Miami Beach Awarded $18.6 Million in Environmental Resilience Grants

(Miami Beach, FL) Feb 10, 2022 -

The City of Miami Beach has been awarded an additional $18.6 million through the Resilient Florida Grant Program. The awards include $10 million to create a resilient and thriving community in the North Beach Town Center, $7.6 million towards the city’s aging sewer system and $1 million to enhance the dune system along the beach to provide nature-based protection for upland properties.  These projects all reduce the risk of flooding and infrastructure failure today and in the future from high tides, raising groundwater, storms, and sea level rise. Miami-Beach has been awarded $47.2 million in Resilient Florida Funding to-date.

The awards were announced by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday during visits to Miami-Dade and Pinellas counties. DeSantis announced more than $404 million in awards for 113 environmental resilience projects across the state under the Resilient Florida Grant.

“We are facing an unprecedented undertaking to overcome the challenges posed by sea level rise and are grateful for these funds to ensure that Miami Beach remains a thriving economic anchor in Florida for decades to come,” said Miami Beach City Manager Alina T. Hudak. “These awards are a tribute to the leadership of the Mayor and City Commission. I would also like to recognize the Grants and Intergovernmental Division, along with the Resilience Office, Public Works, Economic Development, and Environmental and Sustainability departments for their devoted and successful work on these grants.”

Holistic resilience planning has been a key piece for the city to obtain funding. Projects protect the community, address aging infrastructure, enhance our environment through blue green infrastructure, and improve the quality of life through more shaded, walkable and bikeable communities.

The Resilient Florida Grant Program was created to help prepare communities for the impacts of sea level rise and flooding.

“For the first time ever, Florida has strategic coordination of statewide efforts to protect our coastal and inland infrastructure, and the dedicated funding to support these projects,” DeSantis said in a statement. “This announcement is just the beginning. My administration will continue to support our communities’ resilience efforts across the state.”

Please click here to view details of the three projects that received grant funding.

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