ITHACA, N.Y. — The Southern Tier is receiving more than $67 million for 83 projects as part of the annual Regional Economic Development Council awards. About $5 million of that total will go to initiatives in Tompkins County.
On Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced more than $755 million in economic and community development funding across the state.
“Over the past seven years, the Regional Economic Development Councils have successfully brought together the most innovative minds in economic development, fostering collaboration between state and local leaders to invest in New York’s regional resources from the ground up,” Cuomo said in a news release. “These awards are critical to building the foundations for New York’s future and ensuring that our economic momentum continues. I congratulate each of the Councils on their awards and look forward to continuing to partner to keep our communities vibrant and thriving for years to come.”
Last year, Tompkins County projects received about $3.2 million from the award program.
Related: Tompkins projects receive $3.2 million from economic development awards
The highest awards in Tompkins County went to Cornell University for an incubator for engineering and physical science entrepreneurship and to the History Center of Tompkins County for the planned Heritage Center on the Ithaca Commons. Other awards went to streambed repair in different areas, conservation efforts, development projects and job training.
Here is the project breakdown for projects in Tompkins County:
- Cornell Engineering and Physical Sciences Incubator Plus — $1,500,000 — CEPSI+ will renovate office space, build laboratories and other infrastructure to serve as a hub for engineering and physical science entrepreneurship at Cornell. It is expected to be an incubator for startups and a global magnet for startup investment capital.
- 100 West Development — $500,000 — The Downtown Ithaca Alliance will assist in the renovation of a group of buildings known as 100 West. This is the Press Bay Court project and the $500,000 will help pay for the first phase of renovations. The second phase of the project will be included in a grant application for Restore NY that will be sent this month.
- Six Mile Creek Watershed Conservation Partnership Land Acquisition and Restoration Project — $641,250 — The Finger Lakes Land Trust will place perpetual conservation easements on at least three priority parcels in the Six Mile Creek watershed and restore stream side riparian buffers where needed. The project will result in at least 300 acres of permanently protected lands.
- Professional Training at Franziska Racker Center — $49,957 — The center will provide existing direct support staff with an incentive to complete a four-module training curriculum resulting in a national accreditation from the National Alliance of Direct Support Professionals.
- Kitchen Theatre Company — $75,000 — The award will help Kitchen Theatre Company revamp and expand its training programs for young people.
- The History Center in Tompkins County — $1,365,000 — Funding will help as the History Center moves into the Tompkins Trust Building on the Ithaca Commons. The end result will be a Heritage Center, which will be a hub of culture, tourism and history. The total is a combination of two grants. $1,060,00 comes from an arts grant and the second comes from a Market New York grant, geared toward tourism.
- Cayuga Lake Stream Assessment and Implementation Program — $564,520 — This will include floodplain reconstructions and repairs to minimize sediment transport. The project will reduce sediment and phosphorus contributions with the Southern Shelf of Cayuga Lake.
- Brown Road Creek Streambank Stabilization Project in Danby — $435,322 — The Town of Danby will use rock and bioengineering techniques to eliminate erosion on Brown Road in the Town of Danby. The project will help water quality and prevent sediment from entering the Cayuga Lake watershed.
- Dryden Rail Trail Phase 1 — $182,000 — Dryden will create a non-motorized trail on the abandoned Lehigh Valley rail corridor. The project will include building two timber pile-and-beam railroad bridges over Cascadilla Creek.
- Dryden Housing Conditions Survey — $24,900 — The Town of Dryden will conduct a town-wide survey on housing conditions.
The full list of projects funded across the state is available here.