Georgia PSC could issue ruling this week in railroad case

(The Center Square) — The Georgia Public Service Commission could decide a high-profile case this week that pits long-time property owners against a railroad looking to seize land for a new rail spur.

The Sandersville Railroad, a Class III short-line railroad, petitioned the PSC to condemn land for a 4.5-mile-long spur. Regardless of how the PSC rules, its decision will likely be appealed to Fulton County Superior Court and beyond, possibly even to the U.S. Supreme Court.

A PSC hearing officer previously ruled the Sandersville Railroad can take private land from several Sparta property owners, saying its proposed rail spur — the Hanson Spur — "serves a legitimate public purpose." The railroad's existing tracks are about 25 miles from Sparta, and the spur would connect a rock quarry southeast of the city with a CSX Transportation rail line but not existing Sandersville Railroad tracks.

"We are grateful to the commission and staff for their careful review of the facts and look forward to the commission's ruling [this] week," Sandersville Railroad Company President Ben Tarbutton told The Center Square in a statement. "The Hanson Spur is vital for allowing new channels of trade for Middle Georgia businesses while creating a significant public benefit for the citizens of Hancock County."

After the U.S. Supreme Court's 2005 decision in an eminent domain case in Connecticut, opponents of the railroad's project said Georgia lawmakers amended state law to stipulate that economic development is not a public use. However, railroad proponents argued the spur would help "facilitate free enterprise and robust trade."