Central New York lands $103.7 million in state economic development money

The Post-Standard reported that the region’s economic development officials got more than they hoped for from a trip to Albany Thursday, bringing home $103.7 million in state economic development funds.

Rob Simpson, president of CenterState CEO and co-chair of the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council, said he was “thrilled” with the announcement. Members of the council have been meeting since July hammering out a list of projects that they thought could best improve the region that includes Onondaga, Oswego, Cayuga, Madison and Cortland counties.

The council’s plan included 30 projects and requests for $40 million in state funding. The state delivered $63.7 million more, including $14 million to renovate apartments in Lysander.

The extra millions came as a surprise. Council members had heard there was more money available from other state sources, but didn’t know the other projects were going to be included Thursday, said Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor, co-chair of the CNYREDC.

The announcement came at an Albany ceremony capping a process Gov. Andrew Cuomo laid out earlier this year.

The state was divided into 10 regions with an economic development council for each. The councils reviewed projects and chose which to include in a plan. The separate regional plans were presented last month to a state committee that chose four as “best plan awardees.”

The North Country, Western New York and Long Island were chosen, along with Central New York, as the best.

Cuomo had said each of the winners would get $40 million while the remaining six regions would split $40 million between them.

Financial news host Maria Bartiromo, emcee for Thursday’s event, introduced videos for each region, then announced that each had been awarded millions in grants, far more than the $200 million Cuomo had talked of. In all, awards of $785 million were announced.

The money came from the $200 million in targeted regional money and from an additional $800 million in money for which companies, housing authorities, non-profits and others had filed state consolidated funding applications.

Good as the news was for Central New York, it appeared that not every project chosen by the local council received state funding. Five projects — including those that would have renovated the Abbott House in Aurora and assisted in expansions at Dupli Envelope and Graphics, Ephesus Technologies, Champlain Valley Specialty Food and Healthway Home Products — did not make the final list.

The Central New York Regional Economic Development Council's largest single money request is for more than $5 million to complete work at the CNY Biotechnology Research Center at the former Kennedy Square apartments.
“If the project is not on there, it means it isn’t funded,” said Austin Shafran, spokesman for Empire State Development. Shafran said regional technical factors could keep a project from getting funding, even it was part of a winning plan.

One factor was how quickly the project would yield new jobs. “We’re ready to create jobs in the short term, for the long term,” he said.

Among the projects that were backed by the regional council and did land funding were:

•3 million for work to the Syracuse’s Inner Harbor.
•$3 million to equip space at the Syracuse Center of Excellence.
•$1.95 million to continue work at the Central New York Biotechnology Research Center and the nearby land.
•$150,000 to build a demonstration greenhouse in Madison County.
•$994,000 to help expand a winery in Cazenovia.
•More than $4 million in support for a dairy cooperative’s plan to build a plant in Cayuga County.
•$349,000 for expansion at the Fulton Companies in Oswego Counties.

Projects that had not been announced before included $14 million — the largest single award in Central New York — to renovate 208 apartments at Greenway in Radisson.

Greenway Apartments rents to people who make less than 80 percent of the area’s median income. Many tenants make less than 60 percent, said Arthur Loomis, a consultant for Liberty Affordable Housing, a Rome-based non-profit taking control of the facility.

“It’s shovel ready,” Loomis said. “The complex, while in good shape, is tired and needs updating. It’s going to be like a brand-new project.” Improvements include new siding, windows and sidewalks, as well as renovated kitchens and bathrooms, Loomis said. Much of the infrastructure hasn’t been updated since the complex was built in the mid-1970s, he said. The residents’ income doesn’t make it possible to renovate extensively without public help, he said.

Renovations to Centerville Court Apartments in North Syracuse won $3,349,255 in state support while efforts to buy and renovate James Street Apartments in Syracuse got $9 million.

In Cayuga County, some $400,000 was announced for the Howland Stone Store Museum in the hamlet of Sherwood. That money is to restore “Opendore,” once home to the Howland family.

In Madison County, the state added $75,000 to provide emergency repairs to the homes of low-income, elderly residents.

In Oswego County, Grassman Energy was awarded $716,500 toward its efforts to begin design and manufacturing of wind turbines of the sort that can be seen at Carousel Center and atop the State University College at Oswego.

Before the winners were announced, Cuomo explained that the regional approach was part of a two-part effort to create jobs in New York.

The first part, he said, was improving the state’s image by improving the reality for business. That meant removing obstacles to job creation.

The second was giving the state’s region more say over what sort of development should be encouraged. “There is no single New York economy,” he said. “You know your strengths; you know your niche.”

Cuomo was joined at the ceremony by Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. The three said separately that they were so pleased with how the process worked that they had already agreed to fund a similar effort next year.

“Three minutes — I’ve never had as short a conversation to get anything done,” Cuomo said of the backstage discussion with Skelos and Silver.