FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Mayor Dean Trantalis said the $1.6 billion Fortify Fort Lauderdale project will transform the city’s stormwater management system.
It’s broken up into two phases and spread out across 25 areas.
“We have our work cut out for us, but we are definitely moving ahead quickly.”
Alexander Florence, who rides down Northwest Ninth Street in the Progresso Village, said heavy rain can flood the area anytime.
“When that water is coming up, that’s all your thinking is, ‘What am I going to do if it comes in my house?’ Because sandbags can only do so much,” Florence said.
The city is installing a new stormwater pump station along with thousands of feet of pipes underground.
Florence still remembers the 2023 catastrophic flooding that shut down the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, and it damaged homes and vehicles.
“Our Toyota Corolla ... I had to drive it through one of those massive puddles, and the car got totaled,” Florence said. “Thank God the water stopped before it got into our house.”
King tides are also a concern in areas like Riverwalk. The total project won’t be complete for about 10 more years.
“These are things that we are trying to catch up,” Trantalis said. “Fort Lauderdale has been behind in its commitment to infrastructure. Things that really should have started 10, 15, 20 years ago, we’re trying to make up for lost time.”
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