$315M to fund Mobile, Baldwin projects

MOBILE, Ala. — A $315 million grant from the RESTORE Act and the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council will help fund projects in southwestern areas of the state.

Fifty projects will be given funding for infrastructure, environmental restoration and economic development, Al.com reported. The biggest include $56 million for five major road expansion projects in Baldwin County, $28 million for a new facility at the Port of Mobile, $27 million for projects affecting Dauphin Island’s Aloe Bay and $21 million to redevelop the docks in Bayou La Batre.

Funds will also help improve water-sewer systems and eliminate sewage overflows.

The money comes from penalties paid by companies involved in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.

The RESTORE Act established a trust fund to hold much of that money aside for “programs, projects, and activities that restore and protect the environment and economy of the Gulf Coast region.”

Eliska Morgan, the council’s executive director, said more than 400 projects were submitted by various organizations and government entities. Some that didn’t make the cut will be considered in the future.

“There are some really great ones,” Morgan said. “We’ve been working toward this end for some time.”