Project Updates – June 27, 2008
The Bradenton Herald reports that another US$7.6 million in federal funding could be earmarked for the long-awaited dredging of Wares Creek.
The House Appropriations Committee approved that amount for Wares Creek, plus US$7.7 million to dredge Manatee and Tampa harbors, for beach renourishment on Lido Key and for an alternative energy centre in Sarasota County.
The funding is all part of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act that could be approved later this year, said the report, noting that US Rep Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota, has pushed for Wares Creek funding in the past, and played a key role in securing US$4.7 million last year for the dredging.
His office called Wednesday’s victory a “giant step forward.”
The local funding must still win approval from the entire House and Senate.