The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced more than $116 million for 88 disaster recovery and mitigation projects across Florida, including three in Sarasota and Manatee counties.
The state will receive more than $66 million in federal reimbursement to communities for debris removal, emergency protective measures taken to reduce or eliminate disaster impacts, and repairs to or reconstruction of damaged critical infrastructure.
What grants were approved in Sarasota-Manatee?
Nearly $44 million was awarded to Manatee County for emergency response and debris removal following hurricanes Milton and Debby, including the removal of more than 1.2 million cubic yards of vegetative and construction debris from roads, public property and rights-of-way.
More than $751,000 was awarded to the city
of Sarasota for repairing damage at Indian Beach Park resulting from Hurricane Milton storm surge.
More than $660,000 was awarded to the city of North Port to reimburse costs for police emergency response and measures that protected lives, public health and property during Hurricane Ian.
While those three grants were from the most recent disbursement, Sarasota County has received previous awards from the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, including almost $570,000 for a permanent generator at the Englewood Sports Complex Recovery Center and $157,500 for design for Proctor Road Bridge, Stabilization.
What grants were awarded for damage prevention?
FEMA also awarded more than $50 million for projects that will prevent, eliminate or reduce future disaster-related damage.
This money is being distributed through FEMA’sHazard Mitigation Grant Program.
Through this program, state, local or territorial governments and Tribal Nations take proactive mitigation measures such as acquiring hazard-prone homes and businesses, adopting and enforcing building codes and standards, protecting against floods through elevations and drainage improvement projects, building safe rooms and upgrading utilities and infrastructure.
Of that, the state of Florida received more than $46.4 million for cost-effective residential mitigation projects statewide, including work on 62 homes through elevations, property acquisitions, demolitions and reconstruction of eligible homes.
This funding is part of more than $781 million that FEMA announced for more than 490 projects nationwide. It is the latest example of the billions of dollars in disaster recovery provided by FEMA to support state and local communities as they work to rebuild from recent natural disasters.
Earle Kimel primarily covers local governments in Sarasota County as well as land development and environmental issues for the Herald-Tribune. Follow him on Facebook, and X. He can be reached by email at earle.kimel@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Millions awarded for Sarasota, Manatee hurricane recovery
