Port St. Lucie Council Directs $1.1M in Federal Funds to Flooding Fixes, Safety, Services

The Port St. Lucie City Council voted unanimously Monday to approve a five-year Community Development Block Grant plan that routes $1.1 million in federal funding to flood control, park safety, code enforcement, and neighborhood services. The allocation puts real dollars behind priorities residents identified in community surveys.

For families in Whispering Pines, the most tangible result is $340,000 for Phase 6 of a culvert replacement program designed to push back floodwaters that have plagued the neighborhood during heavy rains. Another $249,000 goes to Rotary Park for parking lot lighting and security cameras — an investment city officials said responds directly to safety concerns raised by residents who use the park.

The plan dedicates $175,000 to keep two code compliance officers working in designated CDBG neighborhoods. Those officers have opened more than 1,500 cases since October, public records show. Public services receive $150,000, split evenly between the Boys & Girls Club mobile program and the Love Your Block neighborhood improvement initiative.

The vote was 5-0, but not without friction. Councilman Pickett suggested pulling the $249,000 earmarked for Rotary Park and redirecting it toward sidewalk construction along Northwest Torino Parkway, near a new regional park. Vice Mayor Caraballo pushed back — not on the idea, but on how alternatives get framed. An $800,000 Torino sidewalk project would consume most of the available budget and gut nearly every other recommended program, Caraballo noted.

"If we're going to offer alternatives, offer dollar for dollar alternatives in the future," Caraballo said.

The consolidated plan maps Port St. Lucie's federal community development strategy through 2030. It ranks public facilities and infrastructure as the top priority, followed by affordable housing preservation, public services, and grant administration. Those rankings track what residents said in surveys: sidewalks, streets, lighting, and affordable housing repairs topped the list of community concerns.

Staff evaluated competing project requests from city departments under U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development regulations before presenting the final allocations to the council.

A 30-day public comment period opens Tuesday and runs through July 8. The city must submit the final plan to HUD by Aug. 15. Funding becomes available Oct. 1, when the city's fiscal year begins.

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