Florida Investing in Supply Chain, Aggregate Enhancements

September 27, 2024

Governor Ron DeSantis (R) (above) recently announced that $18 million in state funding will be invested in supply chain enhancements and aggregate storage facilities to help beef up construction material availability for critical infrastructure projects overseen by the Florida Department of Transportation.

[Above photo by the Florida Governor’s Office]

The Florida DOT identified those investment areas based on cost, proximity to aggregate needs statewide, and speed to project completion – ensuring the state can benefit from those transportation projects as soon as possible.

Gov. Ron DeSantis. Photo by the Florida Governor’s Office.

“A strong supply chain is key to Florida’s economic strength,” the governor noted in a statement. “These grants will help our state boost capacity and ensure vital materials reach projects on time.”

“Many Floridians don’t spend a lot of time thinking about construction materials until a disruption in our ability to supply those materials impacts their community,” added Jared Perdue, Florida DOT secretary.

“With the support and action of Governor DeSantis and the Florida legislature, the transportation construction industry will be able to access these much-needed materials for our infrastructure projects that will help keep construction moving and on time,” he said.

Photo by Florida DOT

[Editor’s note: Florida DOT along with other state departments of transportation in the region is also currently in the midst of responding to the impact of Hurricane Helene, which made landfall along Florida’s “Big Bend” coast on the night of September 26.]

Those grants are the first of $100 million to be invested over five years. The first five recipients of these grants will create an additional 1.2 million tons of aggregate materials storage and enable more rail access to existing aggregate storage facilities in support of major projects within the Moving Florida Forward Initiative.
The grant award recipients include: 

  • $3.7 million to Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad to design and construct a new aggregate terminal in Lake City to accommodate 200,000 additional tons of aggregate annually and 48 rail cars.
  • $1.5 million to Capital Asphalt to design and construct a new aggregate terminal in Tallahassee to accommodate 80,000 additional tons of aggregate annually.
  • $3.9 million to CSX to design and construct a new aggregate terminal in Plant City to accommodate 20 acres of storage capacity and 250,000 additional tons of aggregate annually.
  • $6.2 million to Port of Tampa Bay to construct the Berth 218 aggregate terminal and additional 500,000 tons of limerock annually.
  • $2.6 million to JAXPORT to begin the project development and environment phase to increase rail capacity and accommodate 15 acres of yard storage and an additional 240,000 tons of aggregate annually.
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