Press release:
On Thursday, Governor Cuomo announced $785 million in economic development funding through Regional Economic Development Councils. A $450,000 portion has been carved out for the City of Batavia to improve commercial and residential mixed-use buildings.
The city had applied to the NYS Office of Community Renewal in April for these grant funds which are earmarked to enhance streetscapes and to renovate 20 buildings consisting of 10 commercial and 10 residential units within downtown.
The application was reviewed again by the Regional Economic Development Council during the state’s newly defined consolidated funding application process. Overall, it was an extended process compared to previous rounds for competitive applications. The total project will be at least $750,000 worth of public-private investment.
“The city is extremely pleased that we were awarded these funds,” said Jason Molino, city manager. “It complements the city’s strategic planning efforts and the city council’s commitment to revitalizing the civic heart of our community.”
A variety of properties were identified in the original application along Main Street, East Main Street, Center Street, Jackson Street, Court Street and School Street. Also included was the former Carr’s warehouse located at 13-15 Jackson St., rear. Just last week, the Batavia Development Corporation began to solicit developer interest in the property for redevelopment purposes.
“I am thrilled that we may dangle a little carrot in front of the prospective developers,” added Julie Pacatte, Batavia Development Corporation economic development coordinator. “Not to mention, it demonstrates the forward-thinking efforts of the city leadership.”
Pacatte was not as pleased with the lack of state funding for the new Save-A-Lot store planning to open Dec. 21 at Ellicott and Jackson streets.
“It was a very competitive process with hundreds of applications across the state,” she said. “We have already begun to look at other options to assist.”
Along with the Save-A-Lot project, the City of Batavia had also applied for Vine Street infrastructure improvements and a grant for the needed repairs to the police station. Those projects weren't funded either.
As for the NY Main Street grant, it is expected the state contract process will take another 30-60 days to complete. Meanwhile, the grant funds will not likely be available until early Spring 2012.
In all, Genesee County received $1.9 million out of the Finger Lakes Region award of $68.8 million for 93 projects. Another $1.1 million is available for the county through shared programming with other out-of-county communities.
