Passenger Trains > FL: Fort Pierce decides on station site

The town of Fort Pierce asked for bids on developing the old power plant site. This large parcel crosses the FEC railroad, and goes downhill to the yacht basin.

Virgin Trains interests made a bid with a station, hotel, rental and condo properties. That was rejected in favor of a competing bid by Audobon developers.

No decision has been made about whether FP will get a BrightLine station. On TV last night, a rep said they are looking at many choices.

TCP https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/local/shaping-our-future/growth/2019/06/13/civic-group-virgin-trains-audubon-hotel-plans-not-right-fit-fort-pierce/1410559001/

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So why would Virgin stop trains here if there is no financial reward?  I don't think these people understand this Virgin/Brightline business plan.

FloridaTrainGuy Wrote:
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> So why would Virgin stop trains here if there is
> no financial reward?  I don't think these people
> understand this Virgin/Brightline business plan.

Indeed. As it appears from their utterances and actions, VT USA will put stations where the combination of ticket sales and real estate income makes it worthwhile for them. For example, they are putting a station at Orlando Airport where there is no real estate income but enormous ticket sales. Similarly they will put a station at Disney. OTOH, they are putting a station at Cocoa-Rockledge because there is significant potential for real estate income in addition to middling ticket sales. They will put at least one, maybe two stations somewhere along the Treasure Coast, properly spaced to capture maximum catchment area, but each will have to provide some real estate opportunity because the ticket sales won;t be spectacular like at Orlando Airport or Disney.

The Orlando airport / Disney area may als.o be useful as a conduit between Disney and the Disney cruise line at Port Canaveral.  That's relatively near the Cocoa area.  Sir Richard is looking at a connection to his cruise line in Miami, so this may be an opportunity in Port Canaveral.

The Virgin Trains presenter at the town meeting mentioned that Virgin is looking at another siite, south of the power company site, for a train station.  But the company hasn't decided between Stuart and Fort Pierce, or if either will get the station.

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OPINION (so people don't get upset).  The biggest city along the Treasure Coast is Port St Lucie, which is between Fort Pierce and Stuart. They made it clear they don't want BrightLine, won't give them a dime, and won't help them in any way.  Stuart is still divided about BrightLine, with lots of opponents turning out to protest.  Fort Pierce wants BrightLine, but clearly didn't like what was described on TV as a poorly considered plan.

PSL has about 200,000 population, while Stuart and Fort Pierce together have about 60,000.

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
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> OPINION (so people don't get upset).  The biggest
> city along the Treasure Coast is Port St Lucie,
> which is between Fort Pierce and Stuart. They made
> it clear they don't want BrightLine, won't give
> them a dime, and won't help them in any way. 
> Stuart is still divided about BrightLine, with
> lots of opponents turning out to protest.  Fort
> Pierce wants BrightLine, but clearly didn't like
> what was described on TV as a poorly considered
> plan.
>
> PSL has about 200,000 population, while Stuart and
> Fort Pierce together have about 60,000.

I am curious if any of the towns Ft. Pierce and south have any interest in Tri-Rail getting out to them?

ts1457 Wrote:
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> Lackawanna484 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > OPINION (so people don't get upset).  The
> biggest
> > city along the Treasure Coast is Port St Lucie,
> > which is between Fort Pierce and Stuart. They
> made
> > it clear they don't want BrightLine, won't give
> > them a dime, and won't help them in any way. 
> > Stuart is still divided about BrightLine, with
> > lots of opponents turning out to protest. 
> Fort
> > Pierce wants BrightLine, but clearly didn't
> like
> > what was described on TV as a poorly considered
> > plan.
> >
> > PSL has about 200,000 population, while Stuart
> and
> > Fort Pierce together have about 60,000.
>
> I am curious if any of the towns Ft. Pierce and
> south have any interest in Tri-Rail getting out to
> them?

I haven't  heard / read much about that.  Martin County occasionally refuses to have anything to do with the Tri-Rail taxing district.

There's design work underway for the new Palm Beach Gardens Tri-Rail station on the Florida East Coast.  I believe a short portion of each platform will be enabled for high level access.

The cut-over at 25th Street will enable Tri-Rail trains access to North Palm Beach County, especially PBG and Jupiter.  Maybe Northwood and Tequesta.  If that comes to fruition, it will allow Tri-Rail and BrightLine service fromMiami Central, diverging, and then reconnecting eighty miles up the line

Timewise, VT has to go with its current plan. However if I were in charge, I would not worry about any additional station(s) on the Treasure Coast.

I used to think that a freight bypass for the Treasure Coast should be considered. I have changed my thinking. Let the towns live with freight trains, but start planning to build a passenger line with a high speed alignment west of the highly developed area. You could follow the CSX out of West Palm Beach to around Indiantown, then build a new line due north until you hit the US Sugar Railroad and follow it into Ft. Pierce. VT on that alignment would be faster and more reliable than the coastal alignment. In the vicinity of where I-95 crosses the sugar railroad, build a new station with a huge parking garage. Instead of having a few blocks to redevelop, you could develop a whole new town.
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/14/19 09:29 by ts1457.

This is the biggest issue with private/public.

I am personally a fan of the chosen design, but it obviously doesn’t benefit Brightline. If Brightline was a public agency, there would certainly be little qualms about integrating with the station proposed on site. Instead, we are getting transit oriented development without the transit.

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