North Florida News
Governor Ron DeSantis Announces $187 Million in Awards for Communities Impacted by Hurricane Sally
Published
3 months agoon
By
FNN NEWS
Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis awarded $187 million to communities impacted by Hurricane Sally through the Florida Department of Commerce’s (Florida Commerce) Rebuild Florida program. Rebuild Florida provides funding for local governments to strategically rebuild homes and harden infrastructure to prevent or mitigate losses from future disasters through multiple avenues.
- City of Pensacola ($39,686,539.86) – to facilitate a stormwater infrastructure project at Hollice T. Williams Park to improve water quality and reduce stormwater in the area, to repair infrastructure at the Port of Pensacola, and to repair and improve infrastructure at the Fricker Center.
- Escambia County Board of County Commissioners ($52,946,768) – to build a new state-of-the-art, energy-efficient and resilient Escambia County Area Transit Center and to make regional stormwater drainage improvements in low- and moderate-income neighborhood
- Town of Century ($12,877,137) – to demolish the old Century High School Gym building located at 440 East Hecker Road and build a shelter that can also be used as a multi-purpose facility and to make drainage and road improvements at Jefferson Avenue, Freedom Road Bridge and Alger Road Bridge, which were damaged during Hurricane Sally.
- Town of Jay ($5,479,939) – to build a Community Disaster Response Facility and various infrastructure to support disaster response and recovery following a storm event.
- City of Panama City ($5,000,000)
- Escambia County ($3,170,114)
- City of Panama City ($992,308) – to facilitate Project ACCESS, a boardwalk on Bayview Ave in the St. Andrews community, which aims to draw new businesses, foster economic growth for existing enterprises, encourage a healthy lifestyle for the low- to moderate-income households, and create enduring positive environmental effects.
- City of Pensacola ($10,000,000) – to acquire, prepare and rehabilitate a targeted property at West Cervantes and North Pace Boulevard and complete a project at Baptist Hospital.
- Escambia County ($5,000,000) – to improve streetscapes and add solar-powered lighting throughout low- to moderate-income areas by installing 80 new Escambia County Area Transit bus shelters and updating 32 Escambia County Area Transit Bus Shelters.
- City of Pensacola ($5,861,500)
- Escambia County ($9,000,000)
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North Florida News
Commissioner Wilton Simpson Announces Cost-Share Assistance for Agricultural Producers Impacted by Hurricane Idalia
Published
6 days agoon
September 22, 2023By
FNN NEWS
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson announced a cost-share assistance program to support agricultural producers severely impacted by Hurricane Idalia. The cost-share assistance program will be administered though the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ (FDACS) Office of Agricultural Water Policy and will support agricultural producers in repairing or replacing damaged irrigation systems, while simultaneously promoting agricultural water efficiency and reducing nutrient application. Additional information on this program and how producers apply can be found here.
Commissioner Wilton Simpson said, “Hurricane Idalia caused widespread crop and livestock losses and severe damage to agricultural infrastructure. This innovative cost-share program will work to support our hardest hit growers who lost much of their 2023 crop and are now looking for ways to repair or replace hundreds of irrigation systems ahead of the next growing season. While this targeted program will not be able to support every impacted agricultural producer, it is another important recovery resource. I will continue working with local, state, and federal partners to ensure that impacted producers have access to the recovery resources they deserve.”
The assistance program will focus on existing irrigation systems and offer a reimbursement rate of 75% for eligible projects, practices, and equipment, up to a maximum of $150,000 per producer or entity. Commissioner Simpson raised the maximum eligible grant amount from $50,000 to $150,000. It is important to note that these funds will not cover items already fully insured. Eligible repairs will target water and nutrient savings, with a commitment of a five-year contract by the producer or entity to ensure long-term water and nutrient conservation benefits over the irrigation system’s twenty-year lifespan.
Eligibility for the program includes operations in a severely impacted county, enrollment in the applicable FDACS best management practices program, compliance with state and federal regulations, including water use permits for pivot locations, and a commitment to minimal tillage and conservation-based practices. The maximum reimbursement amount is set at $150,000 per producer or entity per contract.
Eligible projects, tools, and equipment include but are not limited to pump bowl upgrades, irrigation retrofits, variable rate irrigation systems, electrical conductivity mapping, precision soil sampling, soil moisture sensors, new control panels, irrigation system automation, flow meters, automatic shutoff devices, fertigation systems, weather stations, variable frequency drives, and other efficiencies or enhancements identified by the Mobile Irrigation Lab.
Through existing statutory authority and agency budget, FDACS will initially use allocated funds for cost-share. Given the substantial cost of equipping irrigation systems with precision agriculture technology, the department is actively exploring additional funding avenues to assist more producers.
This cost-share assistance program is in addition to a variety of other agricultural recovery resources offered by state, local, and federal partners, including:
- Bridge Loan for Ag Producers
- Disaster Programs Administered by FSA [ ]
- Natural Disasters and Crop Insurance [ ]
- Hurricane Idalia Relief Fund
- 2023 Agriculture Disaster Impact Assessment [ ]
- Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool
- Non-insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP)
- Livestock Indemnity Program
- Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybee and Farm-raised Fish Program
- Tree Assistance Program
- Emergency Forest Restoration Program
- Environmental Quality Incentives Program
- Emergency Watershed Protection Program
- Farm Loan Discovery Tool
- Disaster Work Log [ ]
- Cash Payments ECP Guidance [ ]
North Florida News
Governor Ron DeSantis Appoints Emery Gainey as Sheriff of Alachua County
Published
3 weeks agoon
September 7, 2023By
FNN NEWS
North Florida News
Governor Ron DeSantis Appoints Brad Drake to the Walton County Board of County Commissioners
Published
3 weeks agoon
September 7, 2023By
FNN NEWS