the due-process provisions of the NEPA.

The Coalition documented in detail the impacts of the high-speed train project on our communities. They will require either alternative approaches or significant mitigation. The Coalition considers the project as proposed a threat to our way of life, and resolves to stay in the middle of the controversy, until it is finally – and hopefully successfully – resolved.

Editor’s note: Honey Minuse is Chair of the Executive Committee of the Indian River Neighborhood Association.