Jesse Scheckner
Four cities and one county in South Florida will receive more than $80 million in federal funds for resiliency projects through the Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Friday.
The program, administered through the Department of Economic Opportunity, enables local governments to develop large-scale projects to reinforce and improve their infrastructure against future disasters. Its funding comes through a community recovery block grant program the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development developed in response to Hurricanes Matthew and Irma, which struck Florida in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
“Today we were able to devote $80 million to fund projects that support economic growth, protect our environment, and improve hurricane mitigation,” DeSantis said in a statement. “This is how you build strong communities.”
Miami will receive almost half of the funding for two projects. One, for which $19.8 million is allocated, will support flooding and right-of-way improvements, including stormwater inlets and pipes and a new stormwater pump station in the southwest Wynwood area. The other, which is getting $18.4 million, will help to relieve repetitive flooding caused by stormwater accumulation in East Little Havana.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said the almost $40 million investment will protect $1.6 billion in public and private property.
Broward County will receive nearly $16.7 million to improve its stormwater infrastructure and add green infrastructure and stormwater drainage systems.
Hallandale Beach will get roughly $14.9 million for sewer system modernization.
Opa-locka is to get $7 million to deepen and stabilize the banks of the 127th Avenue canal.
North Lauderdale will have nearly $3.3 million to use on a new stormwater station facility by the C-14 canal, which will help mitigate heavy rain and tidal impacts on the canal and regional drainage system.
“Hardening Florida’s infrastructure is critical to ensuring that our state remains prepared and equipped to withstand any future natural disasters,” said Dane Eagle, Secretary of the Department of Economic Opportunity. “(We) will remain diligent in protecting homes, businesses, and the livelihoods of Floridians for years to come.”
Altogether, the Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program has a total allocation of $475 million.
6 comments
Joe Podgor
January 28, 2022 at 4:44 pm
So predictable that the governor would seem to take credit for the new federal funding for infrastructure. And frankly hardening is just an expensive stopgap measure that will not prevent the inevitable inundation of South Florida. We need planning for systemic retrofits of our coastal communities and the means by which they receive public services in a Venice-like situation. Drinking water, sewerage, electricity, mail, transportation, everything we take for granted now will need to be either reworked, or the flooded zones will be abandoned. Early attention to such eventualities should be a priority, not temporary symbolic seawalls. They should be already a requirement on builders who develop in the flood zone now.
Tom
January 30, 2022 at 7:41 am
The Governor allocated $80million to several local communities in Broward, and Miami to help address environmental flooding.
Can we just be positive about the need to address this need. My goodness.
Ocean joe run for office and advocate for your sea wall. It is not money from the Feds on infrastructure, 2016 monies from hurricane Irma.
Johnny Bans
January 30, 2022 at 10:37 am
Nowhere does he say it was his idea or that he is taking credit for anything. You’re just so rapt in looking for something bad to say (a rather ugly trait) that you rather rail against the governor than acknowledge our state is taking a proactive step forward.
Tom
January 28, 2022 at 8:51 pm
Yes. It’s all this Govs fault.
What a joke. It’s fed money from hurricane Irma. He’s disposing it fairly to all areas of the state. Great Governor, America’s Governor.
Ocean Joe
January 29, 2022 at 8:34 am
Any serious approach to climate change is dismissed as “left wing stuff.” In other words, keep kicking the can down the road, dump the problem on the next generation, build a sea wall here or there. Great planning. Don’t want to offend the climate deniers, they are the “base.”
Richard Courreges
January 30, 2022 at 4:21 pm
Your kidding…the climate has been changing since the beginning…like we are going to change the climate…and by we, I mean the US…do you really thing the rest of the world cares….check out the 400 coal fired plants that China is building and oil and gas is all Russia has….no just adapt or move.
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