Sarasota government leaders consider how to use infrastructure bill funding

Government officials in the Sarasota area are pondering how to use the millions of dollars they expect to receive from the bipartisan infrastructure package recently passed by Congress.

On Nov. 15, President Joe Biden signed into law a $1.2 trillion bill meant to improve the country’s infrastructure.

Funding from the bill will be used to fix many roads and bridges, expand broadband internet access and build a network of electric vehicle charging stations, among other uses.

Some money will go to Sarasota area local governments, but government officials don’t yet know how much they’ll receive.

Nevertheless, they have several ideas for to how to use the funding, including extending the Legacy Trail into the city of Sarasota’s northern neighborhoods and improving wastewater management.

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Sarasota City Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch said the bill will help the city pay for some projects that it has already been hoping to carry out.

“I think it’s going to really have an incredible impact,” she said.

Florida funding

While Sarasota officials doesn’t know how much funding they’ll receive from the infrastructure bill, the U.S. Department of Transportation has released some statewide estimates.

Florida is expected to receive approximately $13.3 billion over five years in federal highway formula funding for highways and bridges, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Florida can also apply for funding from other bridge or transportation-related programs.

The U.S. Department of Transportation also estimates that Florida will receive about $2.8 billion over five years to improve public transportation options. The state will also receive funding for highway safety programs and other initiatives.

City of Sarasota’s hopes

City Manager Marlon Brown said the city is waiting to receive guidance on the infrastructure bill funding.

During the implementation of similar bills in the past, state agencies have distributed the federal funding to municipalities and counties, Brown said.

One potential use for the funding, Brown said, would be to extend the Legacy Trail into Sarasota’s northern neighborhoods. The bike trail is currently being extended to Payne Park near downtown Sarasota, but Brown would like the path to continue farther north and reach Manatee County.

Brown also suggested that infrastructure money could be used to make St. Armands Circle, the Newtown commercial area and other areas of the city more pedestrian-friendly.

“We’d like to see some of these dollars really spread throughout the city to really help our commercial areas, our main streets,” he said.

Ahearn-Koch said she would similarly like to see the funding used to improve sidewalks and other infrastructure, especially in northern Sarasota neighborhoods. She said the sidewalks in Newtown, for example, need work.

“You have sidewalks there that there are really narrow,” she said, “They’re cracked, they’re buckling.”

Sarasota County funding

Sarasota County government will also receive funding from the bill. County Administrator Jonathan Lewis said in a statement that the county doesn't expect to see the funds until 2022. County staff have been reviewing the legislation, though, to ensure that the county has projects that would qualify for the funding.

"These projects could already be in motion for the board to quickly consider and would have a positive impact on the community," Lewis stated.

County Commissioner Christian Ziegler suggested that some of the money could support the county’s transition to advanced wastewater treatment.

The county is upgrading its Bee Ridge facility, which is the county’s largest wastewater plant. The upgrades will allow the plant to conform with advanced wastewater treatment standards.

Ziegler also thinks the funding could be used to improve roads in the county such as Fruitville or River roads.

Longboat Key

Tom Harmer, the Town of Longboat Key’s manager, said he and other government leaders are still trying to find out how the infrastructure funding will be made available.

But he said that the bill could potentially accelerate some of the projects that Longboat Key has planned on the Gulf of Mexico Drive.

The key could also use the funding to help deal with drainage issues and water backing up into neighborhoods during high tides, Harmer said.

“Resiliency is an important issue on the island,” he noted.

Anne Snabes covers city and county government for the Herald-Tribune. You can contact her at asnabes@gannett.com or (941) 228-3321 and follow her on Twitter at @a_snabes.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota officials consider how to spend infrastructure bill money