The Alachua County legislative delegation is requesting funds for University of Florida Health, Archer Road, the UF College of Dentistry and Santa Fe College for the 2026-2027 fiscal year.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis proposed a $117.4 billion state budget for this year called the “Floridians First” budget. The budget is used for education, health and human services, infrastructure projects, tax relief and transportation across the state.
Alachua County is seeking approximately $141 million for 40 projects. The projects range from infrastructure projects across Gainesville, renovations to recreational areas and sewer systems in Archer and water distribution system improvements in Micanopy, according to Mainstreet Daily News.
Here are four of the biggest projects the funding will support:
University of Florida Health: Alzheimer’s and Dementia Research Program
UF Health is requesting $5 million from the state for its Dementia and Alzheimer’s research. According to a document from the Florida Senate, Florida Sen. Stan McClain is sponsoring the funding request.
Florida is among the fastest-aging states, with approximately 25% of the population projected to be older than 65 by 2030. There are currently more than 580,000 people in the state with Alzheimer’s disease.
UF Health has been among the top research institutions in the state advancing the study of these diseases. UF has established a high-level program that has made its scientific discoveries into therapies for patients, and these funds are crucial to the development of major initiatives at the school and throughout the state.
The spending is being allocated to three sections.
The first section covers salaries and benefits.The request document states that $3 million will support 60 researchers and physician-scientists. The funds will also support trainees and postdoctoral fellows who will conduct research in relevant areas.
The second section is for travel expenses, equipment and supplies. The request includes $1.75 million for state-of-the-art equipment to support research at the 1Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Center consortium, which includes elite researchers and clinicians from across the state.
The final $250,000 will support data collection for the 1Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Center and the development of dementia models, which include care and clinical frameworks made specifically to help treat the disease, at the Center for Translational Research in Neurodegenerative Disease.
UF Dental Science Building
Florida state Rep. Robert Brannan III is sponsoring a request for $47.5 million for the renovation of the UF Dental Sciences Building. The building has a proposed three-phase renovation process expected to finish in 2030, according to UF News.
According to a state senate document, Senator Keith Perry also sponsored the building in 2022 with a $58.3 million request. The project’s total cost is $200 million.
The first phase of the renovation is fixing the exterior of the building with a modern, durable and waterproof panel system to address water intrusion.
The second phase, which includes a three-story addition to the building, is expected to begin construction in the fall and will finish sometime in 2028, according to the UF College of Dentistry.
The final stage includes renovations to specific areas of the building. The project will add more than 100,000 square feet of teaching and patient-care space.
“The research done here will be transformative and add to the glory of this institution,” UF Interim President Donald Landry said when the building project broke ground.
The goal is to transform the 50-year-old building into one that will lead UF and its dentistry program into the next 50 years by making it more attractive to the recruitment of world-class faculty and resident dental practices.
Santa Fe Workforce Innovation Training Center
The third project involves a new 15,300-square-foot center for Santa Fe College to support workforce and innovation training. The idea is to help local businesses by supporting the skills of the unemployed and underemployed, and by providing structured, customized training for students, both credit and non-credit, according to a document from the Senate sponsored by Sen. Jennifer Bradley.
The goal is to increase access to higher education and support campus growth, including in nearby rural areas, while driving economic development in collaboration with the workforce.
The center is designed for current students, unemployed or underemployed adults, and employers seeking workers. It will help train existing and future employees.
According to the document, the project's price is almost $16 million and is expected to begin construction on Nov. 30, 2027, and finish on Feb. 28, 2029.
Four-lane widening of Archer Road
The fourth project is the widening of Alachua County State Road 24, better known as Archer Road. The expansion runs from the intersection of Archer Road and Southwest 122nd Street to Southwest 75th Street, known as Tower Road.
According to the state Senate request form, the project, which is sponsored by Sen. McClain, costs $2.75 million to complete the planning, development and environmental studies, as well as the design work, for the project. This is the second year in a row McClain has sponsored the developmental phase of the project; the first time was in 2025, and the request was for $2.6 million.
The expected outcome is to expand service capacity for vehicular traffic, including goods movement and safe travel for emergency vehicles, according to the document. The Florida Department of Transportation reported in 2024 that the annual average daily traffic, which is total yearly traffic divided by 365 days, was 22,500 on Archer Road between Southwesst 130the Terrace and Southwesst 75th Street.
The project will reduce traffic congestion, leading to shorter commutes and safer travel. This will give residents greater access to local businesses, strengthen the economic infrastructure and increase job opportunities.
Construction is expected to begin in January 2028 and finish in December 2032.
Total Budget
Of the $141 million total budget for the Alachua County project, more than half is being allocated to these four projects.