Holmes County commissioners on Tuesday discussed how to improve the county’s chances for state Department of Transportation funding, agreed to split a large road application into smaller phases, and directed staff to finalize priority requests for the legislature, including a proposed jail expansion.

The discussion began during the agenda item identified as “2025 scrap shop applications,” when staff reported DOT reviewers told the county to be more thorough in applications. Commissioner comments and staff input led the board to decide to repackage project 179 — a large multi‑phase road project that already has phase 1 completed — into smaller phases so parts could be submitted as separate DOT grant applications. Commissioners also asked staff and engineers to prioritize two smaller, previously engineered projects (referred to in the meeting as Monica Chipley and “10A”) as the top submittals, with phase 2 and 3 of project 179 listed after them.

Why it matters: County officials said DOT funding is limited and that larger single requests are less likely to be funded. Commissioners cited past experience where applications were rejected for being incomplete or too large, and they want engineers to provide more detailed cost, invoice and condition documentation to improve scoring.

Key points from the meeting:

- Staff reported DOT feedback that prior applications were “poorly submitted” and incomplete, and that reviewers expect detailed engineering and cost information. Whitney (staff) told the board DOT asked for “go further detail into the application process.”

- Commissioners proposed breaking the large project 179 (previously described in the meeting as approaching about $3 million for a phase) into multiple smaller phases so at least part of the work could be funded. One commissioner said, “Break this up 2 projects, then submit them as 2 projects. We get funded for both.”

- The board agreed to prioritize the submittals as follows: (1) Monica Chipley, (2) project 10A, then phase 2/3 of project 179. Staff were directed to have engineers prepare the revised scope, cost estimates and invoice history for resubmission.

- Commissioners discussed other recent DOT funding already on hold for the county, noting outstanding projects totaling “almost $10,000,000” in one district (comments referenced amounts for projects on county roads 181 and 185). One commissioner said the county has about $28 million “from 2018 till current,” referring to funds or projects tracked since that period.

- Deadlines mentioned: a mid‑March DOT application window was referenced for submission; and for legislative appropriations, staff said February 7 is the deadline to get requests to Representative Abbott’s office so he can file by February 14.

Legislative appropriations and jail expansion

The board also spent significant time on legislative appropriations. Staff and a consultant (identified in the meeting as Tim and referenced organizations including Liberty Partners) recommended the county prioritize a proposal for a jail expansion (described in the meeting as a 90‑bed facility or an annex) as the top appropriation request to the legislature. Commissioners discussed funding scale and strategies.

- Cost estimates discussed: staff said a comparable 90‑bed build in another county had a probable cost of about $20,000,000. Meeting participants also suggested a smaller request (in the $9–10 million range) or splitting funding across sessions (design first, then construction) to make the ask more feasible.

- Strategy: Commissioners and advisers discussed asking for smaller, targeted appropriations (for design, foundation, or initial phases) rather than a single large sum. One adviser said Representative Abbott had recommended aiming for about $1,000,000 per request to increase prospects for funding.

- The board directed staff to finalize numbers and return with firm cost estimates at the next meeting so the county can submit prioritized appropriation requests by the February deadlines.

Other business

The board briefly noted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Florida Boating Improvement Program and a registration fee funding source; an FWC program deadline in early February was mentioned. The meeting closed with a motion to adjourn.

Attribution and context

Quotes in this article are drawn from county meeting remarks during the agenda items on DOT project applications and legislative appropriations. The board’s direction was to have engineers prepare more thorough applications, to split large projects into smaller phases for DOT submittal, and to finalize appropriation numbers and priorities for the February deadlines. The transcript does not show a formal recorded roll‑call vote on the prioritization; the board’s action is presented in the meeting as direction/agreement and further work for staff rather than a formal ordinance or resolution.