Gainesville is hungry for a slice of Obama's $789-billion stimulus pie.
The city government has compiled a list of 121 projects, totaling over $860 million, that are ready to go but have no funding.
Projects range from a $125,000 remediation of Depot Park to a $48-million relocation of Gainesville Regional Utility's operation center.
One of the stimulus plan's major goals is to fund municipal projects, which will put cash into the economy immediately. On Wednesday, Congress finalized the economic stimulus package, which will be divided between businesses, state and local governments and tax payers. The Senate and House will vote on it soon, and the bill could be on the president's desk in days.
But details on how the stimulus will work are scarce.
How cash will be distributed to local governments, what types of projects will be funded and the amount of money available are all questions that will be answered in the near future.
Diane Wilson, a Gainesville Regional Utilities analyst, was willing to share her wish list.
"$40 million would be great to have," she said. "But that would be tough to get."
Wilson speculates that the stimulus package could bring between 50 and 500 jobs to the Gainesville community. While what projects get funded will be determined by the focus of the package, City Commissioner Jeanna Mastrodicasa has one favorite picked out.
"If there is an opportunity to build the Depot Avenue project, I'm particularly excited about that," she said.
Plans to build a park in the low-income area have been in the works for years, she said.
