A.G. Gancarski
The OCEARCH Mayport Research and Operations Center appears to be on the verge of securing enough money for a capital project from the state of Florida this year.
The Senate Appropriations Chair has agreed to the House position, which would allocate $1.5 million to the facility. That number is just 30% of the $5 million originally sought for the Northeast Florida organization dedicated to shark research.
Yet it exactly matches the $1.5 million requested for capital purposes, even though the number elides the $3.5 million in operational support requested by Sen. Clay Yarborough and Rep. Wyman Duggan.
The money likely will “support the construction of a facility (OCEARCH’s global headquarters) and customized first-response catamaran,” leaving Jacksonville University to seek other funding via individuals, corporations and foundations, at least until its inevitable budget request next year.
Jacksonville University, which is the official requester, owns the dock and the land and will administer the funding if it isn’t vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, allowing it to continue a partnership begun seven years ago.
The budget request outlines ambitious goals for OCEARCH’s global headquarters, which will accommodate “public education and displays, public meetings, OCEARCH ship operations, a new quick-response vessel for marine research and marine animal rescue, and dockage for the various OCEARCH vessels,” along with “laboratory, data management, and academic resource management to assist collaborative scientists and researchers in their efforts.”
