PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Part of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ budget proposal includes $600 million for the My Safe Florida Home and Condo grant programs.
The goal of the program is to lower property insurance premiums by cost sharing approved projects that harden homes and make them more hurricane ready.
Of that nearly $600 million proposed specially for homes, $480 million would help the 45,000 homeowners statewide who have completed inspections and are waiting on additional funding to be able to proceed. A total of $109 million would be to provide roughly 10,000 new inspections to get homeowners started with the process.
An additional $30 million would be set aside for condo owners. The pilot program launched for the first time late last year, and current funds are already maxed out.
Greg Wickham, President of the Land's End Community Association in Treasure Island, started eyeing the program in early 2024 when it was first announced. Anticipating the application process opening, he and a team of residents compiled all of the documents needed in the first half of 2024 and waited for more information from the state.
Wickham said a fellow resident checked the state’s application website daily, and in September or October of last year the application period opened and they jumped right on it.
“Then we were pretty promptly notified that they were closed, meaning they had run out of money already or run out of money to allocate,” he explained. “So our other people didn’t get in but a few did at this location. Then we were told to wait and someone would contact us from the office of the government to come over and see the property and what we were proposing.”
Wickham said Land’s End is still waiting for a visit from the state, but he’s happy to hear more funding is a priority in the 2024 legislative session.
“There are others nearby who are even worse off than us," he said. "And if it helps them get what they need, then it’s a good thing."
