BRADENTON, Fla. (WFLA) — Governor Ron DeSantis announced an award of $18 million in funding for Florida's supply chain and aggregate storage for critical infrastructure and asphalt and concrete production at a news conference in Bradenton on Friday.
At the FDOT Manatee Operations Center, DeSantis detailed the award — the first of $100 million to be invested over five years — which will fund road expansion and other infrastructure projects under the Moving Florida Forward Initiative.
"A strong supply chain is key to Florida's economic strength. We can't rely on Washington—we need Florida-based solutions,” DeSantis said. “These grants will help our state boost capacity and ensure vital materials reach projects on time.”
The grant award recipients include:
- $3.7 million to Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad to design and construct a new aggregate terminal in Lake City to accommodate 200,000 additional tons of aggregate annually and 48 rail cars.
- $1.5 million to Capital Asphalt to design and construct a new aggregate terminal in Tallahassee to accommodate 80,000 additional tons of aggregate annually.
- $3.9 million to CSX to design and construct a new aggregate terminal in Plant City to accommodate 20 acres of storage capacity and 250,000 additional tons of aggregate annually.
- $6.2 million to the Port of Tampa Bay to construct the Berth 218 aggregate terminal and an additional 500,000 tons of limerock annually.
- $2.6 million to JAXPORT to begin the project development and environment phase to increase rail capacity and accommodate 15 acres of yard storage and an additional 240,000 tons of aggregate annually.
DeSantis was joined by Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue.
You can watch the full news conference on the video player above.
