Subject:
Title
Execution of Florida Division of Emergency Management Watershed Master Plan Grant Agreements for the West Brevard Watershed Master Plan - Grant H1499 and the Salt Lake Watershed Master Plan - Grant H1530
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Fiscal Impact:
West Brevard Watershed Master Plan - Revenue of $300,000 in Federal Grants administered through the Florida Division of Emergency Management and $100,000 Match from Stormwater Utility Funds
Salt Lake Watershed Master Plan - Revenue of $300,000 in Federal Grants administered through the Florida Division of Emergency Management and $100,000 Match from Public Works Road and Bridge District 1 MSTU Funds
Dept/Office:
NaturaI Resources Management Department &
Public Works Department
Requested Action:
Recommendation
It is requested that the Board of County Commissioners approve and authorize the Chair to execute the grant agreements upon review by the County Attorney’s Office, Risk Management, and Purchasing and authorize the County Manager to 1) Execute the contracts and all future amendments and modifications for the grant upon review by the County Attorney’s Office, Risk Management, and Purchasing; 2) Execute all contracts, task orders and change orders, as required including those in excess of $200,000, to accomplish work approved under the grant agreements upon review by the County Attorney’s Office, Risk Management, and Purchasing; and 3) Authorize the County Manager to approve related budget change requests.
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Summary Explanation and Background:
The Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) opened up applications for Federal Emergency Management funded Watershed Master Planning Grants in the spring of 2026. Natural Resources and Public Works both applied for planning grants. Natural Resources applied for the entire county draining to the St. Johns River and Public Works applied for the Salt Lake area incorporating in and near Titusville. Both grants have been approved for funding by FDEM pending contract execution. The grant total for each grant is $400,000 with $300,000 provided by FDEM and the required matching funds of $100,000 per grant provided by Natural Resources through the Stormwater Utility funds and Public Works through Road and Bridge District 1 MSTU funds.
A coastal ridge runs along the west side of the IRL, dividing the County’s main watersheds into the IRL watershed to the east and the St. Johns River watershed to the west. The portion of the County that lies within the St. Johns River watershed is referred to as the “West Brevard” watershed. The watershed covers over 660 square miles and comprises over 50% of Brevard County’s total area. A significant portion of the West Brevard area is low-lying with wetland sloughs and marshes and older agricultural drainage systems leading to the St. Johns River.
Many of the FEMA floodplains in this area are classified as Zone A and have no base flood elevation information established. Most of the areas mapped with base flood elevations in the watershed are based only on flood levels of the St. Johns River and most of the lakes, streams, sloughs, and channels draining to the river have not been mapped. Flooding occurs along many of these systems. Among these areas are the neighborhoods near Parkland, Dairy Road, and Westwood Villas which experienced significant flooding in October 2025 and lie within the South Lake study area.
The proposed modeling efforts would integrate existing models and leverage current modeling underway by the St. Johns River Water Management District, Natural Resources, and Public Works to create an integrated and expandable stormwater model and add additional fine scale modeling for planning and design of future flooding and pollution remediation projects and master planning efforts.
Clerk to the Board Instructions:
Please execute two copies of each grant contract agreement, one copy for the State of Florida Division of Emergency Management and one for Natural Resources Management and one copy for the State of Florida Division of Emergency Management and Public Works.