JOINT FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL
PUBLIC NOTICE
January 26, 2026

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and Florida Division of Emergency Management have received the following application for Federal grant funding.  Final notice is hereby given of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) consideration to provide funding in the form of Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Funds will be provided in accordance with Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Public Law 93-288, as amended.

Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), federal actions must be reviewed and evaluated for feasible alternatives and for social, economic, historic, environmental, legal, and safety considerations. Under Executive Order (EO) 11988 and EO 11990 FEMA is required to consider alternatives to and to provide public notice of any proposed actions in or affecting floodplains or wetlands. EO 12898 also requires FEMA to provide the opportunity for public participation in the planning process and to consider potential impacts to minority or low-income populations.

Funding for the proposed project will be conditional upon compliance with all applicable federal, tribal, state and local laws, regulations, floodplain standards, permit requirements and conditions.

Applicant:
Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners

Project Title:
HMGP-4734-158-R (306)

Location of Proposed Work:

The area affected by this project consists of homes in the following locations:

Many of these locations do not have traditional street addresses because they are utility sites, lift stations, communication towers, or other public infrastructure facilities. For this reason, each site is identified by its GPS coordinates, which provides the most accurate and standardized method of locating these assets.

Locations include, but are not limited to:

• DDJ Lift Station – 30.308375, -82.974955
• Wal‑Mart Lift Station – 30.323477, -82.968435
• Lowes Lift Station – 30.316830, -82.968042
• Scott Lift Station – 30.303290, -82.969022
• Anna Lift Station – 30.300648, -82.975059
• Lake/Ruby Lift Station – 30.293499, -82.968665
• Meadow Lift Station – 30.284566, -82.965446
• Santa Fe Lift Station – 30.290401, -82.981135
• Myrtle/Lamar Lift Station – 30.285445, -82.981256
• Railroad Lift Station – 30.282775, -82.982669
• Miller Lift Station – 30.279366, -82.982669
• Marymac Lift Station – 30.285698, -82.986683
• Church/Hawkins Lift Station – 30.286851, -82.992221
• Suwannee Mall Lift Station – 30.281140, -82.996443
• Baker Lift Station – 30.277182, -83.007131
• Sandra Lift Station – 30.287230, -83.006726
• Tara Trace Lift Station – 30.288614, -83.003438
• McNulty Lift Station – 30.295322, -82.993112
• 6th Street Lift Station – 30.299265, -83.004538
• Roberts Lift Station – 30.307360, -82.987640
• DOH Building – 30.308905, -82.989707
• Jenkins Lift Station – 29.964828, -82.934996
• Storm Water Lift Station – 29.963710, -82.927704
• Sisters Lift Station – 29.961622, -82.917845
• Fire Station 2 – 30.173531, -82.985907
• Fire Station 3 – 29.997764, -82.862484
• Fire Station 5 – 30.230165, -82.820896
• Landfill – 30.187584, -82.970173
• Maintenance Fuel Island – 30.303972, -83.017767
• Criminal Division – 30.296298, -82.962065
• Emergency Operations Center (EOC) – 30.295265, -82.998855
• Live Oak Tower – 30.217850, -82.989153
• Welborn Tower – 30.205168, -82.807462
• Branford Tower – 29.952298, -82.906618

Project Zip Code: 32064

Proposed Work and Purpose:

Suwannee County proposes to install emergency generators and transfer switches at critical facilities, including wastewater lift stations, fire stations, communication towers, and other essential service locations. During Hurricane Idalia, widespread electrical grid failure resulted in prolonged outages that severely impacted emergency response and essential public services. The proposed project will provide reliable backup power to ensure continuity of operations, protect public health and safety, and maintain essential services during future disasters.

Project Alternatives:

The alternatives to the project that have been and will be considered are 1) the no action alternative and 2) alternative feasible methods (e.g., relocation, acquisition, demolition). These alternatives to the proposed project are not viable because under Alternative 1); under this alternative, no generators or transfer switches would be installed. Critical facilities would remain vulnerable to power outages, resulting in continued service disruptions, delayed emergency response, and increased public safety risks. This alternative does not meet the needs of the community and is not practicable. and Alternative 2) Another alternative considered was renting portable generators during disaster events instead of installing permanent generators and transfer switches. While rental units can sometimes provide temporary power, this option is not feasible or reliable during large‑scale emergencies. During Hurricane Idalia, generator rental availability was extremely limited due to statewide demand, supply chain delays, and transportation constraints. Even when units are available, delivery times can be unpredictable, and setup requires staff and resources that may not be accessible during an active disaster. Relying on rental generators would not ensure uninterrupted power for critical facilities, would delay emergency response operations, and would not meet the County’s need for dependable, immediate backup power. Other alternatives such as relocating facilities or acquiring new sites were also evaluated but were determined to be cost‑prohibitive, operationally disruptive, and not aligned with maintaining continuity of essential public services. Therefore, these alternatives are not practicable.

Comment Period:

Comments are solicited from the public; local, state or federal agencies; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impact of the proposed project.  The comments should be made in writing and addressed to the Florida Division of Emergency Management, Bureau of Mitigation, 2555 Shumard Oak Blvd., Tallahassee, FL 32399-2100.  These are due within 30 days of this notice, February 25, 2026.  The State will forward comments to applicable regulatory agencies as needed.  Interested persons may submit comments, obtain more detailed information about the proposed action, or request a copy of the findings by contacting:

Jason Furry, County Administrator                                                   
(386) 364-3400
Suwannee County                                                                                              
[email protected]

State Environmental Specialist Team

Florida Division of Emergency Management        
[email protected]