State of Florida grants City of North Port $1.69M for water/wastewater infrastructure

On October 15th, Governor Ron DeSantis awarded the city of North Port almost $1.7 million through the state's Job Growth Grant Fund.

The funding will support the installation of water and wastewater infrastructure at the 500-acre Panacea Activity Center. The total project cost is 3.4 million with the other portion coming from American Rescue Plan funds that the City has already received. DeSantis estimates that the $1.69 million for the city could create as many as 9,700 new jobs in North Port.

"This will be something that will allow them to bring in more industry," DeSantis said during the October 15th news conference. "They're going to be able to have the key things that they need and I think it's going to potentially provide opportunity to support a lot of business operations and new jobs. This is a great community, but most people are commuting elsewhere to work – today, we are investing in infrastructure that will provide opportunities for people to work right here in North Port,"

This funding continues the City's Economic Development Division's goal in creating more shovel ready sites that will add value to the city while decreasing the tax burden to residents.