Governor Ron DeSantis Announces More Than $750,000 in Community Planning Technical Assistance Grants to 19 Florida Communities - Including Apalachicola

Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis awarded more than $750,000 in Community Planning Technical Assistance grants to 19 Florida communities. These grants, administered by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), assist communities in creating innovative planning and development strategies to promote economic diversity while protecting environmentally sensitive areas.

“Community planning is critical to the long-term economic success of Florida communities across the state,” said Governor DeSantis. “These technical assistance grants will help provide for the development of strong, resilient local economies that attract businesses and support a highly-trained workforce.”  

“Governor DeSantis’ dedication to building a stronger, more resilient Florida economy begins at the community level,” said Ken Lawson, Executive Director of DEO. “DEO will continue to guide and assist communities with every available resource to make smart strategic investments so they can achieve their planning and economic goals.” 

The Florida communities receiving funding include: 

• Apalachee Regional Planning Council – ($65,450) to expand a website with local government maps and links to individual local government websites.

• Calhoun County – ($40,000) to develop a long-term recovery plan to help with recovery from Hurricane Michael.

• Central Florida Regional Planning Council – ($50,000) to complete the next phase of the Heartland 2060 Regional vision plan, which is a seven-county effort to plan for a more resilient region.

• City of Apalachicola – ($40,000) to create a 10-year plan for completion of community projects required as part of the Apalachicola Bay Area of Critical State Concern statute.

• City of Chattahoochee – ($32,600) to support the development of a Streetscape Improvement Plan to develop a vibrant and enhanced streetscape to help revitalize its historic downtown.

• City of Frostproof – ($35,000) to create a technical memorandum on how to best expand the City’s sewage treatment plant waste disposal facility.

• City of Hallandale Beach – ($40,000) to develop a Post-Disaster Redevelopment Plan to address the city’s vulnerabilities to natural hazards.

• City of Springfield – ($30,000) to prepare preliminary site plans for municipal structures lost in Hurricane Michael.

• City of Tamarac – ($40,000) to support the development of a comprehensive Multi-Modal Transportation Master Plan.

• Everglades City – ($40,000) to assist with the development of a comprehensive wastewater plan.

• Hernando County – ($35,000) to develop a master plan for the Anderson Snow District Park.

• Indian River County – ($30,000) to outline and research a management plan for the County’s portion of the Indian River Lagoon.

• Liberty County – ($40,000) to prepare a long-term recovery plan to help with recovery from Hurricane Michael.

• Miami Shores Village – ($40,000) to support the research and development of a Sewer Facility Plan.

• Monroe County – ($40,000) to update and streamline Monroe County’s land development code to comply with the “peril of flood” statute, build community-wide resilience and protect environmentally sensitive areas.

• Town of Havana – ($34,500) to develop Historic Mainstreet design standards.

• Town of Hilliard – ($40,000) to update comprehensive plan data and analysis, goals, objectives, policies and to digitize maps.

• Town of Loxahatchee Groves – ($40,000) to support the development of a GIS Future Land Use and Zoning Map database and to complete related comprehensive plan amendments. 

• Town of Orange Park – ($40,000) to develop a long-range Strategic Vision Plan for the town.

For more information on Community Planning Technical Assistance Grants, please click HERE.