Rick Scott rolls out $35 million plan for job growth grant fund spending
Enterprise Florida knows one of its strongest advocates is term-limited and hoping to ascend to the U.S. Senate.
Gov. Rick Scott visited Jacksonville's FDOT office on the Westside Tuesday, with a "major announcement" via the state's $85 million "job growth" fund.
The fund, a compromise solution to Enterprise Florida's previous practice of directing money to businesses (many of them businesses that had donated to Scott's "Let's Get to Work" political committee), includes money for public infrastructure and workforce grants.
Scott announced that $35 million was to be dispersed on nine projects that are expected to create 15,000 new jobs. $50 million is yet to be spent.
Liberty County Board of County Commissioners will get $1,448,831 will get for the construction of a turning lane on Highway 65 South at the intersection of U.S. Forest Service Road 103, and paving 1.5 miles of the service road to create access to more than 500 acres of property for economic development.
Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners will get $3,125,000 to provide water supply and fire protection to the Interstate 75 and County Road 136 interchange.
City of Jacksonville will get $6,000,000 for the construction of a new 1.5-mile access roadway to the city-owned Cecil Commerce Center Mega Site to provide access for the manufacturing industry.
Canaveral Port Authority will get $8,245,000 to improve roadway access to cruise and cargo terminals by increasing roadway capacity for Northside Cargo roads, new intersection signals for public safety and cargo traffic control, and revisions to North Side Cruise Roadway Network to facilitate cruise operations.
Columbia County will get $3,135,600 for the construction of the North Florida Mega Industrial Park Rail Project, which will run parallel to Highway 90, allowing developers access to an industrial park of more than 2,600 acres.
City of Alachua will get $6,755,000 for construction of San Felasco Parkway and nearby utilities, connecting a large bioscience cluster – including the University of Florida Sid Martin Biotechnology Institute – to a shovel-ready site of 280 acres.
City of Port St. Lucie will get $3,003,247 for the development of a roadway improvement project, which will provide access to 100 acres of undeveloped land in Tradition Commerce Park, an area which has the space to accommodate approximately 1.1 million square feet of commercial development.
Pensacola State College will get $1,860,510 for workforce training programs that will increase the number of students earning industry-recognized credentials and degrees required to enter and advance in the workforce for targeted industries, including advanced manufacturing, aviation maintenance, welding, cybersecurity/information technology, nursing, transportation and construction trades.
Washington County Board of County Commissioners will get $1,821,461 to build water and sewer infrastructure that will replace the need for future wells and septic systems as a part of the development of a 1,525-acre commercial/industrial/mixed use development district.
Scott vowed that these projects would offer "return for taxpayer dollars."
Department of Economic Opportunity head Cissy Proctor noted strong demand for these funds: 775 projects, with over $800 million of asks.
Pete Antonacci, CEO of Enterprise Florida, noted that the Cecil Commerce upgrade was among "several projects bringing new business."
Antonacci added that four of the projects are in rural areas, saying that the spending was an invitation to "come on" and "join in the growth" enjoyed in the state's urban areas more so than others in recent years.
We expect a complete list of projects to be released by the Governor's Office, so this piece will be updated.
In this article:Cissy Proctor, Enterprise Florida, Florida Job Growth Grant Fund, Pete Antonacci, Rick Scott