On Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will send almost $47 million to the Panhandle to help it recover from Hurricane Michael which hit the area in October 2018.
DeSantis will send $46.9 million in Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funds which will be handled by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s (DEO) Rebuild Florida program.
“I appreciate the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for issuing this additional funding,” DeSantis said on Tuesday. “This nearly $50 million will go a long way in making the many Northwest Florida communities still recovering from Hurricane Michael more resilient to future storms.”
“Under Governor DeSantis’ continued leadership, the Department will work diligently to help strengthen Florida’s Panhandle communities,” said Dane Eagle, the executive director of DEO. “Last year, the Department launched multiple Rebuild Florida Mitigation programs to increase the resiliency of our state, and we will continue our efforts by getting this funding into the Panhandle as quickly as possible.”
The funds will got to local governments in Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Jackson, Liberty, Wakulla and Washington Counties.
Reach Kevin Derby at kevin.derby@floridadaily.com.
