Deal or No Deal, Passenger Rail?

Sunday Solutions — May 11, 2025

Good morning! When you’re looking out at the rain squalls over the next few days, think ahead to what you’ll need to do before the summer storm season — forecasters say it might get here early. In the meantime, there are a few other bits of news to consider: state budgets, passenger rail, and deals that go sideways. Also: Call or celebrate your mom today!

---

NEWS: GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT

When a deal isn’t really a deal

Last week, the Cumberland Inlet project on 719 acres in St. Marys hit a new snag. After missing payments on a $10 million loan from the Camden County Joint Development Authority, the landowner filed bankruptcy. That move left a line of creditors holding little more than paper; the county JDA may hold on to the riverside land thought to be worth much more than the amount owed by JDI Cumberland Inlet, an Atlanta-based firm controlled by Jim Jacoby. He is known for Atlanta developments Atlantic Station and Porsche. The Current’s Maggie Lee has updates, the documents and what’s next in the new twist that spurs us to think more about what oversight and questions may be necessary for any development deal to benefit everyone.

---

---

NEWS: GOVERNING

We have a budget

Governor Brian Kemp signed the state’s $37.7 billion 2026 budget last week. Schools will get $47,124 each to pay for safety improvements and other education money will go to upgrade student mental health programs. Both bills were fallout from the deadly Barrow County school shooting last year. One of the largest chunks of money goes to aid the much-maligned prison system to hire officers and give raises to those already there. But there were a few items, the governor marked as “nonbinding,” meaning they don’t have to be funded. One noteworthy one was $600,000 that was expected to cover additional staffing for the State Election Board. That follows the legislature’s nonactions on a handful of bills that would change the setup for the board, including one that would strengthen it.

Here’s a story from Capitol Beat wrapping up the budget and its contents.

---

---

NEWS: TRANSPORTATION

Will support kickstart passenger rail project?

The Nancy Hanks passenger rail line connecting Atlanta and Savannah ended in 1971 as the lure of driving your own car on an open four-lane interstate highway took over. But that was long before the crowded, truck-laden lanes of I-16 and I-75 that we traverse today. In a call for public comment earlier this year, Georgia’s Department of Transportation officials got a solid green light to look at building a high-speed passenger rail connector between the cities. Now planners are looking at routes and say the plan could be feasible. However, with every proposal there’s a different perspective. This one comes from the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce CEO who warns that the public passenger rail line could disrupt the freight rail moving to and from the port, one of the state’s top economic drivers. Read more here about what’s next for GDOT.

---

EXPLAINER: PUBLIC SAFETY

☕ Your second (or third) cup: The next storm

Emergency management agencies along the coast have been sending out texts and other info this past week to remind us to make our plans now for the summer tropical storm season ahead. It’s an annual rite, and it’s an important one. But this year, there’s more to consider: The president has said he believes disaster responses should be left to the states, and he recently denied assistance to Arkansas after a tornado hit there.

In Georgia, where many are still recovering from a huge hit from last year’s Hurricane Helene, there’s no guarantee of federal help for the next natural disaster. Gov. Kemp signed bills this past week to help the forestry and agriculture industries recover from last year’s damage. The Trump administration fired the interim FEMA administrator for telling Congress he doesn’t think the agency should be dismantled. A new administrator with no disaster experience takes the helm as hurricane season arrives.

That leaves us to ponder what we need to know (and do), how to respond for our homes and families, and what we need to tell our elected leaders. After all, they represent us — we hired them to work on our behalf. So, here’s some info to get you started.

• If FEMA didn’t exist, could states handle the disaster response on their own? This explainer from a disaster expert wraps up the scope and scale of the emergency work the agency handled. What levels of help should we expect from the federal or state governments?
• Climate disasters inflict outsized harm on pregnant and young families: Storm damage goes far beyond the trees and homes. Recovery lasts for years in the economies and access to good care and jobs. This story from The Daily Yonder looks at the toll from Helene last year on women in Swainsboro.
• ‘Don’t get in my way,’ the new acting head of federal disaster agency warns in call with staff: The newly appointed FEMA chief says states will have to bear more costs for natural disasters; states argue they already do that.

As you parse this, take action on your own and start making your own storm plan now. Here’s a place to start.

---

We want to meet your friends! If you like this newsletter be sure to share it. And, if someone shared this with you, click here to sign up for regular delivery!

---

---

Support independent, solutions-based investigative journalism without bias, fear or favor on issues affecting Savannah and Coastal Georgia.