Sen. Tom Wright presented a state funding check to the Port Orange City Council on the council chamber floor, saying the appropriation would support stormwater resiliency and flood mitigation work for the city. "I'm honored to provide you with a check tonight for $4,400,000 in the state of Florida," Wright said.

City leaders described the award as a record-level appropriation for Port Orange and said the funds will be applied to projects to protect neighborhoods and waterways. Mayor Sillman and other council members thanked Wright and his staff for helping the city navigate state funding channels and pointed to earlier technical assistance that led the city to apply for Resilient Florida grant funding.

The city manager and staff said the award comes at a time of urgent need given recent storms and chronic flooding. City staff described coordination with state staff and noted that Port Orange already has applied for a Resilient Florida grant after staff and legislators helped the city identify that funding stream. City officials said the award will accelerate project permitting and construction once local plans and contracts are in place.

Council members and staff praised Wright for spending time with city engineers and for helping point the city to multiple state funding options. The mayor said the city had not received funding of this scale from the state before; he later spoke in the chamber with a numerical figure that differed from Wright's spoken amount, a discrepancy that was not resolved during the meeting.

No action item, ordinance or appropriation vote was taken at the meeting itself to authorize spending the funds; council members said staff would proceed with project planning and permitting to put the money to use once formal agreements and project details are completed.