The city of New Bedford has hurled a potential lawsuit at the MBTA, threatening the state’s embattled transit agency with a suit over taking land for the much anticipated South Coast Rail project.

Lawyers for the city have drafted a lawsuit against the T, arguing that the land takings for a proposed rail station in New Bedford should be “declared invalid.”

The city in the suit claimed that the MBTA’s payment for the properties was “grossly inadequate,” and the city is seeking damages from the T.

“This is an action to invalidate a series of purported takings and to obtain damages… resulting from the attempted eminent domain acquisition by Defendant MBTA of certain real property of Plaintiffs, near the proposed passenger rail station in downtown New Bedford as part of the South Coast Rail Project,” reads the city’s draft lawsuit.

“The Defendant’s stated purpose for acquiring the land was to create parking for MBTA employees, establish layover space for MBTA trains, and otherwise support the MBTA’s operations,” the lawsuit states.

The MBTA in a statement said the state agency “appropriately exercised its eminent domain powers as provided by the Legislature and paid fair market value for all the properties taken.”

The South Coast Rail project will restore Commuter Rail service between Boston and southeastern Massachusetts.

New Bedford in the draft lawsuit is arguing that the city at the time of the land takings was outside the T’s service area.

That means, the city wrote in the suit, “The MBTA did not have authority to construct mass transportation facilities in New Bedford.”

“If the Defendant MBTA was authorized to take Plaintiffs’ land in public use, such authority was limited to taking public land already in mass transportation use,” the suit adds.

The T also didn’t provide any “equivalent land” to the city, they argue.

“Plaintiffs have been offered sums of money as compensation for the takings of their respective properties, which are grossly inadequate and do not reflect the fair market value of the properties taken,” the lawsuit reads.

A spokesperson for the MBTA said the T paid $486,627 for the properties.

“The land that was acquired will be used for the New Bedford Station, including two smaller sections for access plazas, ADA/van and electric vehicle parking spaces and the train layover site, including a crew building and associated employee parking,” the MBTA spokesperson added.

New Bedford, Taunton and Fall River are the only major cities within 50 miles of Boston that do not currently have Commuter Rail access to Boston.