PENSACOLA, Fla. (CBS12) — Governor Ron DeSantis announced on Monday the recipients of funds from the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund and the Defense Infrastructure Grant.
The awards will benefit Pensacola State College, the city of DeFuniak Springs, Santa Rosa County, and Jackson County.
“Today’s awards will help bring high demand, high wage jobs and businesses to Northwest Florida,” said Governor Ron DeSantis.
Pensacola State College will receive $4,410,000 to establish a new Airframe and Powerplant Mechanics program. DeSantis stated that this will involve constructing a new hangar and providing training equipment at the Pensacola Airport.
The report states that DeFuniak Springs will receive $3,051,550 to develop essential infrastructure, including hangars, a taxiway, an access road, and utilities. The goal is to attract new employers in the aerospace and defense sectors and generate 500 jobs totaling $12.3 million.
Jackson County has been allocated $4,680,059 to create a new road connecting workforce housing development and an industrial area. According to the report, the project is expected to generate a minimum of 400 new jobs and have an estimated impact of $12.5 million.
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The Defense Infrastructure Grant will allocate $500,000 to Santa Rosa County’s Whiting Aviation Park for the Security Fence Project. The project aims to establish a secure, double-entry gate system connecting NAS Whiting Aviation Park and improve security, maintenance operations, and emergency response times.