AAF - FRA releases draft environmental impact report

[spuwho]

The Federal Railroad Administration has finally released its draft of the environmental report on All Aboard Florida.

At Gov. Rick Scott's request, the public comment period for this report has been extended to 75 days. This report covers the route north of West Palm Beach to Cocoa, and the section from Cocoa west to OIA.

You can read the 522 page report here:

http://www.fra.dot.gov/eLib/details/L15976#p1_z5_gD

This report is going to be spun out various ways by the media depending on where they reside.

[spuwho]

The public hearings in response to this document have been announced.

Per the Orlando Sentinel:

All Aboard Florida train hearings set for October, November

By Dan Tracy, Orlando Sentinel

A series of eight hearings have been set for October and November in Central Florida and along the East Coast to listen to public comments about the planned train system that would link Miami with Orlando International Airport.

Sponsored by the Federal Railroad Administration, the meetings announced Friday are part of an environmental assessment process the All Aboard Florida train backers must complete before getting the go-ahead to build the $2.5 billion operation.

A number of groups have sprung up along the East Coast opposing the train. They say the 32 trains set to roll through daily will disrupt their communities, backing up traffic at intersections and backing up boats at drawbridges.

All Aboard Florida officials released a statement saying, in part, "we look forward to reviewing it and engaging in productive dialogue with stakeholders along the corridor."

The meetings, which start at 3:30 p.m. and end four hours later, are scheduled for Nov. 12 at the Cocoa Civic Center, 430 Delannoy Avenue, Cocoa; and Nov. 13, at the Wyndham Orlando Resort I-Drive, 8001 International Drive, Orlando.

The privately owned and operated train would run along a 235-mile path, initially running between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach in 2016 and connecting to Orlando International a year later.

[spuwho]

All Aboard Florida Environmental Impact Study Released to Mixed Reviews

http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/all-aboard-florida-environmental-impact-study-released-mixed-reviews

The Federal Railroad Administration's draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for All Aboard Florida (AAF), released Friday, is either "a complete whitewash" or "a vindication of a well-planned intercity passenger railroad system."

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder on this one," said Seth Rickman, an Orange County engineer whose parents live in Coral Gables. He said he "got a jump on most people," read enough of the EIS to see it's "generally kinder to AAF than it is to opponents."

"But that's what you would expect from the Railroad Administration," said Rickman. He claims he's "like everybody who doesn't live in the middle of it, just trying to find out if it's bad or good for Florida."

Congressman Patrick Murphy, representing much of the Treasure Coast, circulated the draft to dozens of stakeholders, promising to "carefully review the report in the coming days."

Many of the stakeholders, however, when reached Friday night, hadn't had enough time to study the report and weren't prepared to comment.

But representatives for All Aboard Florida were the first to issue a statement, expressing their initial delight:

"After reviewing the Federal Railroad Administration's executive summary of the draft environmental impact statement, we find the report is consistent with what we have been saying about the project, both in terms of benefits and impacts," the statement reads.

"The report shows there would be improvements to public safety, air quality and noise associated with the implementation of All Aboard Florida. We look forward to reviewing the rest of the document."

Meanwhile, Citizens Against Rail Expansion FL (CARE FL) -- a Stuart-based organization that opposes AAF for its risks to public safety and its threat to destroy the quality of life for communities in AAF's path -- issued its own statement Friday:

"The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is only being conducted because All Aboard Florida (AAF) wants a federal loan – in the amount of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion – to subsidize its "private" project, all at the expense and financial pain of federal taxpayers. We will be reading the EIS with this in mind, and we encourage other interested parties to do the same."

The CARE FL statement concluded, "In addition to the economic red flags inherent in the project, the EIS provides an opportunity for CARE FL and other concerned citizens to comment on the profound safety and environmental issues AAF poses, along with its lack of any discernible benefit to our local communities."

Sharon Blalock of Port St. Lucie told Sunshine State News, "We've only just begun to fight. We won't make it easy for them (AAF). We have nearly 30,000 names on a petition, we have lawyers, we have our own strategy."

She said, "The FRA exists to enable railroads, that's its main purpose ... and President Obama wants passenger rail. I don't have to study the report to know it's nothing but a whitewash. You didn't really expect an objective environmental report, did you?"

Ron Rose, executive director of the Jensen Beach Chamber of Commerce and an Independent candidate for the Martin County Commission District 2 seat, said, "Unlike the current Martin County Commission majority, I believe it's never too late to make our voices heard on the issue of All About Florida.

"I will remain opposed to the plan unless All Aboard Florida can demonstrate to me and all of my neighbors that it does not negatively affect our unique quality of life in Martin County. The burden is on All Aboard Florida to prove there will be no negative impacts. I urge all Martin County and Treasure Coast residents to review the EIS and participate in the democratic process by providing input during the public comment period and attending public forums. ..."

Kasey Traylor, the force behind Florida Not All Aboard, one of the first and perhaps the largest groups to oppose AAF, was not available Friday night.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), created in 1966 and an arm of the Department of Transportation, states as its mission, "to enable the safe, reliable, and efficient movement of people and goods for a strong America, now and in the future."

With the draft EIS available, FRA has opened a 75-day public comment period. Comments can be submitted via email (AAF_comments@vhb.com) or by mail to John Winkle, Federal Railroad Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Room W38-311, Washington, D.C. 3059.

All comments must be submitted by December 3, 2014.

The FRA also announced four local public meetings to discuss the EIS, one each in West Palm Beach, Stuart, Vero Beach, and Port St. Lucie:

    West Palm Beach - Oct. 28, 3:30 - 7 p.m. at the West Palm Beach Marriott, 1001 Okeechobee Blvd.
    Stuart - Oct. 29, 3:30 - 7 p.m. at the Kane Center, 900 SE Salerno Road.
    Vero Beach - Nov. 5, 3:30 - 7 p.m. at Indian River State College, Richardson Hall, 6155 College Lane.
    Port St. Lucie - Nov. 6, 3:30 - 7 p.m. at the Port St. Lucie Civic Center, 9221 SE Civic Center Place.

[spuwho]

Per the Palm Beach Post:

http://realtime.blog.palmbeachpost.com/2014/09/19/environmental-study-of-all-aboard-floridas-northern-route-released/

All Aboard Florida's northern route will have minimal impacts, federal study finds

By Jennifer Sorentrue

The Federal Railroad Administration has found the overall environmental impacts of the northern leg of All Aboard Florida's passenger rail service will be minimal, according to a draft study released this afternoon.

The 500-page study, known as an environmental impact statement, evaluates the impacts of the rail project between northern Palm Beach County and Orlando.

The much-anticipated study was originally expected to be released in April.

The Palm Beach Post is in the process of reading through the document, which was released at 2:20 p.m. Check back for updates.

All Aboard Florida plans to run 32 passenger trains a day between Miami and Orlando on the Florida East Coast Railway tracks. Miami-to-West Palm Beach service is expected to begin in late 2016 with the Orlando leg starting in 2017.

At a meeting with Delray Beach officials last week, All Aboard Florida's Public Affairs Director Ali Soule said the private venture has been anxiously awaiting the draft's release.  "We truly believe that a lot of the fears and the misinformation that is out there will be corrected when that document is able to be reviewed by the public," Soule said at the Sept. 9 meeting.

As part of the document's release, federal officials will hold a series of eight public meetings along Florida's east coast. The public will have 75 days to comment on the study's findings. The comment period ends on Dec. 3.

Here is the public meeting schedule:
October 27, 2014    3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    Miami-Dade College – Wolfson Campus | James K. Batten Room – 2106 | 300 NE 2nd Avenue Miami, FL 33132
October 28, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    Broward County Convention Center | 1950 Eisenhower Blvd. | Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316
October 29, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    West Palm Beach Marriott|1001 Okeechobee Blvd|  West Palm Beach, FL 33401
October 30, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    The Kane Center | 900 SE Salerno Road | Stuart, FL 34997
November 5, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    Indian River State College | Richardson Hall | 6155 College Lane| Vero Beach, FL 32966
November 6, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    Port St. Lucie Civic Center | 9221 SE Civic Center Place |Port St Lucie, FL 34952
November 12, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    Cocoa Civic Center | 430 Delannoy Avenue | Cocoa, FL 32922
November 13, 2014     3:30 PM – 7:00 PM    Wyndham Orlando Resort I-Drive| 800 International Drive| Orlando, Florida, 32819

[thelakelander]

Federal report supports All Aboard plan

The federal government has delivered a largely positive evaluation of a $2.5billion private project to build an express passenger train between Miami and Orlando that, according to company estimates, could have a ridership of 3.5million by 2019.

A required Draft Environmental Impact Statement issued Friday by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) says that overall the All Aboard Florida project would have minimal impacts on the environment including air quality, water resources, wetlands and protected species.

"The cumulative analysis for the project shows that the combination of the [All Aboard Florida] passenger rail project impacts with other impacts would not result in a serious deterioration of environmental functions," the 522-page report states.

All Aboard Florida seemed pleased by the report, but said its executives were still reading the massive document.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article2206748.html#storylink=cpy