City of Gainesville Awarded Rebuild Florida Grant to Address Damage at Tumblin Creek

The City of Gainesville has been awarded a $512,073 grant to address damage to Tumblin Creek in southeast Gainesville caused by Hurricane Irma in 2017. The funds, part of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s (DEO) Rebuild Florida Infrastructure Repair Program, will strengthen the creek’s stormwater infrastructure and help prevent future erosion of the creek bed. 

The DEO allocated nearly $100 million through the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery Program for projects that address damage from Hurricane Irma to low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. The City is one of 24 communities across Florida to receive this funding. 

The repair will address significant damage at two locations near a neighborhood of multi-family structures and condominiums. One area, south of Depot Avenue, involves rock walls installed at Tumblin Creek to protect the stream bank. A second repair, north of Depot Avenue, involves structural damage to a large headwall and pipe structure.
 
The project is expected to begin in November and include improvements to the creek’s sandy bed that has a high potential for erosion. Repair will reduce the amount of sediment carried downstream and lower long-term maintenance costs associated with sediment removal. Overall, the project will repair storm-damaged infrastructure and help protect nearby housing, roads and utilities. The project is expected to be completed in the spring of 2022.