Court gives green light to light rail
Metro to move on contracts

A state appellate court here Thursday gave the go-ahead to the Metropolitan Transit Authority's plans to build a light rail line from downtown to Reliant Park. Houston Mayor Lee Brown said he was delighted by the speedy 3-0 decision by a panel of the 1st Court of Appeals, calling it "very good news." Shirley DeLibero, Metro chief executive officer and president, said: "I'm just happy. I'm ready to build." Metro Chairman Robert D. Miller said the board will meet at 1 p.m. Tuesday "to move forward with the rail contracts that were put on hold" when the project was halted earlier this year by litigation. Miller said that at 3 p.m., after the meeting, there will be a ceremonial groundbreaking at a site to be announced along the planned 7.5-mile route from downtown to Reliant Park.

At a news conference at Metro headquarters, Brown and Miller criticized City Councilman Rob Todd for suing to block work on the project. DeLibero said the six-week delay has cost taxpayers about $3 million. Opponents of the project say that stopping it from being built could save taxpayers far more money. Todd's San Antonio attorney Allan Parker, of the Texas Justice Foundation, said an appeal is planned. "If it is a pure question of law," Parker said, "the Texas Supreme Court should make the final decision."

A lawsuit, filed by Todd and rail opponent Allen Vogel, led to a temporary injunction issued Feb. 2 by state District Judge John Devine, barring Metro from altering Houston streets for the $300 million project. The lawsuit contended that rail opponents, who gathered about 1,100 signatures on a referendum petition, had satisfied the City Charter's requirements to bring the matter to a vote. Metro and the city argued that more than 20,000 signatures were needed, and the appeals court agreed.

Devine's action followed a temporary restraining order issued Jan. 18 by state District Judge Tony Lindsay. The case was transferred to Devine's court after Lindsay's impartiality was challenged. The injunction blocked construction pending a trial to determine whether the City Charter and state law require a referendum that could revoke council's permission for Metro to lay track. Miller said Todd had broken a promise to stop fighting the project if Metro would seek its approval from City Council. On Nov. 21, council voted 11-4 to give Metro permission to build the line on segments of Main, Fannin and San Jacinto streets. "We upheld our end of the bargain," Miller said. "He didn't like the fact that City Council voted 11 to 4 against him, so he filed another lawsuit."

Todd could not be reached for comment. A spokesman said he will announce a decision today on whether to appeal, possibly to the full 1st Court of Appeals or to the Texas Supreme Court. A brief statement from Todd's office said: "We are currently studying our options and reviewing the court's opinion. Whatever decision is made will be in the best interest of Houston."

City Attorney Anthony Hall and Metro attorney Jonathan Day said the 23-page opinion, written by Justice Margaret Mirabal and joined by Chief Justice Michael Schneider and Justice Sam Nuchia, left little grounds for a successful appeal. It concluded that Devine had "erred in application of the law to the undisputed facts." It also tossed out his injunction and sent the case back to Devine's court to deal with in a way consistent with the opinion. Day said that although the case has not been finally disposed of, he sees no risk to Metro or the city in going ahead with the project. "The ruling is definitive," Day said. "It's essentially a final judgment, although it isn't characterized that way." Hall said the part of the ruling that overturns Devine's injunction cannot be appealed, and the panel's finding that the facts of the case are "undisputed" leaves little of substance for a lower court to try.

DeLibero and Miller said that in view of the delays, it is unlikely that the rail line can be completed in time for the 2004 Super Bowl as originally planned. Brown said the football game will be held here anyway, but he added that an effective transit system is crucial to the city's hopes of attracting the 2012 Olympic Games. Miller repeated the promise often made by Metro that "any extensions of this line will go to the voters." Ed Wulfe, chairman of the Main Street Coalition, and Robert Eury, president of Central Houston and executive director of the Downtown District, said the ruling clears the way for development along the planned route.