- February 8, 2025
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The Port Orange City Council has approved the use of $266,593 in federal grant funds to go toward the Virginia Avenue and Monroe Street Drainage Project as well as Community Development Block Grant planning and administration. The decision was made during the Tuesday, Aug. 1 city council meeting.
The goal is to improve existing storm water drainage facilities with the possibility of installing new facilities as well. According to the Oct. 16, 2015 Legislative Program from the city, the Virginia Avenue and Monroe Street corridor has been flooded during past storms.
The funds are part of the CDBG program, which is funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The city council decision was in regards to the money allocated for the 2017 fiscal year as part of the city's five-year CDBG Consolidated Plan for the 2016-2020 fiscal year.
Port Orange City Manager Jake Johansson said the project was something the city had planned about two years ago but did not have the funds for at the time.
"We asked the state for $1.5 million dollars to match it with about $1.9 million, and we came up short. They gave us $750,000, which is a good start," Johansson said. "It's going to do a great job at reducing flooding, reducing nitrates into the Halifax River, so it'll do something for the folks in that area, it'll do something for the environment, and it's a win-win for everybody."
Cities that are awarded a CDBG grant are required to submit an Annual Action Plan in order to receive funding. The 2017 Annual Action Plan for Port Orange allocated funds for the time period beginning Oct. 1, 2017 and ending Sept. 30, 2018.
According to the city's plan, an estimated 80 % of the city's fiscal year 2017 CDBG allocation would be spent on "public infrastructure improvements in the Virginia Avenue/Monroe Street area of the city."
Tuesday's vote means $213, 274.40 will go toward the project while $53,318.60 will be put toward planning and administration. The city has to contract out for grants and administration, one of the duties being CDBG, and this part of the funds will go toward that payment, according to Assistant City Manager Alan Rosen.
Rosen said construction on the project has not yet been started, only the design work is done.
"It's about a $3 million project," Rosen said. "We're trying to get as much grant funding as we can so we don't have to charge everybody here for that project but it still benefits everybody here."
