BARTOW, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced more than $64 million awarded to eight communities, including the City of Forte Meade in Polk County, through the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s (DEO) Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program. Projects include improving drainage and roadways in neighborhoods, hardening water systems, and stabilizing current water reservoirs to lower future risks of flooding.

“By supporting the infrastructure of Florida’s communities we are supporting their economic resiliency,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Today, we are helping another eight communities reinforce important infrastructure that will mitigate the impacts of future disasters, while building a foundation that will support their future economic growth.”

In 2018, the State of Florida was allocated Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funding by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for mitigation projects in areas impacted by presidentially declared disasters in 2016 and 2017. As the governor-designated state authority responsible for administering all HUD long-term recovery funds, DEO created the Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program.

“A commonality of today’s announcements is water and how the flow and storage of water impacts how a community can ultimately mitigate and elevate,” said Department of Economic Opportunity Secretary Dane Eagle. “I’m grateful to support the Governor’s efforts here and throughout Florida to repair and ready our communities so they can both rise above the next challenge and simultaneously find greater economic opportunities for employees and employers alike.”

The following communities will receive funding awards through the Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program:

• City of Boynton Beach ($16,500,000) – to make drainage, utilities, and roadway improvements to mitigate recurrent flooding in the San Castle neighborhood.
• City of Eatonville ($5,986,105) – to harden the existing water system to provide critical supply during natural disasters.
• City of Fort Meade ($6,125,115) – to improve the water collection system to mitigate flood risk.
• City of Punta Gorda ($2,521,250) – to resolve flooding and improve water quality treatment in the Boca Grande neighborhood.
• City of St. Petersburg ($2,034,517) – to dredge Bartlett Lake to increase storage volume, improve water quality, and improve stormwater flow.
• Orange County ($2,726,000) – to harden the master pump station to increase reliability and resiliency to withstand extreme weather events.
• Pinellas County ($17,120,395) – to stabilize and widen the Joe’s Creek channel to lower flood risk and increase resilience throughout the watershed.
• Town of Lake Park ($11,067,635) – to retrofit the existing drainage system to mitigate recurrent flooding.

Through the Rebuild Florida Mitigation General Infrastructure Program, over $370 million has been given to communities across the state to support efforts to harden infrastructure against future storm damage.

Rebuild Florida uses federal funding for Florida’s long-term recovery efforts from the devastating impacts of natural disasters. For more information, visit RebuildFlorida.gov.

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