ALBANY – Governor Andrew Cuomo Thursday launched two major economic development programs – the Upstate Revitalization Initiative and Round V of the Regional Economic Development Councils – officially kicking off the 2015 competitions for economic development resources in various regions of upstate New York.
The Economic development “Hunger Games” as some Albany media members have called it, will result in a total of $1.5 billion from the Revitalization Initiative and up to $750 million in Round V of the Regional Economic Development awards.
This year, the 10 Regional Councils – including Western New York – will once again compete for awards from up to $750 million in state economic development resources through Round V of the REDC competition.
Additionally, through the new Upstate Revitalization Initiative (URI), seven regions – Finger Lakes, Southern Tier, Central New York, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Capital District, and Mid-Hudson – are eligible to compete for three $500 million awards, which will be disbursed at a rate of $100 million per year for five years. Western New York has been excluded from the list because of the awarding of the ‘Buffalo Billion’ economic development initiative in 2013.
The Consolidated Funding Application opens to applicants today with a deadline of July 31.
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