Glenn Sodd and Jody Sodd McSpadden were honored to be a part of the 29th Annual Outlook for Texas Land Markets Conference to speak about eminent domain and the proposed Texas high speed rail project.
The annual event is put on by the Texas A&M Real Estate Center to provide information on legal, economic, social and natural resources issues that are currently influencing land market dynamics. This year’s conference was held April 25 in San Antonio.
As a Texas eminent domain law firm, Dawson & Sodd has been actively involved in the fight to stop Texas Central from using eminent domain to acquire land for the proposed 240-mile high speed rail line.
Glenn and Jody, both partners here at Dawson & Sodd, spoke at the conference about key issues related to Texas Central’s high speed rail proposal and the reality of high speed rail in Texas, including:
- Texas Central has raised less than 1% of the funds needed for construction.
- A recent ruling from a Leon County judge declared that Texas Central is NOT railroad and cannot use eminent domain authority to force landowners to give up their property for the high speed train.
- The 86th Texas Legislative Session saw 21 bills filed by lawmakers wanting to protect Texans’ land rights and tax dollars.
- Decisions from the Federal Railroad Administration and Surface Transportation Board are still pending — this means that Texas Central doesn’t have approval to construct OR operate its high speed rail, even if it had the funds to do so.
Are you a landowner who has been contacted by Texas Central Railway about surveying your property? Contact Dawson & Sodd today to get help protecting your property rights! Want to stay up to date in the fight against high speed rail? Follow us on Facebook or check back regularly on our blog!
