Plans to build a Brightline station on the Treasure Coast is moving forward once again Martin County commissioners have voted unanimously to begin negotiations to lease and apply for federal grants to build the train station.Bill Moore, the owner of Kilman's Chocolate and Ice Cream in Stuart, has been advocating for a Brightline station for years."It's great for the community, it's great for the downtown and it's great for the surrounding communities. It's just an asset that will promote this community for the future."Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 NewsDespite the positive vote, not everyone is excited, and that includes resident Jim Fithian."You know, they always say we'll get grants and things like that," said Fithian. "You can't bank on those grants, and the residents really don't want to pay for something they don't benefit from."K.C. Ingram believes Brightline isn't paying its fair share."This is a private, for-profit company, and we thought it was fair, the agreement they made in 2018 where each the municipality and the company bore 50% of the cost, and then any grants would be split proportionately between the two entities," Ingram said. "That seemed the fairest to us, but that's not what happened here."Assistant County Administrator Geroge Stokus reassured homeowners."So, the impact to the ad valorem taxpayer or the guy or gal that pays a property tax bill is zero," Stokus said. "We're getting capital transportation tax dollars from the state of Florida that are used for this purpose."Brightline and Martin County entered negotiations after an agreement with the city of Stuart fell apart, which is concerning for some.tuart city commissioners reject Brightline station proposal"There's optimism and some cautious optimism because we've been through this once before and it was very disappointing for the city to kind of kill the deal, but we're optimistic now," Moore said.Brightline is eager to proceed."We see the challenges, we recognize them, but we also work together with our communities and our neighbors to solve them," Ben Porritt, Brightline senior vice president, said. "That's what we've done here, and that's why we've seen success with the commission."If all goes as planned, the station could be operational by 2028.Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.Follow us on social: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | TikTok | YouTube
Martin County commissioners have voted unanimously to begin negotiations to lease and apply for federal grants to build the train station.
Bill Moore, the owner of Kilman's Chocolate and Ice Cream in Stuart, has been advocating for a Brightline station for years.
"It's great for the community, it's great for the downtown and it's great for the surrounding communities. It's just an asset that will promote this community for the future."
Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 News
Despite the positive vote, not everyone is excited, and that includes resident Jim Fithian.
"You know, they always say we'll get grants and things like that," said Fithian. "You can't bank on those grants, and the residents really don't want to pay for something they don't benefit from."
K.C. Ingram believes Brightline isn't paying its fair share.
"This is a private, for-profit company, and we thought it was fair, the agreement they made in 2018 where each the municipality and the company bore 50% of the cost, and then any grants would be split proportionately between the two entities," Ingram said. "That seemed the fairest to us, but that's not what happened here."
Assistant County Administrator Geroge Stokus reassured homeowners.
"So, the impact to the ad valorem taxpayer or the guy or gal that pays a property tax bill is zero," Stokus said. "We're getting capital transportation tax dollars from the state of Florida that are used for this purpose."
Brightline and Martin County entered negotiations after an agreement with the city of Stuart fell apart, which is concerning for some.
Stuart city commissioners reject Brightline station proposal
"There's optimism and some cautious optimism because we've been through this once before and it was very disappointing for the city to kind of kill the deal, but we're optimistic now," Moore said.
Brightline is eager to proceed.
"We see the challenges, we recognize them, but we also work together with our communities and our neighbors to solve them," Ben Porritt, Brightline senior vice president, said. "That's what we've done here, and that's why we've seen success with the commission."
If all goes as planned, the station could be operational by 2028.
