Escambia County Applies for More Than $92 Million for Countywide Infrastructure Upgrades

Escambia County is currently an applicant for more than $92 Million in various infrastructure upgrade projects which will, if awarded, benefit every citizen in Escambia County!

As I mention frequently at our BCC meetings, our staff at Escambia County are incredibly dedicated and committed to working hard for our citizens.  Often, they absorb criticism, scorn, and unfair characterizations.  But these narratives are unwarranted, and in nearly every respect I have found them as a team to be very responsive, proactive, and effective.  Particularly this current staff.

One standout is  our Grants and Special Projects Manager Elizabeth Kissel.  

She has been working hard, in conjunction with our Budgeting Office and others from multiple departments, on getting our county reimbursed for multiple natural disasters going all the way back to the floods of 2014.  Lately she has been applying for numerous grants for multiple projects all over the county.  She has been instrumental in assisting our county in receiving Millions of dollars in reimbursements from both the state and federal governments for these previous events.

On Friday, a huge list of very worthwhile grant proposals totalling more than $92 Million dollars was sent to commissioners by Liz Kissel.  While it is not a guarantee that we will receive these funds to complete these projects--it is nevertheless worthwhile for us to try.  And we will get many of these grants.

Kudos to Liz and all of the staff members who assisted with completing these below grant applications.

Rebuild Florida Hurricane Sally Grants

• Rebuild Florida Infrastructure Repair Grant Applications (Allowed 3 applications)
• Grant Close Date – Friday, April 14, 2023 – ALL THREE GRANT APPLICATIONS WERE SUBMITTED ONTIME.
• Applications
• Application 1 - $32,550,000 - New ECAT energy efficient Escambia County Transit Center and solar powered bus shelters at the facility with ADA upgrades. Will also serve as an emergency shelter.
• Application 2 - $6 million – Beach Haven Phase 3 Design
• Application 3 - $26,396,768 million – Regional Stormwater Projects which included:
• PHS Drainage Improvements Phase I, II, and III - $1,800,000
• Oakfield Acres/Palafox - $11,200,000
• Carver Park Phase II - $2,160,000
• Monroe Avenue - $2,000,000
• Brickyard Road - $2,000,000
• Olive Road street and drainage improvement - $7,236,768
• Rebuild Florida Voluntary Home Buyout Grant Application (Allowed 1 application)
• Grant Close Date – Friday, April 14, 2023 – GRANT APPLICATION SUBMITTED ONTIME.
• Application
• $3,170,114.80 – Designed to encourage risk reduction through the purchase of residential property in high flood-risk areas to help reduce the impact of future disasters. Included four Hazard Mitigation Grant local match requirements plus other expenses not included in the grants:
• Bristol Park
• Countywide
• Rich Land
• Escambia County, Pensacola, and Cantonment
• Rebuild Florida Hometown Revitalization Grant (Allowed 3 applications)
• Grant Close Date – May 1, 2023 – ALL THREE GRANT APPLICATIONS WERE SUBMITTED ONTIME.
• Applications
• Application 1 – $5,000,000 – ECAT Solar Powered Community Bus Shelters with ADA Upgrades
• Application 2 – $5,000,000 – Palafox Street Sidewalks from Highway 29 to Nine Mile Road (4.8 miles)
• Application 3 - $5,000,000 – Regional Sidewalk and Drainage Projects including:
• Jackson Street Sidewalks and Drainage from 57^th Avenue to New Warrington Road (1.47 miles)
• “W” Street Sidewalks from Airport Boulevard to Highway 29
• Hollywood Avenue Sidewalks and Drainage from Massachusetts Avenue to Fairfield Drive
• Rebuild Florida Subrecipient Housing Repair and Replacement Grant (Allowed 1 application)
• Grant Close Date – May 15, 2023 – GRANT APPLICATION SUBMITTED ONTIME.
• Application
• $9,000,000 is the MAX application and we will be seeking the full amount.
• A subrecipient program designed to repair, replace, or reconstruct homes damaged by Hurricane Sally.

Massive $1.45 Million Sidewalk Project through the Heart of Bellview in District 1 Commences February 28th!

The caption from the front page of the plans, above,  shows the project's path along Saufley Field road in Bellview

A massive state-funded sidewalk and drainage project will be kicking off in District 1 on Monday, February 28th.  

This project will be constructed by Chavers Construction, Inc., and will include 5-foot sidewalks (north and south side of the road) and some drainage enhancements all along Saufley Field Road from the entrance gate of NAS Pensacola special area Saufley field over past Mobile Hwy to Denver Avenue.

The 7-month, $1.45 Million  project should be completed by October 1st if all goes according to plan.

This large sidewalk project will be connected to several currently-underway county sidewalk projects along the side streets and roads connecting to Saufley Field Road.

This will be a fantastic enhancement to the heart of District 1 in Bellview!

Typical section of the project--showing the 5-foot sidewalks on both the north and south side of Saufley Field road from Saufley Field over to Denver Avenue east of Mobile Hwy.

On WCOA's "Real News" Discussing Pedestrian Safety in Beulah

Three locally-elected officials are working on a project to construct a pedestrian overpass over Hwy 90 in Beulah--which could look similar to this one, above, from North Carolina...

I was a guest on WCOA's "Real News" with Rick Outzen yesterday discussing the concept of a pedestrian overpass over Hwy 90/9-Mile Road in Beulah.  The initiative to fund, design and build this overpass will be a collaboration among/between the State, the County Commission, and the School Board.

Because of Hurricane Ida and the closure of the County--we had to cancel our planned press conference that was supposed to take place at 4:30 yesterday.

Meanwhile, we had a good discussion on this topic and I appreciated the opportunity to be on the show.

Check out our discussion here

Sidewalk Project Moving Forward on Dog-track Road in District 1

From the county's engineering department:

Construction Notice of Commencement

Dog Track Road Sidewalks Project

Escambia County’s Construction Management Division will soon begin the Dog Track Road Sidewalks Project in District 1. Dog Track Road has sidewalks in various locations along the rights-of-way between Lillian Highway and Blue Angel Highway. The project includes clearing and grubbing, roadside grading, storm water line and structure installation, ditch excavation, and installation of approximately 1,750 linear feet of sidewalk, access ramps, inlet top replacement, striping, and sod. Construction will begin in January/February 2020 and will be completed within 150 days pending weather.

The following is information regarding the project:        

--This project is funded by the Local Option Sales Tax with construction costs estimated at $141,175.

--Chavers Construction, Inc. will install sidewalks within the right-of-way of Dog Track Road at three different locations, connecting the walkways to Blue Angel Elementary School.

--Construction will take place during the hours of 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Monday through Friday.

·        --Areas that are impacted during construction will be returned to their previous state.

·         --Access to adjacent properties will be maintained, although there may be short periods when a driveway or entrance is temporarily blocked during construction.  

·         --An Escambia County inspector will monitor the construction areas daily.

·         --Your cooperation and patience are appreciated during this construction process.

For more information contact:

Thomas “TJ” Williams, Project Manager

Escambia County Engineering

(850)554-1967  tjwilliams@myescambia.com