Albion working on application for $4.5 million Forward NY grant

Photo by Tom Rivers: Albion Mayor Angel Javier Jr., right, and grantwriter Jay Grasso speak during a meeting Tuesday evening in the Village Hall about the $4.5 million Forward NY grant program.

ALBION – The Village of Albion is working to submit an application for the $4.5 million Forward NY grant program.

The village has already received proposals from business and building owners, as well as village-led projects on municipal land, that combined top $4 million. More projects are expected to be submitted for the program that could push the total to $6 to $7 million, said Jay Grasso of G & G Municipal Consulting and Grant Writing.

The Village Board next week will work G & G staff to prioritize the projects to be submitted for the application which is due the end of the month.

Grasso and G & G have held two public meetings at the Village Hall, Sept. 5 and Sept. 12, to go over the Forward NY and to encourage the community to submit projects and ideas. Both meetings drew a near full house to the Village Hall.

“Give me a project,” Grasso said at Tuesday’s meeting. “Go for it. Think of something exciting you want to do with your building.”

The reimbursement rates can vary on the projects with the grant covering at least 50 percent of the cost. Some of the grant for façade improvements can cover up to 75 percent of the cost.

One building owner wanted more specifics on the varying reimbursement rates. Gary Derwick said a 75 percent reimbursement rate is much more attractive than 50 percent.

Grasso said building owners aren’t committed to a project that they propose in the application.

He went over the goals of Forward NY. The program supports adaptive reuse of buildings, especially turning upper levels into apartments and living spaces, Grasso said.

The program targets vacant spaces rather than new construction. The state wants projects that elevate cultural, historical qualities “that enhance the feeling of small-town charm,” Grasso said.

The grant can’t be used for one project. The application must demonstrate $3 to $5 million “in multiple synergistic projects,” Grasso said.

Albion is a “prime candidate” for the NY Forward program, which seeks to boost communities that lost industries around which their town grew, such as the canal, railroad, coal and mill towns, he said.

“We often think of these as crossroads or bedroom towns, small business districts along corridors that connect major employment centers and magnet cities in the region,” Grasso said.

The applicants must submit a vision for the downtown and a slate of developable projects to achieve that vision. The regional economic development councils will review the applications and nominate winners. Albion is in the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council.

The application should include a full suite of synergistic projects that could include one or two anchor projects and a variety of smaller supporting projects.

Medina was awarded a $4.5 NY Forward on Feb. 13, and the village is finalizing a list of projects to be approved by the state. The Forward NY grants range from $2.75 million to $4.5 million.

The state started the program about a year ago to help more villages and hamlets access funding. The state was doing a $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative for each region and those grants tended to go to cities, with few villages getting the DRIs.

Albion Mayor Angel Javier Jr. said the Village Board will work with members of the Planning Board, Zoning Boards of Appeals and Historic Preservation Commission to review the proposals and try to build a strong application.

The village in January tried for a $2.5 million Restore NY grant for projects in the downtown. The village never received a formal acceptance or denial letter, but Grasso said it seems that application wasn’t approved. However, he has contacted many of the building owners in that application who have already done much of the preliminary work for a proposal.

Building owners, not-for-profit organizations and residents with ideas and projects can send an email to contact@ggprocess.com and request a form from Grasso to detail the proposal.

The project area is focused in the downtown area but Grasso said the boundaries can be stretched. He wants to include repairs to the chapel at Mount Albion Cemetery in the grant, and could propose a heritage trail to connect the cemetery to the downtown and Courthouse Square.

“We’re looking for projects that bring people here and keep people here,” Grasso said. “Shoot for the moon.”