Brevard County transportation officials optimistic about funding for Cocoa Brightline station
Last year Brevard County’s hopes of getting its own passenger rail Brightline station in Cocoa hit a setback when a $47.46 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration was denied.
This year, however, transportation officials are more optimistic that the needed federal money will come through.
At the Oct. 14 meeting of the Brevard County Commission, commissioner Thad Altman said his conversations with the Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization had give him hope that the project would be eligible for federal funding, despite no projects being approved in last year’s grant cycle.
“We really got some fantastic news… the staff of the TPO have never felt more positive ever that we will very possibly get funding for the new Brightline rail station in Cocoa. That’s a huge gamechanger for Brevard County and all of east Central Florida,” Altman said.
Cocoa and Space Coast transportation officials seek federal grant for Brightline station on Clearlake Road
There is currently $5 billion in federal money available for rail projects across the country. While the exact amount Cocoa and Brightline could get for the station isn’t known, it’s expected to be near the $47.46 million figure sought last time.
Grant submissions will need to be sent by January of 2026 with an expected notification by Spring, according to Abby Hemenway, spokeswoman for the SCTPO.
“The Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization remains committed to working alongside the City of Cocoa and our regional partners to make the Cocoa Station a reality. We are optimistic about the opportunities ahead, including applying together for the reissued National Railroad Partnership Program grant,” said Georganna Gillette, SCTPO Executive Director.
Cocoa spokeswoman Samantha Senger said the city is hopeful that the grant funding will come through in this next funding cycle with the project now further along than it was last year.
“We’ve heard positive feedback that our chances of receiving grant funding are pretty good. We were a little disappointed that the last grant didn’t fund it for anybody,” Senger said.
“We’re further along in the project as far as working to do the preliminary design of the station. We finished the environmental work that needed to be done, which wasn’t complete last time. They tend to select projects that are closer to construction,” she added.
The station would be built along Brightline’s Orlando-to-Miami route located on an undeveloped site off Clearlake Road, near State Roads 524 and 528.
With the preliminary site plan in the works and a new memorandum of understanding between the city and Brightline signalling a coordinated will to complete the station, Senger said everything is in place to make sure a passenger rail station is a sure thing for Brevard County’s future.
Add to that support from the legislature and elected officials across Brevard County and “all of those factors help the project.”
Other Cocoa, Florida Brightline station funding sources
While the federal grant money sought by Cocoa and the SCTPO represents the bulk of funding for the project, it will not cover the entire cost.
The Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization’s Governing Board designated a total of $15.5 million in federal grant money it is targeted to receive in future years to help cover design and construction work for the proposed station.
Brevard County commissioners also approved $5 million in funding for the station that would be combined with $5 million directly from the city of Cocoa. The county money comes from revenue generated by Brevard County’s 5% tourist development tax on hotel rooms, vacation rentals and other short-term rentals.
There is also another $2 million federal appropriations money designated for the project.
In addition, Brightline is donating land it owns valued at $6.25 million for the project. Brightline also would pay for operations and maintenance expenses of the station, estimated to cost about $3 million a year.
Tyler Vazquez is the Growth and Development Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Vazquez at 321-480-0854 or tvazquez@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @tyler_vazquez.
