UF graduate campus in Jacksonville and Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine avoid DeSantis vetoes

Gov. Ron DeSantis took a light touch with his veto pen and left big-ticket items sought by Northeast Florida lawmakers in the state budget, topped by $75 million for a planned University of Florida graduate campus in Jacksonville.

Overall, it was a good year for higher education to ask for money from state lawmakers.

The budget signed Thursday by DeSantis also has $35 million for structural remodeling of the historic Hotel Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine that is part of the Flagler College campus. The University of North Florida will get $26.3 million for expansion and upgrades for the University of North Florida's Coggin College of Business plus $7.4 million for remodeling the university's Brooks College of Health.

Florida State College at Jacksonville got $666,500 for its planned Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success.

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Even a shark-tracking base in Mayport escaped a veto. Jacksonville University will get $5 million for an Ocearch research and operations center at Mayport in a partnership between the university, Ocearch, and the city of Jacksonville. DeSantis vetoed $7 million last year for Ocearch in Mayport but didn't zero out this year's line item when lawmakers put in money again.

“Right now, and for many years to come, Jacksonville University believes exploration, education and scientific discovery are the key ingredients to achieving real progress in tackling massive challenges of our time, such as climate change and healthy oceans,” Jacksonville University President Tim Cost said.

Mayor Lenny Curry called it an "awesome day and big wins" for the city. In a tweet, he thanked DeSantis for "supporting our growth and funding these projects" while praising his in-house team for "securing these dollars to keep our beloved city on the rise."

State Rep. Angie Nixon, D-Jacksonville, saw it differently. She said DeSantis's veto list "represents a punishment list of all the folks in office that dared speak out against his harmful policies, like myself."

“Because of his ambition, it (also) represents the giveaways that prop him up for his presidential campaign," Nixon said.

The biggest item for Jacksonville is the proposed UF graduate campus that would be built in the downtown area.

Jacksonville City Council approved $20 million as the first installment for $50 million in local taxpayer support over three years. A separate private fund-raising campaign must round up an additional $50 million. UF went to the state Legislature for state dollars and ended up with $75 million, an amount that got crucial support by House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, who has Jacksonville connections in his political and legal career.

State lawmakers added the money for the UF Health and Financial Technology Graduate Education Center to the state budget. A summary of the legislative request says the professional graduate programs will create a "pipeline of highly trained students" for the state while fostering innovation and invention through "solutions-based programs" developed by UF Health and the UF colleges of business and engineering.

UF has not said where it will build the campus. Jaguars owner Shad Khan has offered to donate 14 acres of land in the sports complex he intends to buy from the Greater Jacksonville Fair Association.

In another costly item added by lawmakers to the state budget, JaxPort will get $30 million for replacing two aging cranes, the latest round of state money for the port.

While most higher education requests got to the finish line, DeSantis vetoed $34 million for St. Johns River State College. The college would have used the money for a complex bringing together its STEAM programs, which stands for science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.

DeSantis vetoed some smaller-priced items in Jacksonville. He nixed $500,000 for Wayman Academy of the Arts and $1 million for expansion of KIPP, both charter schools.

Nixon sought the funding for Wayman Academy, which was the only member-sponsored project she submitted for addition to the budget.

DeSantis vetoed $350,000 for Family Support Services of North Florida − Community Reinvestment and also cut $600,000 for the Smart North Florida pilot program aimed at helping communities use technology that improves services at less cost.

DeSantis eliminated $500,000 for restoration of the Casket Factory building for the Jacksonville Music History Museum.

Among Clay County projects, DeSantis vetoed $250,000 for Clay County Youth Alternative to Secured Detention and $750,000 for the Clay County public safety warehouse facility.

Nassau County projects that got vetoed included $1 million to the city of Fernandina Beach for seawall construction in downtown. DeSantis vetoed $400,000 for the George Crady Bridge Fishing Pier State Park on the Nassau-Duval county line.

The $35 million set aside for the Hotel Ponce de Leon was the largest item added by lawmakers for a St. Johns County project. The structural repairs will allow about 400 Flagler College students to continue living in the historic building and keep it open for public visits, according to a legislative summary.

DeSantis left intact $10 million for the city of St. Augustine to help protect downtown and nearby neighborhoods from flooding. The resiliency project involving Lake Maria Sanchez will get another $2.8 million from the city and nearly $20 million from the federal American Rescue Plan.

Other St. Johns County spending that stayed in the budget included $15 million for design and construction of County Road 2209, $5 million for a program to purchase residential property along a former segment of Florida A1A battered by coastal erosion, and $400,000 for the relocation and restoration of a house that has links to Martin Luther King Jr. during his visit to St. Augustine in 1964 during the civil rights movement.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Ron DeSantis leave intact money for UF grad campus in Jacksonville