Plans for a University of Florida campus in Jacksonville got a $75 million boost in the new state budget, one of several projects in Northeast Florida that survived the governor's veto pen.
UF plans to open a graduate school somewhere in the Downtown area. Lawmakers approved the $75 million contribution in their last session, and Gov. Ron DeSantis left it in the state budget despite stripping $510.9 million worth of other projects.
The Jacksonville City Council approved $20 million for the UF project in March, part of $30 million the city intends to give the school over three years.
The campus would focus on medicine, business and engineering, health care and financial services. It is expected to spark development by bringing thousands of students Downtown.
A location has not been determined, but Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan has proposed the former Jacksonville Fairgrounds next to TIAA Bank Field. Khan's development company is buying the property, and he has offered to donate the 14 acres to UF for the campus.
DeSantis gave no explanation for projects he slashed from the record-setting budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The governor’s line item vetoes put the state budget at roughly $116.5 billion, a 6% increase from the current year’s spending plan, the News Service of Florida reported.
The largest item nixed from the 515-page budget was $100 million for conservation and rural land protection easements, a program championed by Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson to limit development on farmland, the News Service said.
Simpson, a former Senate president, blasted DeSantis’ decision, saying it would harm the state’s $180 billion agriculture industry.
“There is no conceivable reason to target agriculture in a year when we have billions of dollars in reserves,” Simpson, a Republican, said in a statement. “Agriculture was harmed today, and so was the state of Florida.”
Northeast Florida received money for several projects, however. Among them:
St. Johns County: $59 million, the county's biggest allocation ever. Included was $25 million for the restoration of critically eroded North Ponte Vedra Beach, $15 million to extend County Road 2209 to International Golf Parkway, and $19 million to enhance safety along transportation corridors and coastal barrier islands.
Flagler College: $35 million for structural remodeling of the historic Hotel Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine, part of the Flagler College campus, the Florida Times-Union reported.
Jaxport: $30 million to buy two new container cranes. Jaxport CEO Eric Green said the money will help Florida's largest container port handle more volume for consumers and businesses.
University of North Florida: $26.3 million for expansion and upgrades for the Coggin College of Business plus $7.4 million for remodeling the university's Brooks College of Health, according to the Times-Union.
Wolfson Children’s Hospital: $5 million toward a new 20-bed inpatient pediatric behavioral health unit at the San Marco-based facility. Baptist Health officials say there are only 65 pediatric inpatient behavioral health beds between Daytona Beach and Fernandina Beach. The Behavioral Health and Wellness Unit is expected to open in about a year on the third floor of Wolfson Children’s Hospital.
Ocearch: $5 million for Jacksonville University's nonprofit ocean research partner, which operates a shark tracker and collects scientific data on marine species including great white and tiger sharks. The money will go toward a facility in Mayport that will serve as the hub for Ocearch's research and education work. DeSantis vetoed $7 million for Ocearch last year.
