St. Petersburg Gets $173M Federal Hurricane Recovery Funds

ST. PETERSBURG — Mayor Kenneth T. Welch announced Friday that the city secured $173 million in federal funding for Hurricane Milton recovery through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program.

A geocoding error in the original award for Hurricanes Helene and Idalia prevented assistance for residents solely impacted by Milton. The new allocation corrects that mistake and funds the city's Sunrise St. Pete recovery initiative.

The $173 million breaks down as follows: $126 million for housing recovery and $47.6 million for infrastructure and mitigation projects in partnership with Pinellas County.

"These funds will be used strategically and intentionally to make sure our residents can recover from recent storms and that our infrastructure is prepared for future disasters," Mayor Welch said.

The city will prioritize reviewing previously denied applications for the Sunrise St. Pete single-family program that have a Milton impact. Residents who applied need not reapply; staff will review their applications automatically.

Representative Anna Paulina Luna, City Council Vice Chair Richie Floyd and other officials joined the announcement. More information is available on the city's website.