NEARLY $2.5 MILLION FOR GUANA PRESERVE, WASTEWATER SYSTEM, FSDB; FUNDS IN ADDITION TO FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR AREA TRANSPORTATION NEEDS

WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Representative John L. Mica (R-7th) today announced that federal assistance is on the way for several important community priorities in St. Johns County through an omnibus spending measure that was filed in Congress yesterday and nears completion.
The Guana-Tolomato-Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTMNERR) will receive $1,988,200 in federal funds to help complete construction of an environmental education center. In addition, the County will receive $347,935 for its central sewer system and the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind (FSDB) will get $99,410 for a Virtual Reality Based Education and Training Program.
"Protecting our environment and improving our education programs are some of the most important contributions Congress can make to enhance the well-being both of our region and the United States," stated Rep. Mica.
Designated in 1999 by the U.S. National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the GTMNERR is an important refuge for endangered species and critical wildlife habitat. An initiative has been launched to construct a major environmental education center which would serve as an invaluable resource for the study of natural sciences. The planned facility will contain multiple classrooms, an extensive library, teaching and working laboratories, aquariums and touch tanks, and an auditorium to accommodate visiting classes and tour groups. The nearly $2 million in federal assistance will provide the bulk of the costs needed to construct the facility.
Certain areas of St. Johns County currently suffer the ill effects of inadequate stormwater and septic tank infrastructure. Over the past two decades, surface water contamination has resulted in the closure of major components of the Tolomato and Matanzas waterways to shellfish harvesting, causing some harm to the local economy. County officials have commenced a Stormwater and Non-Functional Septic Tank Replacement Project to eliminate failing septic systems and restore the environmentally impacted Guana, Tolomato and Matanzas rivers. In particular, the federal funds of $347,935 will benefit the communities of West Augustine, Ponte Vedra, St. Augustine South and Anastasia Island.
Founded in 1885, the FSDB is a State-supported education institution for hearing and visually impaired students from preschool through the 12th grade. The School is working to expand its curriculum by establishing a Virtual Reality Based Education and Training Program, which will focus on improving the early development of children afflicted with hearing impairment. The Virtual Reality system was recently and successfully implemented at Kendal Demonstration Elementary School at Gallaudet University, the Ohio School for the Deaf and the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf.
The new funds for St. Johns County are in addition to federal assistance that has previously been announced for the area’s transportation needs. As part of that package, Rep. Mica helped secure the following:
$546,755 for the St. Augustine Intermodal Transportation & Parking Facility? $347,935 for new buses for the St. Johns County Council on Aging (COA)? $198,820 for a new bus operations facility and administrative center for the COA? ?$39,764 for passenger amenities and shelters for the COA?Rep. Mica continued, "It is only proper that the federal government return some of our citizens’ hard-earned taxdollars to improve the quality of life here in St. Johns County."The funds are included in an appropriations bill that completes the Federal Government’s budget requirements for Fiscal Year 2004, which began on October 1st, 2003. The measure is now expected to be given final approval in the House on December 8th, by the Senate on Dec. 9th and subsequently to be signed by the President.