KEY LARGO, .Fla – Gov. Ron DeSantis announced $100 million in investments for infrastructure and hardening projects to protect Florida communities against future hurricanes.
DeSantis made the announcement on Friday at the Murray Nelson Government Center in Key Largo.
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The money is part of the Department of Economic Opportunity’s Rebuild Florida program, which was created to help the state’s long-term recovery efforts from hurricanes.
This round of money is earmarked for areas hit by Hurricane Irma, the governor said.
“We’ve got to build back stronger than before. That’s what this investment is all about,” DeSantis said. “The funding will cover everything from road elevations to canal improvements to new stormwater and wastewater systems, and everything in between.”
DeSantis was joined by DEO Executive Director Dane Eagle.
“When I started in September... [DeSantis’] challenge with me was get this money into the communities as fast as possible,” said Eagle. “These are taxpayer dollars, it does no good sitting in government coffers... we’ll be working very closely with your local leaders to make sure that it’s administered quickly and effectively, and that people can be more resilient for future storms.”
Eagle announced that 24 communities across the state would receive money out of this $100 million, with $16 million going to Monroe County, which was hit first by Hurricane Irma in 2017. No other communities that will receive funds were named.