Ceremony held at construction site of Fort Lauderdale Brightline station

Service to some destinations to begin next year

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A celebration was held Friday in Fort Lauderdale as the exterior structure for the new Brightline train station was completed. 

"This is a home run. It is a game changer. We will talk about this for years to come," Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler said.

A flag was raised Friday in a construction ceremony for the Fort Lauderdale Brightline station.

"This is a really important milestone for us," Brightline president Mike Reininger said. "It means that our first of three stations in Southeast Florida has reached the milestone where we are completed with the structure."

But while Friday's topping off is progress, there have been two setbacks going forward with phase two from Cocoa Beach to Orlando.

A federal judge questioned the company's ability to borrow $1.75 billion in taxpayer-backed bonds to pay for it, and another judge is allowing a lawsuit filed by two counties to block the rail line that runs from Miami to Orlando.

"I think they are going to work through these issues. I think they will find the commitments they need to accomplish and achieve," Seiler said.

Despite the rulings, the company's president said they are moving full steam ahead on phase two.

"We have completed all the engineering. We are continuing with the last of the permitting processes and we are working toward the assembly of a full plan of finance," Reininger said.

Much like the station in Fort Lauderdale, workers right now are building the station in central Florida at Orlando International Airport.

The company is so confident that phase two will go forward, it has ordered and built the first set of trains. In fact, the company is ready to take delivery of the first train in just a few weeks.

"That reflects the confidence and resolve we have into ultimately seeing that through. You're not going to build a station if you can't get a train there," Reininger said.

The West Palm Beach station should be topped off next month and service to some destinations is expected to begin next year.