Future of Dallas to Houston high-speed train may be derailed
NORTH TEXAS - Plans for a high-speed train between Dallas and Houston have a lot of support.
But what it will look like when it passes through Downtown Dallas on its way to Arlington and Fort Worth received some harsh criticism Wednesday when the city council saw it for the first time.
The design plans show what a $5 billion development around Reunion Tower in Downtown Dallas could eventually look like.
But Hunt Realty Investments, which is behind the project, says a proposed 75-foot high, elevated high-speed train cutting right through the middle of it would be "an ugly scar" and put the proposed development "at serious risk."
"The last thing that I want to see is our most iconic building in the city of Dallas, which is Reunion Tower to be dissected," said Jesse Moreno, Dallas City Council District 2.
Moreno is also concerned about the proposed route of the elevated train which would connect Houston, Dallas, Arlington and Fort Worth.
"At this time I do not support the current alignment that would be above ground for the City of Dallas," Moreno said.
During its weekly meeting, the city council was told the route, just past Reunion Tower and the Hyatt Regency Hotel, is necessary so Amtrak passengers from other cities can board at Union Station.
"I want you to picture coming out of Union Station, grabbing your suitcases crossing Interstate 30 and getting to a high-speed rail station, versus you have a seamless connection," said Michael Morris, the director of the North Central Texas Council of Governments Transportation.
But most on the council weren't buying into it.
"I think the project as proposed is largely missing the mark," said Adam Bazaldua, Dallas City Council District 7.
Hunt Realty says the train would not only pose a threat to its mixed-use project of homes, offices, retail and hotels but also would negatively impact the nearby $3 billion convention center the city plans to build.
In a statement to CBS News Texas, its president, Colin Fitzgibbons said, "...we believe that public monies would be better spent on projects that allow Dallasites to travel from where they live to where jobs exist rather than spending billions of dollars of public money for highly-questionable mega-projects that are not relevant to most Dallasites."
The council will get another update in a few months.
But the concerns brought up Wednesday threaten to further delay an already slow project.