A public forum to learn about the consolidated funding application for the Western New York Regional Economic Development Council will be held from 2 to 5 p.m. June 7, at Jamestown Community College.
The applications will be part of the process for the second round of grants through the Regional Economic Development Council system. The application is now open to applicants across the five-county Western New York region, which includes Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie and Niagara counties. Applications will be reviewed by the council based on their alignment with the council's strategic plan and will be reviewed on a technical basis by the applicable state agencies.
The second Regional Council competition will focus on the implementation of each region's strategic plan and identifying and investing in locally significant priority projects. Council members are interested in identifying as many quality projects as possible across the region that also are consistent with the region's strategic plan, which can be found at regionalcouncils.ny.gov/content/western-new-york.
"Through these workshops we are introducing the tools and methods for our local businesses to grow and succeed in Western New York," said Satish K. Tripathi, president of the University at Buffalo and council co-chair. "We will do everything we can to bring forward strong projects that are consistent with our regional vision and strategies to create good jobs, a dynamic economy and quality communities."
In 2011, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the creation of 10 Regional Economic Development Councils to transform New York's approach to economic development. Cuomo has now launched a second round of $750 million in economic development funding, including $220 million to implement regional strategic plans and support priority projects - $150 million in capital and $70 million in tax credits from the Excelsior Jobs Program - and more than $530 million from state agency programs through the consolidated funding application to support regionally significant economic development projects.
As part of the Regional Council initiative, the consolidated funding application was created to serve as the single application economic development projects must complete to be eligible to access the state resources that have been made available to support the Regional Councils. The application allows an agency to access multiple funding sources from dozens of existing programs through one comprehensive, web-based application, making it quicker and easier to receive funding.
For the second round, the CFA will provide access to economic development resources from 21 programs across a dozen state agencies. Improvements to the application in 2012 have made it more business-friendly. It will remain the primary portal for businesses to access state agency resources, including resources for community development, direct assistance to business, waterfront revitalization, energy and environmental improvements, sustainability, workforce development, agricultural economic development and low-cost financing.
Application materials are available online at nyworks.ny.gov.