MANATEE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNMENT RELATIONS

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT - DISASTER RECOVERY (CDBG-DR)

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR CDBG-DR DRAFT ACTION PLAN

Anyone who requires a reasonable accommodation, such as an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication, to participate in the County’s programs, services, or activities should contact Carmine DeMilio, ADA Compliance Coordinator, at (941) 748-4501, ext. 6016 or [email protected], at least 3 business days prior to any applicable scheduled meeting. If you are deaf/hard of hearing and require the services of an interpreter, please contact the Florida Relay Service at 711. 

ACTION AND PUBLIC HEARINGS

Notice is hereby given that Manatee County (the County) is presently seeking public comment on its Draft Community Development Block Grant  Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Action Plan (the Plan). The Plan describes the methods the County will use to distribute funds it expects to receive from HUD for recovery efforts in Manatee County as a result of Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton. The Plan also contains information on proposed activities to be completed to support program implementation.

Manatee County will hold two public hearings as follows:

Public Hearing 1

LOCATION:        

John Marble Recreation Center
3675 53rd Ave E,
Bradenton, FL 34203

DATE:                  

Tuesday, June 3, 2025

TIME:                  

6:30 p.m.

A public hearing to collect public comments and engage residents and stakeholders of Manatee County will be held on June 3, 2025, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at John Marble Recreation Center, at 3675 53rd Ave E, Bradenton, FL 34203. This meeting location is physically accessible to individuals with disabilities.

Public Hearing 2

LOCATION:        

Eternity Temple Church
716 29th St E,
Palmetto, FL 34221

DATE:                  

Thursday, June 12, 2025

TIME:                  

6:00 p.m.

A public hearing to collect public comment and engage residents and stakeholders of Manatee County will be held on June 12, 2025, beginning at 6:00 p.m. at Eternity Temple Church, at 716 29th St E, Palmetto, FL 34221. This meeting location is physically accessible to individuals with disabilities.

PURPOSE

Manatee County has completed a CDBG-DR Draft Action Plan to identify the impacts, long-term needs, and proposed uses for $252,711,000 in CDBG-DR funding allocated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as a result of the 2024 Hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declaration numbers for these presidentially declared disasters are DR-4806-FL (Debby), DR-4828-FL (Helene), and DR-4834-FL (Milton). The County has branded it CDBG-DR efforts under the “Lasting Manatee” initiative, which also may be denoted as “Lasting Manatee (CDBG-DR)”.

The purpose of the public hearing is to afford members of the general public an opportunity to provide comment on the Lasting Manatee CDBG-DR Draft Action Plan. The Draft Action Plan may be reviewed online at: www.mymanatee.org/lastingmanatee. A hard copy of the Draft Action Plan may be viewed at any Manatee County Library location, except the children’s Little Discovery Center location, on or after Wednesday, May 28, 2025. Library locations can be found online by visiting the Manatee County website at www.mymanatee.org/connect/locations/library-locations, or by contacting the Manatee County 311 Information Service at the telephone number  (941) 748-4501 or the email address [email protected]. 

COMMENT PERIOD

Now that the CDBG-DR Action Plan was published on May 21, 2025, there will be a 30-day comment period to allow residents and stakeholders additional opportunity to provide comment.

Comments concerning the CDBG-DR Action Plan can be submitted as follows:

• In person at the public hearings detailed above
• Via email at: [email protected]
• Online at: www.mymanatee.org/lastingmanatee
• Via telephone at: (941) 742-4787
• Via mail at:

Manatee County, Government Relations
Attn: Lasting Manatee 
1112 Manatee Avenue West
Bradenton, FL 34205

Comments will be accepted until Friday, June 20, 2025.

SUMMARY

Lasting Manatee (CDBG-DR) is committed to ensuring all stakeholders, especially low- and moderate-income persons and those from the most impacted communities have meaningful access to and engagement with recovery efforts and opportunities.

In accordance with the County’s Citizen Participation Plan and requirements of applicable Federal Register Notice(s), members of the community are encouraged to participate and share their feedback and concerns around the use of CDBG-DR funds which will be incorporated into the development of the final CDBG-DR Action Plan.

NOTICE OF FRAUD

The HUD Office of the Inspector General Hotline is (800) 347-3735 or (800) 877-8339 (TTY). This hotline provides callers with information on how to report fraud, waste, and abuse complaints. The Manatee County Confidential Fraud Hotline at (314) 615-7000 is another avenue for citizens, vendors and County employees to report suspected fraud or waste of public funds or resources for reporting issues involving Manatee County Government only. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

All program materials including this Public Notice and the Draft Action Plan can be found online at the Manatee County CDBG-DR webpage linked below:

www.mymanatee.org/lastingmanatee