What will Polk get? Some funding requests are repeats of items that were vetoed last year

Polk County legislators are trying again to secure state funding for the creation of a Polk State College campus in Haines City.

Matching requests from two lawmakers for $16.2 million highlight the dozens of appropriations for local projects sought by Polk County’s six legislators in the session scheduled to end March 8. Leaders of the state House and Senate will decide which requests to include in their final budgets, and Gov. Ron DeSantis has the power to veto individual appropriations before signing the budget.

The $16.2 million requested for Polk State is the same amount the Legislature included for the project in last year’s budget, only to have DeSantis veto the allocation. Rep. Josie Tomkow, R-Polk City, and Sen. Colleen Burton, R-Lakeland, have again submitted companion requests for the funds, intended to support creation of Polk State’s Northeast Ridge campus in Haines City.

The first phase of campus construction has an estimated cost of $51 million, and the Legislature allocated $13.8 million for it in the 2022 session. The money is designated for the design and construction of a 75,000-square-foot facility to house classrooms, laboratories, offices and student-support space.

At least two other requests revive allocations from last year’s budget vetoed by DeSantis. Burton and Rep. Jennifer Canady, R-Lakeland, asked for $500,000 to help subsidize the ongoing expansion of the Polk Museum of Art at Florida Southern College in Lakeland.

Rep. Melony Bell, R-Fort Meade, and Burton are seeking $4 million for Polk County Public Schools to develop Heartland Biztown and Finance Park, nearly half the anticipated cost of the project, according to Bell’s submission.

The facility would host an entrepreneurial education program for students in all grades, fostering learning and workforce development opportunities for students, the request says. The Legislature included $750,000 for the project in last year’s budget, but DeSantis deleted the allocation.

Among the largest funding requests from Polk County lawmakers, Canady and Burton want $12 million for the widening of County Road 557 from U.S. 17-92 in Lake Alfred north to Interstate 4. That amount represents about 39% of the projected cost of expanding the road from two lanes to four lanes, according to Canady’s request.

Tomkow and Burton requested $9.5 million for the North Ridge Trail, a proposed connector road between Deen Still Road and Sand Mine Road, west of U.S. 27 in northeast Polk County. That figure amounts to 47.5% of the cost, with local funding covering the remainder, the requests indicate.

Polk County would seek another $3 million to $10 million in state funding for the road in subsequent years, according to Tomkow’s submission.

Here is a summary of other funding requests from Polk County legislators. In almost all cases, identical versions have been submitted by a House member and a senator.

Rep. Melony Bell

• $4 million for a new fire rescue station in Bartow (matching request from Sen. Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula). The submissions cite a third-party study recommending three new stations in the city.

• $3.6 million for construction of a sludge drying bed at a water treatment plant in Bartow.

• $3.35 million for Jersey Commons, an affordable housing community in Winter Haven that will also include facilities for primary care, behavioral health and vocational treatment. Burton entered a matching request.

The project, which held a groundbreaking earlier this month, received the same amount in last year’s budget.

• $2.5 million for expansion of Redlands Christian Migrant Association’s Mulberry Community Academy, a charter school that opened last year and serves migrant and low-income families. The funding, also sought by Albritton, would help the school reach its goal of adding one grade level each year to reach K-8 status.

Bell, a Fort Meade native, has submitted multiple requests for projects in her hometown. Those include $3 million for construction of a new fire station and renovations to the existing one; $2.8 million for wastewater and effluent disposal facilities; $2 million for the repair and replacement of 143 sewer manholes; $1.5 million for advanced metering infrastructure; and $1.3 million for road and sidewalk repairs.

Albritton submitted identical requests for most of those projects.

Rep. Jennifer Canady

• $6.1 million for the renovation of Building 1 at Polk State College, a structure that is nearly 40 years old (matched by Burton). The Legislature allocated the same amount for the project in last year’s budget.

• $3.5 million for Polk County Public Schools’ Homeland Agribusiness Academy (matched by Albritton). The facility would provide agriculture training for students in all grades.

• $2.1 million for expansion of the Peace River Center’s Gilmore outpatient campus (matched by Burton), to increase the efficiency and usable space for the behavioral health facility.

• $1.5 million for the replacement of the Lakeland Police Department’s SWAT training tower. The current, wooden tower is more than 30 years old, according to Canady’s request.

• $800,000 to expand primary care access for Medicaid patients at Lakeland Regional Health’s Morrell Clinic, a project intended to reduce emergency department visits for non-emergency care.

Rep. Sam Killebrew

The Republican from Winter Haven has submitted requests for four projects in Frostproof, all related to bolstering the city’s water supply. He asked for $2.5 million for improvements to the city’s north water plant, which is unable to meet water demand at peak times and requires electrical upgrades, according to Killebrew’s submission.

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Killebrew also seeks $1.6 million for construction of a water pump station, $2.1 million for an accompanying ground storage tank and just over $1 million for construction of a related well.

Among Killebrew’s other funding requests:

• $3.2 million for a project that would allow Lake Hamilton to reuse wastewater for irrigation.

• $2.25 million for the final phase of a wastewater treatment facility at Warner University in Lake Wales.

• $1.2 million for upgrades to the Lake Wales Recreation Center.

• $1.1 million for improvements to North Lake Shipp Drive in Winter Haven, including stormwater mitigation and utility relocation.

• $1.1 million for Polk County Fire Rescue to acquire a mobile firefighter rehab apparatus unit.

Rep. Josie Tomkow

Tomkow has asked for $4.1 million to fund improvements to the Polk County Jail, a project toward which Polk County has designated $4.3 million. The money would help to replace an obsolete intercom and door-control system and provide a new heating/cooling unit, according to Tomkow’s submission.

Tomkow’s other requests include:

• $2.4 million for improvements to Auburndale’s Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant. The city determined last year that the facility needs $24.8 million for upgrades to its sewer infrastructure over the next two years to allow development to continue in the North Auburndale area, Tomkow’s submission says.

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• $2 million to relocate Lewis Mathews Park in Davenport, a project needed for the widening of Power Line Road from two to four lanes.

• $2 million for a related project, installing water and sewer lines in the area of the Power Line Road extension.

• $1.7 million for Tri-County Human Services to staff a medical detoxification to treat people with substance-abuse disorders.

• $1.2 million for the extension of Robinson Road in Haines City, including pedestrian access to the planned Haines City Trail.

• $1.4 million for expanding broadband infrastructure in Haines City. The project calls for installing fiber-optic lines to improve citizens’ access to the internet and to support the city’s emergency operations.

Florida Senate

Albritton, the Senate majority leader, has filed requests matching many of those submitted by Polk County’s House members. His funding initiatives include the projects in Bartow, Fort Meade and Frostproof.

Albritton also seeks $756,000 for an expansion of the nursing program at Webber International University in Babson Park, corresponding to a House request from Killebrew.

Burton, chair of the Senate’s Health Policy Committee, has submitted companion requests to many of those filed by Polk County’s House members. She also requested $7.5 million for Florida Polytechnic University in Lakeland, funds that would help expand the student population by 15% in two years, improve undergraduate academic programs, bolster graduate programs and aid in faculty recruiting, according to her request.

No matching House request could be found.

Burton is seeking $1.35 million for renovations to buildings at Tenoroc High School so that it can replace McKeel Academy as a special needs shelter, matching a request from Bell. Burton also wants $1.5 million to expand parking at Bonnet Springs Park in Lakeland, mirroring a request from Canady. The amount reflects 86% of the projected cost for the project at the 168-acre attraction that opened in 2022.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Polk legislators' funding requests include items vetoed last year